Very Peri

By Priscilla Husband, Agway Garden Coach

We are always looking for inspiring ways to add color to our gardens and this year we found it at Pantone! The Pantone Color Institute has chosen “very peri” as the color of the year for 2022. Executive director, Leatrice Eiseman describes the color as displaying a “spritely, joyous attitude and dynamic presence that encourages courageous creativity and imaginative expressions.” Indeed, it does!

It is always helpful in understanding the placement of hot and cool colors in the palette of our flower gardens, but it’s also helpful to remember there are no rules! I always ask clients what their favorite colors are because in the end what brings us joy should be our focus when we garden.

Every color is an opportunity to contrast it with another, and so when Pantone announced that periwinkle was the color of the year I began thinking of complimentary colors to it. Susan Wile, second generation owner of Agway of Cape Cod and now lovingly referred to as Agway Mom, describes this color as a “dramatic intense blue-violet, appearing in some of our favorite hydrangeas and tropical plumbagos. Green foliage accents this color perfectly.”

New shades of colors are created every year to inspire us. If you’ve ever spent time in a paint store, you know that color is more than it seems. This summer as we choose new plantings for our gardens remember color is all around us. Consider the many shades of plant foliage, the colors of your planters and even the color of your house as you explore combinations. Let’s shake things up and experiment with the world of color that nature has supplied for us!