A well-designed landscape provides seasonal interest year-round. Our Midwest weather dictates the plants and elements we can choose to deliver ever-changing colors and textures. Properly selected plants during the appropriate seasons can vary from subtle color combinations to vibrant contrasting pizzazz. Spring, summer, fall and even winter displays are possible in your landscape with some careful planning and an eye for design. A seasonal cycle of budding flowers, blooming petals, and lush greenery remind us of the wonders that nature has to offer.
Timing is Everything
As summer finally arrives and the proverbial threat of frost has passed, planting summer annuals becomes a high priority during late May and early June, for homeowners and industry professionals alike. Planting now before the summer heat arrives is optimal to allow your plants to become established and well-rooted. Color and texture combinations for use in containers and ground beds are endless. One can’t help but notice the artistry portrayed in the amazing displays created by seasonal color professionals.
Color for every season
As the term “annual flower” indicates, seasonal color is defined as: new plantings installed every season to achieve the desired appearance. Unlike perennial flowers, annuals are removed at the end of a particular season to be replaced with the next season’s selection.
A typical four-season rotation provides vibrant early spring color using bulbs and cold-hardy annuals which are replaced with warmer weather summer flowers around Memorial Day. Spring bulbs give us early color that peek through the snow while most plants are still in dormancy.
The summer palette of flowers opens the imagination to clusters of vibrant colors to captivate onlookers. Selection of summer annual flower varieties and colors has increased tremendously with flower growers’ research and improvements in propagation techniques.
As the summer wanes, fall mums, kale, and cold-hardy pansies replace the cold sensitive summer plants until next year. Autumn displays coordinate with the natural native plants to bring a beautiful transition to the season ahead.
Winter interest has become popular by providing arrangements of cut evergreen boughs, colorful cut branches from red dogwoods and curly willow, accented with pinecones and white birch branches and stems.
We are here to help
We have heard that color captures the imaginations, soothes and heals, and lifts our spirits. At Night Light, we partner with some of the most creative landscape professionals that offer seasonal color design for residential and commercial properties alike. If you would like some help with a seasonal color program, click here to send an inquiry to our referral portal.