How to create a garden bursting with multi-colored, variegated foliage
Imagine a garden with nothing but plants whose foliage is variegated in multiple colors, not just green and white or green and yellow, but with pink, orange, gold, burgundy, or red or a combination of these colors.
I thought about such a garden when ogling a neighbor’s low hedge of glossy abelia. There are many colorful, variegated dwarf cultivars of this species (Abelia x grandiflora): Kaleidoscope reaches no more than three feet tall with yellow, orange, and red leaves, or the similarly sized Mardi Grasthat has leaves dominated by dark pink as the weather cools in the fall. The small tubular flowers of dwarf abelias are either pink or white,and always attractive to hummingbirds.
Mirror plant (Coprosma spp.) gets its name from shiny, polished, light-reflecting leaves. Native to New Zealand, it’s a tough shrub that readily handles wind and salt spray. Hybrid mirror plants grow 4-5 feet tall and wide and are known for their distinctive variegations. Tequila Sunrise sports gold, orange, and red foliage while Rainbow Surprise has pink and cream leaves to which red is added as fall arrives.
Succulents are famous for their variegated foliage and are notoriously easy to grow. My favorite among them is paddle plant (Kalanchoe luciae), also known as flapjacks, a dramatic garden selection if ever there was one. Stems that eventually reach up to four feet are studded with large, rainbow-colored disks in scarlet, gold, and bluish-green. Although thriving in all-day sun in its native South Africa — the habitat of just about every succulent, other than cactuses and euphorbias — it performs best in Southern California’s interior valleys in half-day sun since, as you go inland from the coast, our summer is hotter than South Africa’s.
Sunburst Aeonium, a variegated saucer plant, grows 12-inch diameter rosettes that are green, yellow, and creamy white with red leaf margins, while Kiwi Aeonium is Sunburst’s diminutive cousin, with rosettes of a similar color except they are 5 inches across.
The Tricolor rendition of the common jade plant (Crassula ovata) has green and gold foliage edged in pink. This coloration is mimicked in the foliage of Tricolor Peperomia (Peperomia clusiifolia var. Ginny).
Over the last decade, there is one multi-colored succulent species that has been planted far more than any other. The plant in question is the Sticks on Fire variety of pencil plant (Euphorbia tirucalii). This plant answers the call for a perennial species that adds non-stop multi-colored interest to the garden without ever needing to be watered. In fact, for the gold, orange, and red colors to persist, it is necessary to withhold water, as stress stimulates its colorful growth. I have also observed that it tends to lose its orange and red as it grows and that pruning results in fiery new growth. It’s a good idea to wear gloves and long sleeves when pruning due to its dermatitic milky white sap.
Raspberry Ice bougainvillea is a leafy garden plant that offers perpetual color — in cream, green, and red. This is a shrubby mound that is not only suitable for growing in the ground, but for containers and hanging baskets as well. Bracts are red while green and gold foliage is tinged with red as well.
If you live in a frost-free location and are searching for a four-foot-tall hedge, I suggest you consider snowbush (Breynia distichs/nivosa). Foliage is mottled in white, green, and pink or burgundy, while branches grow in zigzag fashion. Where frost occasionally visits your locale, grow snowbush as a houseplant.
When it comes to trees, a mutation found on a box elder tree (Acer negundo) led to the introduction of a variety that displays green and white and pink foliage. Although box elder is a California native, this multi-colored version, dubbed Flamingo, was developed from a shoot spotted by a horticulturist in the Netherlands. Propagation from that shoot eventually led to the planting of Flamingo worldwide.
Speaking of trees, rainbow eucalyptus or Mindanao gum (Eucalyptus deglupta), while not possessing tri-colored foliage, is famous for its multi-colored, exfoliating bark that is painted in pink, lavender, and yellow-green. As a tropical species, it is more suited to coastal than inland Southern California. An outstanding specimen of this tree grows just outside the entrance to the UCLA Mathias Botanical Garden in Westwood.
Turning our attention indoors, one plant stands out for its colorful foliage. This would be croton (Codiaeum variegatum). Croton (KRO-tun) means tick in Greek and alludes to the shape of its seeds. Croton’s waxy leaves emerge green but then turn to yellow, orange, red, or pink. There are hundreds of croton cultivars, with each one displaying a particular foliar color emphasis. As long as you do not overwater, allowing soil to go bone dry between waterings, you should be able to keep a croton thriving for several years. If leaves lose their color, it’s a sign of insufficient light exposure.
Croton is a relative of castor bean and poinsettia and its milky white sap, like theirs, may irritate the skin. Croton is also toxic to cats and dogs so it should not be accessible to these pets. While it can grow up to 20 feet in the tropics, croton is seldom seen outdoors in California and, growing in containers, is unlikely to grow more than a few feet tall. However, I once saw several green and gold specimens that had reached five feet tall growing in pots on a shaded patio in Sylmar.
I learned that crotons of this description are tougher than those with pink or red foliage. On this same Sylmar patio, I saw some extremely vigorous Caladiums that were growing from bulbs that had been ordered from Florida, the source virtually all Caladium bulbs in this country. Caladium leaves are shaped like elephant ears and are adorned with spectacular markings in symmetrical patterns of red, white, and pink, often accompanied by colored splotches or random dots splashed on for good measure.
Finally, let’s consider a plant for both indoor and outdoor use, the coleus (Plectranthus scutelliarioides). Leaves may show off one, two, or three colors, and when diverse varieties are planted together, the effect is an ocular delight. There are dozens of coleus varieties from which to choose: large ones, growing up to three feet tall, serve as background subjects in a flower bed or as a vibrant low hedge; an “Under the Sea Coleus” collection, whose leaves resemble sea creatures and, in line with their shapes and colors, are appropriately named ‘Lime Shrimp’ or ‘Yellowfin Tuna’; miniature varieties that do not exceed six inches in height and whose leaves are only an inch long; sun tolerant varieties that, although they need more water when grown in full sun, will not wilt when planted there. Combine tall, mounding, and trailing varieties in containers for a layered kaleidoscopic display. Coleus is easily propagated from cuttings whose stems rest in two inches of water in a glass. If grown indoors, situate coleus next to your sunniest window.
California native of the week: Bladderpod (Isomeris arborea), widely available in native plant nurseries, is a wonderful plant if you have kids around because of its punching-bag-shaped fruits. After the fruits are ripe, the seeds inside rattle audibly. Bladder pod is a relative of the caper bush and, like that Mediterranean plant, has flower buds which, before they open, may be picked, pickled, and then used to spice up salad and meat dishes. Bladderpod has something else in common with the caper bush, and that is its fresh appearance despite inhospitable growing conditions. Planted on the coast where surrounding plants are lashed and left limp due to sea winds, bladderpod shows no signs of stress. Bladderpod is widely available at native plant nurseries.
Do you have a tale to tell regarding a plant with multi-colored foliage? If so, please send it to joshua@perfectplants.com. Your questions and comments, as well as garden conundrums and successes, are always welcome.