Gentle showers over the past few days have brought on lots of fresh growth and flowers, so it was lovely to walk around the garden this afternoon and choose a few to cut for a vase. The first candidate that caught my eye was my culinary sage. Although smothered in busy bees, I have plenty of flowers for us all to share and cut just one stem. Then my theme became clear as I spotted another purple sage, Salvia pratensis.
Then I started seeing purple everywhere!
Alchemilla mollis was the obvious choice as a filler, as it is in full bloom and was covered in raindrops. 😃 I also picked some Salvia nemorosa and Nepeta ‘Walker‘s Low’, and some deep blue/purple Nigella from a seed mix called Persian Jewels.
The pale pink flower is Knautia, and substitutes well for a pink Scabiosa. The Knautia I have is called Melton Pastels and also has some deeper pinky purple flowers on the same plant.
Another purply blue flower I found is the Geranium seen behind this Nigella (the label is hidden under all its flowers!), and my Scabiosa ‘Butterfly Blue’ suddenly appeared to have a slight purply pink tinge to it too.
I hadn’t realised I have so many shades of blueish, pinkish purples in my garden! I am grateful to Cathy at Rambling in the Garden for hosting this meme, which has had an impact on many of my planting choices over the past few years!
Have a great gardening week!
😃
Words and Herbs 
Love blues and chartrueses together. I think that Nigella is prettier than the Cornflowers we have been lamenting (I give up). I learned last week blues, pinks and whites are great flower colors for bees.
I agree… the Nigella is much loved simply for its ability to germinate and flower beautifully without any interference from me!
Purple? It looks more blue to me. Well, I can not distinguish color well anyway. I sort of thought that the nigella was cornflower!
Well, true blues are rare in the garden and almost all of them have a purple or pink tinge to them. 😉
Oh yes, I get that. Real blue is not easy got find.
Alchemilla is the perfect foil for the purples. A happy mix!
I can‘t imagine a garden without Alchemilla!
Great shot in the grass.
I‘m showing off this newly sown patch of grass really! 😉
Great color combination Cathy! Your alchemilla ties everything together. I’ve never grown it or even seen it around here. I’ll have to look harder.
I wonder if it grows in your part of the world. It is an essential for me, with its big leaves and pretty flowers. Great for a patch of lime green. 😉
I love blue and purple with chartreuse. I’m envious of the gentle rain too.
We have not had the heavy rainstorms that hit other parts of the country, although we could certainly do with the rain. But gentle rain and showers are also better than nothing at all!
Great combination!
Thank you Cynthia!
Purples are so lovely in the garden and in a vase and alchemilla is a glorious colour to set the purples off. Glorious combination
Thanks Dorris!
Is the dark clump in the first picture the Salvia nemerosa? It makes a great impact. My vases often start with one thing too and then others suggest themselves as a theme seems to choose itself! The alchemilla makes a great foil for your purple and bluey purples and I think many of us will agree that our plant choices over the years have often been guided by IAVOM contributions, as we learn of varieties we have not come across before. Thanks for sharing yours today
Yes, Salvia nemorosa ‘Blue Bouquetta’. It‘s a new one and I am not entirely sure I like its very compact and uniform growth so it may have to be moved in the autumn! It is a lovely deep patch of colour though.
I will seek it out, I think
A most lovely array of purple Cathy! Purple is fast becoming my second favorite color in the garden after pink. You have given me some varieties to think about getting. And the Alchemilla is the perfect filler and contrast for setting off all your lovely shades of purple. It is such a happy vase of color.
Thank you Cindy. I love the Alchemilla for its versatility, useful in vases! 😃
You’ve captured all my favorite colors, then surrounded it with green. This is a lovely way to start my morning. Have a good week, Cathy.
My pleasure Alys. Have a great week! 😃
You too.
A lovely summery bunch, the alchemilla mollis sets it off so well.
And lasts so well in a vase too. 😃
I so admire gardens where the Nigella spreads freely. Saw that in Oregon and Washington gardens. It likes dryish summers, I take it?
I think it does prefer warm and dry spots and doesn‘t like being crowded by other taller plants from my experience.