Presented for the Montrose Botanical

Society 3/09Sheryl Williams

MG, Instructor Horticulture Delta Montrose Tech

Collegeswilliams@dmtc.edu

Color changes with light changes We want to know ‘why’ we like a garden Designs are combinations of texture,

form and color

Teach you the common language used to describe color combinations

Learn to identify colors and understand their relationships

Explore color combinations

Difficult to describe the color of a flower or leaf

Difficult to describe the relationship of colors to each other

Goal of color systems is to provide a standard reference and to organize color relationships

‘Blue Boy’ Dianthus ‘Blue Elf’ Delphinium

Color in light is not the same as color in paint

Not the same as color in fabric or printing

‘Colorant System’ tells how to mix pigments or dyes to achieve a particular color

This is what we learn in school – to add white paint to lighten a color, etc.

Munsell – standard for how we “see” Royal Horticulture Society Da-sh Board Color wheels

Used as a standard for color notation in artistic, commercial, scientific and education work

Based on how people ‘see’ Quantifies a color in terms of three

qualitiesHueValueChroma

Hue is the name of the color family, such as red or blue.

Value is the lightness or darkness of a color.

Chroma (Saturation) is the intensity or strength of a color.

Value is the vertical axis changing from black at the bottom to white at the top

0 is pure black 10 is pure white

Chroma is the ‘saturation’ of the color from weak to vivid

There is no set range

First developed in 1966, the RHS system uses a set of “paint chips” each with a small hole in the center.

The color strip is placed over the leaf or blossom and is matched by peering through the hole.

In all there are 884 different colors arranged in four fans.

Chromatic Colors Visible spectrum Notice that Violet

and red have the least and most wavelengths but are next to each other in a color wheel

Notice there is no red-purple

http://www.brother.com/usa/printer/advanced/lcv/img/lcfig03.gif

http://www.sheriftariq.org/design/color/

Light from the sun or the skySunlight casts a yellow toneSkylight casts a blue tone

Haze and fog cast a whitish film Hot summer’s day bleaches out many

colors Snow and ice have a bluish cast from

the reflected sky light End of the day – near blacks and white

Usually pale yellow green or bluish green

Textural elements cause the ‘gray’HairsWax

Distance

Used to describe color Hue - location on the color spectrum Value – lightness or darkness of the

colorCan be lightened or darkened without losing

their essential quality of hue Saturation – color content

Can vary from almost neutral gray to a pure hue

MajorRedYellowGreenBluepurple

MinorYellow-redGreen-yellowBlue-greenPurple-blueRed-purple

Monochromatic plantings are nearly impossible because there is usually more than one hue

Flowers have foliage, stamens & pistils, stems, edging, etc.

Fall between the basic hues More complex More easily influenced by neighboring

hues than the basic hues are Ex. a hue that is blue-green will look

bluer or greener depending on its surrounding hues

Intermediate hues are more influenced by their surrounding hues than surroundings are influenced by them

Can be confusing Purple with some blue content are often

called ‘blue’ Purple with some red content are often

called ‘pink’ if they are light and ‘magenta’ if they are dark

Purple foliage is more varied

High levels of contrast – black to white-Exciting and draw the eyeCan be busy or distracting

Low levels of contrast – shades of graySoothing and restfulCan be boring and dull

High hue contrast – color opposite or nearly opposite each other on a color wheel

Display gardens used to attract people’s attention

Informal and unsophisticated such as a children’s garden or wildflower meadow

If the value or saturation is constant the impact of the high hue may be lessened

Color next to or near each other on the color wheel

Low contrast gardens unified when a flower color is kept nearly

constantAttention focused on the dominant hueFrom a distance looks like a large mass of

color

Brightness, lightness or luminosity

White light reflects everything so it is called ‘high value’

Black light absorbs everything so it is called ‘low value’

Used to determine the amount of value

You can use a gray scale instead of having a whole set of color chips

Five values on the shadow ball10 is white and 1 is black

http://www.handprint.com/HP/WCL/color10.html

Each hue has it’s own inherent value Yellow – very light, can only be

lightened a bit before it becomes white Purple – very dark, can only be darkend

a bit before it becomes black

Most simplistic is a plant that is in part shade and part light

The hue has not changed but the value has

Many designers say that it is easier to lay out the structure of a garden in winter when the color of flowers and foliage do not distract from the importance of good strong organization.

A well-designed garden will stand up to being photographed in black and white

A composition of lights and darks

Yellow 9

Green-yellow 7

Yellow-red 7

Green 6

Blue-green 5

Blue 4

Red 4

Purple blue 3

Red-purple 3

Purple 2

You need more of a darker color to balance a lighter color

Ex. Yellow and purple You can add more purple to balance You can darken the yellow and lighten

the purple If pure hue, it takes 3-4 times as much

purple to balance the yellow

It doesn’t guarantee success but it does make you pay attention to value

Perfectly balanced can be boring Unbalanced can be exciting

Painters use the word ‘tint’ for light colorsThey add white pigment

Light colors appear to advance toward the observer when the background is dark

May appear to be larger than darker counterparts

Give a feeling of openness and space Ex. Room with light walls vs. dark walls

Dark hedges, tall plantings, fences – walls

Light of the sky or dark canopy of foliage overhead

Can use trees with a light canopy, such as honeylocust, or trim up to let in more light

