Creating a White Garden

 

White Drift Rose

This is our new house! 

THE PROBLEM: Overgrown shrubs were blocking the front view, and hiding the windows, the door, and the sidewalk.


THE FIX: Rip out all the shrubs and start fresh. 


THE IDEA: A White Garden. This is a perennial garden with shrubs/small trees as a structural backdrop, filled in with mostly white perennials, some white annuals, and pops of blue and purple for fun. Here is a photo of the first season of our white garden...now you can see the doors, windows, and sidewalk!




THE PLAN: Original plan was for 3 main plantings--giant blue hostas, burgundy ninebark, and white drift roses. The hardiness zone for Tiverton is 6B-7A.

PROBLEM: Deer! We have a lot of wildlife in this neighborhood, and the deer LOVE hostas. Like, a lot. They eat those suckers down to the nub.

SUBSTITUTION: Dwarf globe blue spruce instead of hostas. It has a gorgeous blue-silver color, plus it's an evergreen and adds great texture.

Drift roses have continuous blooms all summer on a creeping growth habit. The ninebarks have graceful branching and a rich burgundy color. The spruce has a spiky texture and globular shape, and the color is silvery-blue.

PARTIAL PLANT LIST:
  • Dwarf globe blue spruce 
  • Serviceberry
  • Deutzia
  • Lilac "Sensation"
  • Multiple hydrangeas, blue and white
  • Ninebark, Tiny Wine and Donna May
  • Pennisetum "Karley Rose" grass
  • Blue Star juniper
  • White drift roses

Here are some of the shrubs and assorted perennials and annuals...

Daisy

Deutzia

Serviceberry

Japanese Anemone

Annual

Astilbe

Coreopsis Big Bang Star Cluster

Hydrangea

White Drift Roses

Dwarf globe blue spruce

Siberian iris

Scabiosa

Sea Holly

Karley Rose grass

🌿HOT TIP: When planning your perennial garden, remember to mix up textures, sizes, shapes, and colors for interest. And don't forget seasonal changes! That pretty tender perennial will die back in winter, so be sure to have something for winter interest, too. 

I was surprised how well all the plantings filled in during the first growing season. This spring we'll find out what survived the winter, and add some more perennials and bulbs to the mix.

Happy Gardening!

Penny

#simpleliving #coastalliving #RhodeIsland #organicgarden #perennials #gardenrenovation

Popular Posts