Orange You Glad You Like Orange

People tend to either love it or hate it.

The late summer flowering orange helenium ‘Moerheim Beauty (Helenium autumnale Moerheim Beauty’) is a cultivar of a native wildflower. Also called sneezeweed, because its dried leaves were used to make snuff. It prefers full to partial sun and moist soils. It has long blooming flowers with eye-catching central cones that are full of pollen/nectar and attract bees and butterflies. Helenium species are native to North and Central America, particularly in the United States and Mexico. Rusty brown seed clusters attract birds. Grows to 3 ft high. Pinch back in early summer to reduce height. Looks great with ornamental grasses, fall blooming asters and Japanese anemones. Zones 3-9.

It’s the orange time of year - so I had to write about orange in the garden.

Orange flowers are bright and fiery. They insert an energetic punch to any garden. And orange does not lose its powerful presence and get washed out even on a bright summer or fall afternoon. So then why do so many people say they “hate” orange? People tend to either love it or hate it.

Maybe it is because orange has a boisterous personality that is not very calming. It is a little too brash to some garden lovers, like a loud person in a library. But you can use the radiance of orange to add a bit of warmth to a multi-colored landscape. Careful blending of orange and its tints with other colors - especially yellow - can win over even the most ardent anti-orange person.

“There is no blue without yellow and without orange.”
– Vincent Van Gogh

This zinnia is a “cactus style” zinnia called ‘Señorita’ (Zinnia elegans ‘Señorita’). Its unique shape, shaggy petals and warm shade of salmon-apricot steals the show every time! The showy blooms grow on 3 ft tall strong stems. They make awesome cut flowers. Plant this sun loving annual with the purplish blue flowers of anise hyssop (Agastache foeniculum).  A vivid orange version of a cactus/dahlia type zinnia is ‘Aztec’. The spectacular blooms add a brilliant tangerine ‘wow’ to any garden. Easy to grow. It can be grown from seed. 

To begin, try inserting a light-colored shade of orange to an outdoor space. In recent years, apricot, coral, and melon have become popular in design. The Pantone Color of the Year for 2019 was Living Coral, a vibrant, mellow shade of orange with a golden undertone.