2022 Color of the Year & Your Plants

The last two years have been rough and there’s no doubt that we all have struggled in one way or another. We’re now looking at yet another Covid variant and sometimes it can feel like we just can’t catch a break. Despite this, there are some things to look forward to, especially if you’re a gardener. As many already know, and many have newly discovered, gardens can offer respite from our complicated and changing times, and an opportunity to get outside and reap the benefits of placing hands into the soil.

While there may be snow on the ground and a frosty bite in the air, winter offers gardeners a time to design and plan their gardens for the upcoming seasons. If you’re looking for inspiration, one resource that we refer to is the Pantone Color of the Year. In 2022, the selected color, Very Peri, brims with possibilities and evokes a feeling of hope and joy, just when we need it most. Quite honestly, when I saw the color for 2022, I shrugged my shoulders and said “another shade of purple – big deal.” But when I read the rationale behind the selection, I got it and I love it!

“Displaying carefree confidence and a daring curiosity that animates our creative spirit, inquisitive and intriguing PANTONE 17-3938 Very Peri helps us to embrace this altered landscape of possibilities, opening us up to a new vision as we rewrite our lives. Rekindling gratitude for some of the qualities that blue represents complemented by a new perspective that resonates today, PANTONE 17-3938 Very Peri places the future ahead in a new light.”

LEATRICE EISEMAN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE PANTONE COLOR INSTITUTE

Very Peri isn’t about the color alone, but what it embodies: joy, excitement, creativity, and maybe, just maybe, a little light at the end of the tunnel. I’m all in!

What’s most rousing is that many plants are, if not spot on periwinkle, then at least very similar in color to Very Peri! A blending of red and blue, Very Peri can skew to one or the other depending on how a person sees color. We’ve included plants that cover the gamut. Even better, the combinations are endless and complementary colors abundant – green, red, white, orange, yellow, gold, pink – the palette is unlimited. Check out a few of our favorite plants that fall within the Very Peri range:

  • Blue Harebell (Bellflower) (Campanula rotundifolia) - native
  • Hairy Wild Petunia (Ruellia humilis) - native
  • Rozanne Geranium (Geranium 'Rozanne')
  • Bowles Periwinkle (Vinca minor 'Bowles')
  • False Blue Indigo (Baptisia australis)
  • Lucerne Blue-eyed Grass (Sisyrinchium angustifolium 'Lucerne’)
  • Summer Cascade Wisteria (Wisteria macrostachya 'Betty Mathews')
  • Cat’s Pajamas Catmint (Nepeta 'Cat's Pajamas')
  • Purple Beauty Creeping Phlox (Phlox subulata 'Purple Beauty')
  • Pugster Blue Buddleia (Buddleia x 'SMNBDBT' PP28,794)
  • Astra Blue Balloon Flower (Platycodon grandifloras ‘Astra Blue’)
  • Shreve’s Iris (Iris virginica var. shrevei) - native
  • Little Spire Russian Sage and regular Russian Sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia 'Little Spire')
  • Phenomenal French Lavender (Lavandula x intermedia 'Phenomenal')
  • Hidcote Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia 'Hidcote')
  • Blue Hill Salvia (Salvia nemorosa 'Blue Hill')
  • Blue Marvel Salvia (Salvia nemorosa 'Blue Marvel')

If you’re looking for added inspiration, Pantone has complementary and harmonious palettes to help you determine how to use the Pantone 2022 color of the year to mix it up!

You can’t go wrong with Very Peri-esque plants. We hope that you enjoy it as much as we do. If you need help in planning your landscape, we’re always here to help and even have a DIY option to help get you started. Check out We Plan - You Plant!

Let's find the 2022 Color of the Year in your landscape.