I have this tendency to assign personalities to plants. My husband thinks that it is even a bit nuts for me to talk about them like people (with he/ she pronouns) — if he only knew the deeper level at which I sometimes see personality traits, and how I think of them as independent little beings….(totally bonkers)
Echinacea ‘Coconut Lime’ and Cephalaria gigantea could be sisters in my book. Sisters, to each other and to me. And just like me, they are tall, blond, girls but who (unlike me) never forget to throw their shoulders back and stand up straight (unless maybe they get pelted with hail or something horrible like that). I think I could learn a thing or two from them….and for this reason I think they should be planted in my garden.
Do you think you resemble a flower? Or maybe a plant’s personality inspires something in you? Do share.
images: Echinacea ‘Coconut Lime’ from imprimeriekl.com and Cephalaria gigantea from Cillas
They do look like they could be sisters. I like the Coconut Lime flowers, the centers are attractive. I have a couple different kinds of echinacea in my yard and would definitely add those to the group.
I think of plants more as notes in a symphony than as people. It’s more of a top-down approach. I’m usually looking for a plant that fills a particular spot,
like a vase shape dappled shade tall enough to shade the car and high enough to see under, but not so big as to interfere with the front view of the house. I’m not even sure there is a shape that would work there. Although a vine on a trellis …
It’s like picking an instrument to echo the melody in a specific octave, specific timing, and particular relationship to the rest of the piece.
Sometimes, I do fall in love with a quirky beautiful bloom or foliage and try to fit it in like an odd person at a dinner table, like where could I seat a pink velvet banana, cousin of the tropicanna canna? But I like my plants objectified, like a slave auction where I can take my time choosing them, and ignore their feelings and opinions. I don’t have to make any promises to Pink that someday she can move in, and I will take care of her, or that I love her more than Canna. I’m totally free to prefer Canna for a week, then flip flop and expect open arms, at least until I actually buy/plant.