Inexperienced gardeners tend to choose bedding plants solely to make a splash of color. Little if any thought is given as to whether the species in question go with the rest of the plants in the garden. The question that the gardener should be asking is “does this bedding plant add to the composition, or does it detract from it?” This question is rarely raised.

The fact is though, that no matter how spectacular the blooms of any particular bedding plant may be, if the plant is wrong in relation to the garden as a whole, its novelty will quickly wear-off, and an undefined sense of dissatisfaction is liable to set in. This feeling, by being something you cannot put your finger on, is all the more damaging and frustrating.

But what is meant by “wrong”? The first thing to remember is that bedding plants, like any other type of plant, possess anatomical and morphological features that affect the eye in addition to their flowers. Plants have shape, form, and size. They have foliage too; are the leaves large and course in texture, or fine and delicate? Similarly, the flowers themselves have shape and form, size and texture.

In principle therefore, the more the bedding plant has in common with the plants that surround it, including the trees and shrubs, the greater the chance it will look right. For example, if a tree and a group of bushes have fine, feathery leaves, then the perennials or annuals in the flowerbed will be more in tune with them, by having a similar foliage texture. Here then are some guidelines for choosing herbaceous flowering plants according to their suitability to any given design.

*Classify bedding plants into stylistic groups, such as Mediterranean, exotic, alpine e.t.c. If the garden’s style is clearly of one type, then the bedding plants should be of the same category. For instance, flowering plants belonging to the daisy family, Asteraceae, (Compositae) such as Chrysanthemum, Felicia, Arctotis, and Asteriscus, look right in a Mediterranean composition, combining appropriately with such plants as Rosemary, Junipers, and Lavender.

On the other hand, “exotic” plants such as Impatiens, Iresine, Alternanthera, Fuchsia, and Ruellia, are more suitable close to palms, cycads, and ferns, while ice plants and other succulents associate clearly with sculptural species like Yucca or Dracaena.

*In general, flowering plants with large leaves and big flowers are suited to a tropical corner, usually appearing out of place with the thin leaves and sparse growth of dry climate plants. Similarly, glaucous-leaved perennials, such as the grey-blue foliage of perennial carnations (Dianthus) are better in a Mediterranean style garden, while dark-leaved plants often work best in a tropical scheme.