Garden designer reveals the ‘much-underestimated’ color you should never overlook

The power of a color palette in interior design is unmatched – but what about the garden? While we have an abundance of color choices for the home, you may be less likely to consider the hues in your exterior space, but Dan Pearson is here to change that. 

The landscape designer and RHS Chelsea Flower Show alumn counts Jonathan Ive and Paul Smith amongst his clients – but his garden ideas will reshape your landscape too. In an interview with H&G, Dan Pearson discussed the impact of garden color schemes – beginning most prominently with green. 

Yes, while green may be the color that appears synonymous with the great outdoors, the garden expert reveals that it is often overlooked in terms of design. However, it shouldn’t be. Here, Dan urges you to rethink the most natural tone of them all. 

Why you should use green in your garden – according to Dan Pearson 

‘A color that is really important, and is often not seen as a color in the garden, is green,’ Dan says. ‘Green, of course, is the most important of all. It underpins most things in landscape settings, but there is a tremendous range of green.’ 

As Dan explains, the spectrum of green allows you to experiment with garden landscape ideas without using another color. Instead, you can play with green’s various tones to create a beautiful space. 

‘If you think about Holly green on one end of the spectrum – and then if you think about lime green on the other. The Holly has the darkness that works alongside purple,’ he explains. 

However, if you’re looking to create a vibrant garden, Dan recommends choosing bright lime greens that will add a sense of energy to the space. ‘Then you have a whole verse of greens between, which go into brown greens, that go into coppery-toned leaves, and red-green green, of course. Green is a wonderful and often a much-underestimated color,’ he adds. 

In the exclusive video above, Dan further highlights green’s impact whilst discussing associations with other popular colors. ‘Color is a very interesting way of changing your mood and changing your pace in a garden… greens and pale colors, whites, and creams often make you feel much more tranquil,’ the expert says. 

With this tranquility in mind, it is unsurprising that Dan Pearson will often create spaces that are 90 percent green. ‘It is like a palette cleanser. You go into it, and it instantly makes you feel calm,’ he adds. ‘You can gather your thoughts, and it’s not confronting you in the same way that more obvious colors might.’ 

If you’re looking at how to plan a garden for the new year, Dan invites you to consider this overlooked color. However, as he suggests in the video, each color has its unique quality. 

May 2022 be the year the green interior color trend has its time beyond your four walls.  

You can see more of Dan Pearson's advice at Create Academy.