HOW TO HARNESS COLOUR

Containers in small spaces can become busy and overwhelming if you use too many colours, so harmonise instead and they’ll effervesce and shine. When buying plants, either take your containers with you or take snapshots on your phone. The pot should support the flowers, not be the star of the show. Next, decide on key colours. I divide mine into four groups:

 Vibrant Bold, bright hues create a lively, planting scheme. Opt for hot colours such as bright pink, purple, yellow, orange and red.

 Ethereal Cool, soothing and relaxing, such as pale pinks, mauves, pale blues and silvers.

 Mysterious Plants with unusual shades; for example dark purples and silvers.

 Seductive Rich, sultry and evocative tones, including dark reddish-brown, burnt orange and deep purples.

Once you’ve chosen your key colours, you can combine them in these ways for a more sophisticated effect:  Complementary Try blue, white and lime green, or pink and salmon.  Colour scaling Plant a harmonising range, such as blue and purple to pink.

 Tone on tone Use the same colour in all your containers, but vary the shades to create a subtle, soothing scheme.

Finally, I finish my display with green, either in the flowers’ foliage or as a separate plant. Think about the whole range of shades, from the deep hues of ‘Green Rocket’, to more silvery versions such as eucalyptus and ‘Petiolatum Silver’, also known as the liquorice plant. Turn the page for Isabelle’s top plant picks for colour. Follow her on Instagram @thebalconygardener