White garden brings evening glow to sitting-out area

By Jimmy Williams

Theme gardens – plantings contrived so as to identify with some idea, technique (such as topiary) or emphasis – have sprung up thither and yon in recent years.

Epitomizing these to the utmost would be at Disney World, where topiary, flower beds and vines are all grown with Disney’s cartoon characters as the theme. Some of these have been resurrected by Walt’s brother, Vault, from old vaults full of cartoon clips of the past, and others exemplify more modern Disney icons.

A subheading under theme gardens could well be one-color gardens, with white gardens being the most common. Vita Sackville-West’s white garden, still reigning at ancient Sissinghurst Castle in the south of England, is the most famous of color gardens. We viewed it in 1992, and the effect exceeded even the years of hype I had digested via English garden books.

White gardens, including the one at Sissinghurst, actually are often composed (and a composition it is, if it is going to be successful) of not only white flowers, but of near-white as well, both blossom and foliage. For instance, pale yellows, pinks and blues put a bit of much-needed snap into what otherwise would be a sterile collection.

White flowers and pale leaves show up particularly well at dawn and dusk, and even into a moonlit night. They are, then, admirably suited for a sitting-out area such as a deck or patio.

The old rose-of-Sharon Hibiscus syriacus, has been disdained by most gardeners for 50 years or more. Though new hybrids are improvements, little can be done about the gawky trunk structure that still prevails. Flowers are better, but the bush is not.

One of the newer ones is the variety ‘Diana,’ with large pure white flowers that, unlike those of many older ones, stay open at night. This makes ‘Diana’ eminently suited for patio planting. By facing it down with lower growing things, the underpinnings can be masked.

A fine facer would be glossy abelia, Abelia grandiflora. Though the white flowers are small, they are numerous and, as with the hibiscus, are around for most of the summer. Butterflies, and of more importance for a patio plant, night-flying moths, are attracted to this abelia, which will grow to five feet or so but can be sheared low every spring and will still bloom on new wood.

Nothing could beat white annual impatiens for yet another facing down. With enough water, most varieties of impatiens will grow to 18 inches or so by late summer, despite what the label says. There is no need to deadhead or groom impatiens, and only a bit of fertilizer booster by midsummer is needed to keep them going right up to hard frost.

All of this has been white, so far, but a dash of pale orchid or pink impatiens with the white ones would add a little spirit, or pale yellow snapdragons would do the same, though they would not be as long-blooming.

Gray foliage such as that of annual dusty miller or one of the perennial artemisias (‘Powis Castle’ can’t be beat) would fit right in.