Embrace the Barbiecore trend in the garden: pink and more pink!
5 candy-pink plants to discover
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In 2024, the garden draws inspiration from Barbie’s iconic pop and artificial wardrobe. The pink wave is also sweeping through the garden. Pink, pink and more pink! The Barbiecore trend in the garden represents an optimistic and joyful approach, encouraging gardeners to experiment and to have fun with this mood-boosting colour and with the different textures of plants. Nothing complicated to implement; pink is one of the most common flower colours. We go all out with pink, in monochrome or with subtle touches. The colourful, playful effect takes hold of our plants with a hint of whimsy. If you want to temper this pink, you will plant near grey-foliage plants. Let’s discover dahlias, coleus, or pink Calla lilies, the new ambassadors for gardeners, who contribute to the candy-coloured effect!
The Calla Lily ‘Denver’
Zantedeschia ‘Denver’ is a particularly showy calla lily, perfect for the bubble-gum pink trend! It is distinguished by its spathes, broad, slightly incurved and proudly upright, resembling an elegant trumpet. Flowering lasts from June to August. It can last up to four months if the soil remains damp. The fleshy-textured flowers, reaching 60 cm in height on a sturdy, upright stem, open in a gradient from dark pink-violet to white, veined with green toward the base of the stem. The lush, fleshy, arrow-shaped leaves, green with white speckles, highlight the beauty of the flower. It forms a clump about 60 cm tall, perfect for bringing a splash of colour to a border. Relatively hardy (hardy to -12°C). Pot culture is particularly recommended in cold climates. It needs warmth and a moist, rich soil to thrive. Its exuberant flowers will form large colourful bouquets. In the garden, they will punctuate a border with confidence alongside a collarette Dahlia ‘Impression Famoso’, with delicate pale pink petals, to perfect the Barbie-pink ambience.
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Pairing Pink FlowersThe Dahlia ‘Café au Lait Royal’
Here is a variety that forms part of the group of dahlias known as ‘giant’. The Dahlia ‘Café au Lait Royal’ will be the showpiece to energise a display. It features, from July to October, immense flowers over 22 cm in diameter, reaching heights of 1.10 m to 1.20 m. Very double, they open into large heads with rolled ligulate rays, displaying lovely shades of pink, ranging from pale washed pink to vivid pink. Like all dahlias, it thrives in any good, fertile garden soil, rich in humus, cool and well-drained, and overwinters. In a border, for a very feminine look, it will pair perfectly with Echinacea, such as Echinacea purpurea ‘Pink Double Delight’ for example, with its pom-pom-shaped, ruffled flowers in a vibrant pink.
Anigozanthos ‘Bush Pearl’
Anigozanthos ‘Bush Pearl’ or ‘Kangaroo Paw’ is a botanical curiosity from Australia. This striking perennial blooms prolifically from May to July, producing clusters of tubular, woolly flowers in a rich pink. Each stem bears several tubular buds, which open into fascinating flowers whose colour ranges from bright pink to fuchsia. These flowers have a velvety appearance, due to the presence of small coloured hairs. Their curious shape resembles kangaroo paws, hence the plant’s nickname. The velvety, branched flowering stems rise to about 50 cm above handsome iris foliage. Not very hardy (down to -5/-6°C), it will bring an exotic and colourful touch in a pot on the terrace (to overwinter in cold climates) or in the open ground in our frost-free coastal gardens, sheltered from frost. It thrives in sun and requires well-drained soil, preferably sandy and humus-bearing. For a planting combination that catches the eye in the garden, pair it with Phormium ‘Jester’ which forms a colourful clump with pink predominating.
Caladium ‘Fannie Munson’
Caladium ‘Fannie Munson’ stands out for its large variegated leaves, heart-shaped notched or elephant-ear-shaped, with slender tips that form a whimsical kaleidoscope of colour. Each leaf is broadly painted with magenta pink, marked with carmine red veins, marginate and veined with dark green. Their texture is slightly undulating and rigid, somewhat reminiscent of plastic. They form a clump measuring about 50–60 cm across. Caladium thrives in rich, well-drained soil that stays moist, and in partial shade or even full shade. Frost-sensitive, it is grown as an annual in the garden, or as a houseplant and conservatory plant. Dig up the bulbs before the first frosts, and store them in a dry, cool place (15–18°C) over winter. Caladium is an excellent choice to add a splash of colour to shadier spaces, whether in a pot on a shaded terrace, in borders under trees, or for an exotic touch in a bright interior. In the ground or in a pot, you can create a vibrant display with Impatiens, which also come in all shades of pink. In the same vein, Caladium ‘Carolyn Whorton’ unfurls its stunning green leaves splashed with baby pink and veined with magenta pink.
Coleus ‘Mezmerize® Chocolate Rose’
Here is another spectacular frost-tender perennial, due to its foliage strongly tinged with vivid pink. The oval, dentate, velvety leaves of Coleus ‘Mezmerize Chocolate Rose’ offer a bold colour palette. The centre of the lamina is washed with magenta pink shaded with violet and margined with lime green. It forms a tuft about 40–50 cm across and draws all eyes from early summer to the frosts. As it is frost-tender, it is grown as an annual in the garden or as a houseplant. In the garden, place it at the edge of a border or in a lovely pot, alongside, for example, the Petunia Supertunia ‘Vista Bubblegum’ with large candy-pink trumpet-shaped flowers veined with dark pink, or the Petunia ‘Vista Paradise’ with flowers that burst in a vivid pink, bordering on garish.
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