A pergola can be dark or painted a light color

Show up best on dark backgrounds Light colors can get lost in strong

sunlight Light colors can get lost around highly

reflective surfaces such as concrete, marble and light stone

Increase the green in the garden to avoid a sense of heat and glare

Sometimes called shades Most pure hues can be darkened only

one or two steps before they become grayed

Like shadows and shade – darker and grayer

In the garden, dark colors tend not to be seen very well against a dark green background, especially when seen from a distance

Lighter background of concrete and buildings makes dark colors show up quite well

Areas in sun appear washed out when seen from a shaded point of view

Scenes with high contrast of value (many lights & darks) will be dramatic and eye-catching

If the value contrast is too extreme it will be ‘busy’

Some gardens tire you out trying to focus

Some gardens are difficult to discern between objects

Sun to shade adaptation takes longer than shade to sun

Transitional zone where value differences are not great can help the eye adapt more comfortably

If you want to highlight an item make the background darker

Select paving material based on value

Also called intensity, purity, brilliance or chroma

Pure hues are the most saturated of colors

Grays are the least saturated

Brick – orange or red low saturation and medium value

Brown mulch – orange with low saturation and low value

If you start with gray and added red little by little until you reached the pure hue of red you would understand the steps of saturation of a color

From unsaturated to saturated

Reds and yellow want your attention Surrounding colors have a strong

influence on saturation as do distance and illumination

Distance tends to gray colors Type and position of the light source will

affect the appearance of saturation

Can see colors at full saturation when you get close

Blocks out competition of other colors If you want the affect of the saturation let

people get close and minimize distraction Smaller flowers – get closer Drooping flowers – place above Flowers that face up should be below the

observer

If placed in the background – flattens space, makes the distance appear closer

Can be used for large gardens to draw someone to a far spot or unusual location

Vivid color makes you want to go to it

Often used as entrance plantings in public places where maximum attention is wanted

Saturated hues of reds, oranges, and yellows, as well as peach, pink, and gold are most clearly seen against a background

Dark values need a lighter background

Bark, soils and stone are even less saturated are seen as grays and browns

Grays and browns are quite subtle and are sensed but not always recognized

Grayed yellows, oranges and reds are beige tan and buff

Warm grays and cool grays

Putting grayed colors in the back of a border and saturated colors in the foreground increases the apparent depth

Reversing the relationship flattens the space

Colors appear gray at low light levels

Contrast of grayed colors with colors with a high color content

Low saturation contrast occurs when most of the colors in the garden are either grayed or pure

Grayed foliage and bark good for intensely colored flowers

Grayed and darker oranges and reds of brick and wood and warm cool grays of stone

Don’t compete with pure hues for attention

Pastels high value; high saturation Pale high value; low saturation Vivid natural value; high saturation Rich low value; high saturation Muted medium value; low saturation Backgrounds

High value; high saturation Light & bright Used with lots of green foliage Effective in part or full shade Have enough hue so hue

combinations are important

                                             

Variegated plants can look like pastels

Appear washed out in bright sun esp. if the background colors are not rich or deep color

Pastels can disappear in light colored surroundings

Add green foliage or darker colors esp. around the edges

High value; low saturation Light but not bright Hard to tell difference between pastel

and pale in the garden Used for background or connecting

colors, furniture Fading flowers Hard to use in full sunlight Add foliage

                       

Usually noticed first Bedding plants to attract attention Seen at a distance – highway plantings Accents in pots or planters Will look more vivid if background is less

saturated or if values are different or if complementary or contrasting hues are used

                                             

Low value; high saturation Dark, full of color Best close up Loses impact with distance Best with light background Because they are so dark you can include

many colors without feeling busy Strongly unified

                       

Low saturation; medium value More gray than other colors Darker than pale but lighter than

dark grays Good contrast to brightly hued

flowers or foliage Used for transitions Don’t attract much attention Appear farther away Overcast skies will mute other colors

                                             

                       

They determine how the other colors will appear

Masses of trees, colors of the sky Grass, mulch, gravel, ground surfaces Stone brick wood and manmade

background seen from the garden

Warm Colors Red Yellow Magenta or red-purple Colors with red in them appear warm Warm colors advance and cool colors

recede

Hue Warm Cool

Yellow Orange (yellow-red) Yellow-green

Orange Yellow Red

Purple Red blue

Warm during cool seasons Advance Yellow and orange spring bulbs Yellow and red fall leaves

Have blue in them Green Blue Violet Coolest in the blue-green area

Hue Warm Cool

Green Yellow-Green Blue-green

Blue Blue-Green Blue-purple

Purple Red-purple Blue-purple

Most greens are yellow-green Instead of thinking yellow-green and

blue-green think warm and cool Cool colors are easy to live with Popular in HOT climates

We don’t have true monochromatic because of the color of foliage

I like it Fun Easy

Closely related on the color wheel Next or near each other True analogous rarely occur in the

garden because of the green foliage Designers are described analogous

flower colors From a distance can look like a mass of

a single color

Greatest amount of hue contrast Opposite each other on the color wheel In a garden usually more colors involved Visually exciting at high levels of

saturation If value or saturation is changed the

background will have a large effect

If you would like to learn more Hands on experience Develop “plant palette’s” for our area

Planting Design March 30-April 10 Noon-4 pm, daily Cost is around $120 Call 874-7671 Email swilliams@dmtc.edu