Along the front walk, the flowers’ color palette ranges from sunny yellows to deep purples. “I also took seasonal blooms into account,” Nardelli says. “The colors and textures are always changing from early spring until winter.”
The flowering perennials include ‘Moonshine’ yarrow (Achillea ‘Moonshine’, zones 3 to 9), ‘Caradonna’ sage (Salvia nemorosa ‘Caradonna’, zones 4 to 9), ‘Big Blue’ sea holly (Eryngium x zabelii ‘Big Blue’, zones 5 to 9), ‘Whirling Butterflies’ gaura (Oenothera lindheimeri ‘Whirling Butterflies’, zones 5 to 9), ‘Amistad’ sage (Salvia ‘Amistad’, zones 8 to 11), ‘Blue Boa’ giant hyssop (Agastache ‘Blue Boa’, zones 5 to 9), ‘Blackbird’ beard tongue (Penstemon ‘Blackbird’, zones 7 to 10) and ‘Magnus’ purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea ‘Magnus’, zones 3 to 8). The plantings also include various ferns, shrubs and hellebores.
Ornamental grasses are another important part of the planting design. ‘Goldtau’ tufted hairgrass (Deschampsia cespitosa ‘Goldtau’, zones 4 to 9) grows in clumps of dark green blades. Its cloud-like blooms in gold, silver, purple and green mature into a yellowish tan in the fall and provide interest through the winter. Another star player in the grass palette is ‘Greenlee’ moor grass (Sesleria ‘Greenlee Hybrid’, zones 5 to 9), which has linear blue-green blades and pale purple flower spikes that bloom in late spring through early summer before transforming into purplish-brown seed heads in the fall.
Get Year-Round Good Looks With Matrix Planting in Your Garden
The flowering perennials include ‘Moonshine’ yarrow (Achillea ‘Moonshine’, zones 3 to 9), ‘Caradonna’ sage (Salvia nemorosa ‘Caradonna’, zones 4 to 9), ‘Big Blue’ sea holly (Eryngium x zabelii ‘Big Blue’, zones 5 to 9), ‘Whirling Butterflies’ gaura (Oenothera lindheimeri ‘Whirling Butterflies’, zones 5 to 9), ‘Amistad’ sage (Salvia ‘Amistad’, zones 8 to 11), ‘Blue Boa’ giant hyssop (Agastache ‘Blue Boa’, zones 5 to 9), ‘Blackbird’ beard tongue (Penstemon ‘Blackbird’, zones 7 to 10) and ‘Magnus’ purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea ‘Magnus’, zones 3 to 8). The plantings also include various ferns, shrubs and hellebores.
Ornamental grasses are another important part of the planting design. ‘Goldtau’ tufted hairgrass (Deschampsia cespitosa ‘Goldtau’, zones 4 to 9) grows in clumps of dark green blades. Its cloud-like blooms in gold, silver, purple and green mature into a yellowish tan in the fall and provide interest through the winter. Another star player in the grass palette is ‘Greenlee’ moor grass (Sesleria ‘Greenlee Hybrid’, zones 5 to 9), which has linear blue-green blades and pale purple flower spikes that bloom in late spring through early summer before transforming into purplish-brown seed heads in the fall.
Get Year-Round Good Looks With Matrix Planting in Your Garden