The color gurus at Pantone have anointed “Very Peri” as THE color for the coming year.

In its usual flowery prose, Pantone describes Very Peri as a “red violet infused blue hue” that inspires “carefree confidence” and “bold curiosity.” It’s so cool, it’s “a symbol of the global zeitgeist.” Wow!

At ECG, we pay attention to this annual decision. Why? Because your customers do.

Confidently, curiously or unconsciously, home gardeners will see, and buy, Veri Peri even if they’ve never heard of the Color of the Year. Why? Because it’s already everywhere, in clothing, furniture and outdoor accessories. Offer them flowers that play well with the COTY! You can make it easy with:

Platycodon ‘Astra Blue’

“Balloon flower” is named for its “inflated” flower buds that go Pop! with a clap of a child’s hands. Let ‘em pop ‘em! A kid who associates gardening with fun just might become a lifelong gardener. We can’t have too many of those! Five-petaled starry flowers bloom for two months. Toothy blue-green leaves are attractive with or without flowers.

Height: 8 – 10”.

Hardy in Zones 4 – 9. 

Stokesia ‘Mel’s Blue’

Stokes’ aster is a striking native whose 4” flowers are loved by pollinators. Fluffy, feathery, periwinkle-blue petals surround pincushion centers. Deep grass-green strappy foliage.

Height: 12 – 15”.

Hardy in Zones 5 – 9.

COLOR COMPLEMENTS

Across the color wheel from Very Peri’s saturated purple/blue you’ll find its red, yellow and orange wingmen. That range includes too many to list here, but you’ll find plenty in one long-blooming native genus, known as “blanket flower.”

Gaillardia Spintop Series

All four varieties feature broad, flat, toothy-tipped petals that bloom from summer into fall. Compact mounds just 12” high. Hardy in Zones 3 – 10.

Get the cultivars you crave in the liners you love. The zeitgeist? No extra charge. We’re Emerald Coast Growers – your easy choice!