Gardening Guides
Wake Up Your Garden With Magenta Magnificence
Resplendent and memorable, magenta plantings can invigorate the landscape and compel the eye to linger
There are some colors that gardeners tend to abhor. Magenta might top the list. It is garish and ridiculously loud — a showoff. Most gardeners shun the color and reach instead for the palest shades of blush, deep shades of violet and lovely whites that light up the garden at night.
I think we should give magenta another shot, though. Paired with cooler tones, used as a sprinkle or a focal point, magenta can truly become a star instead of a stumbling block in your garden. Let's check out some beautiful gardens with magenta as their showpiece.
I think we should give magenta another shot, though. Paired with cooler tones, used as a sprinkle or a focal point, magenta can truly become a star instead of a stumbling block in your garden. Let's check out some beautiful gardens with magenta as their showpiece.
One of my favorite magenta plants is simply named "pinks." Known properly as Dianthus, this classic diminutive plant is a low grower that can light up the edges of pathways and borders.
Magenta is one of those hard-to-pin-down colors somewhere between blue and red, in the purple-pink range.
Magenta is the name of a little town in Italy where a battle occurred between European forces. The bloodshed was said to be so ghastly that the fields were stained reddish purple. After the battle a dye was developed in the region, made from coal tar. This dye was named magenta in remembrance of those fields of battle.
Magenta is the name of a little town in Italy where a battle occurred between European forces. The bloodshed was said to be so ghastly that the fields were stained reddish purple. After the battle a dye was developed in the region, made from coal tar. This dye was named magenta in remembrance of those fields of battle.
Cool blue and gray foliage is a perfect complement for bright and bold magenta, such as in these African daisies. The surrounding foliage tones the color down, cooling its rambunctiousness and offering a background where magenta can shine.
Pairing magenta with gray foliage along with a pinkish-purple brick is a great way to highlight this trio of well-matched color cousins.
Magenta plays off of bright purple and bright pink very well. A mix of the two hues, magenta can weave in between them and bring them into harmony. Throw in a dash of light blush pink and you have the perfect cottage garden.
There are a host of plants that come in magenta, including phlox, roses, peonies, pinks (next photo) and all manner of annuals, such as the classic petunia.
Used en masse, magenta plantings can shine. Try using a mass of magenta plants in combination with gray fieldstone or siding to liven up the duller tones.
Again, masses of magenta blooms brighten up a walkway with nearly neon pizzazz.
If you aren't the brave sort who imagines masses of magenta flowing throughout the garden, why not try providing a little peek? Set in the background, a shot of magenta draws attention through the seating area to the other side of the porch, extending the square footage visually.
Whether you are using a bright, hot-pink magenta or a bit deeper purplish tone, magenta truly can shine in your garden. Tone it down, use it as an accent or a focal point, or brighten up a sad-looking space with a little of its cheer.
See more about magenta enchantment
See more about magenta enchantment