Yellow striped jungle for Foliage Follow Up

April 16, 2012


For the love of everything variegated, what was I thinking?! It’s a spiky riot of stripey foliage. Just look at this xeric combo of ‘Bright Edge’ yucca (foreground, with the bloom spike), ‘Oriental Limelight’ atemisia, Agave americana ‘Marginata’ and Mexican feathergrass (in blue pots), and ‘Alphonse Karr’ bamboo. I actually love it—all that green and yellow and spiky shapes—but it does look, ahem, a tad jungly.


OK, part of that lemon-lime overdose was caused by an oversaturation of yellow in that particular image. Here’s how it appears to my eyes, from a slightly different angle. Now you can see there’s a variegated Agave weberi ‘Arizona Star’ in the mix as well. The red blooms are from a trio of Aloe saponaria growing behind the blue pot. Much of the foliage that handles central Texas’ drought and heat is either silver or blue-green, so it’s nice to have some mellow-yellows thrown in here and there.


Of course, I do love the blue-greens as well. Here’s a cooler combo: ‘Bloodspot’ mangave, Yucca pallida, and a sedum of some sort. Much calmer!

Join me in posting about your lovely leaves of April for Foliage Follow-Up, a way to remind ourselves of the importance of foliage in the garden. I’m giving Mr. Linky a try this time; please use it to leave your link to your Foliage Follow-Up post. I really appreciate it if you’ll also include a link to this post in your own post (sharing link love!). If you can’t post so soon after Bloom Day, no worries. Just leave your link when you get to it.

Update 5/12: Mr. Linky was only good for one month, I just realized, so all the links are gone. Sorry!

All material © 2006-2012 by Pam Penick for Digging. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.

19 responses to “Yellow striped jungle for Foliage Follow Up”

  1. I like the jungle look and can see those types of plants becoming more popular here in the UK now that it’s been announced that half of England is now in drought. I have to admire that spikey foliage contrasting with the Artemesia and sedum – perfect partners!

  2. I take cues from your garden, given that the hot, drought is likely to recur this year. We’re going pot (containers, not the drug) shopping today to dress up the new gravel entry garden. I’m leaning toward agave as my small spider agaves are doing great with no tending year-round. Plant Delights open house isn’t until May and Tony has the best agave selection around.

  3. Tina says:

    I love all the yellow/green stripey plants. To my dismay, I can’t grow the ‘Bright Edge’ yucca–I’ve killed three or four and I’m not going to try again. So, I’ll enjoy yours! Thanks for sharing and hosting Foliage Follow-up. My contribution for the day is: http://mygardenersays.wordpress.com/2012/04/16/foliage-follow-up-april-2012-kitty-hiding-spot/

    Tina, for whatever reason, WordPress is not letting me leave a comment on your post, so I’ll leave it here: Mexican feathergrass is a great focal-point plant in a container, wonderful en masse, and great for filling in bare spots — very versatile! I’m glad you highlighted it for Foliage Follow-Up. —Pam

  4. There is really nothing I can grow that has the effect of the spiky plants in your garden; especially love that last one. But I am definitely going in a green and yellow variegated direction.

  5. But at least you went with yellow variegation not a mix of white and yellow, that’s when things can really get out of hand! BTW “great minds”…I thought about doing a variegation foliage follow-up post but then realized it would be better left to later in the year when everything has woken up, there is still a lot of foliage yet to appear around here.

  6. Those mellow yellows will earn their place in the garden all summer.

    I’m having a little tropical fun for April.

  7. Lucy Abbott says:

    I do love yellow variegation. I would like to add a few more yellow variegated plants this spring. Pam, I especially like Agave weberi ‘Arizona Star’. Thanks for hosting Foliage Follow-Up.

    Hi, Lucy. I couldn’t leave a comment on your post either, so here it is: Black Pearl pepper is a fabulous annual. I’m not growing it this year, but most years I do. It’s always a treat to see those glossy black peppers appear and then eventually turn fire-engine red, and I love the dark purple leaves too. —Pam

  8. I have indigenous bulbs, planted for the foliage first, and the flowers are a bonus.

  9. Hi Pam,
    I always enjoy seeing all of your wonderful, exotic to me foliage. I have become an agave lover.

    Yay! Aren’t they beautiful? —Pam

  10. Hi Pam: I keep thinking Foliage Follow-Up is the Friday after GBBD. From now on, I’m going to combine the two in one post–I hope that’s OK? I love the variegated foliage in your photos!

    However you’d like to do it is fine with me, PlantPostings. I always think of Foliage Follow-Up as lasting about a week, anyway. 😉 —Pam

  11. Denise says:

    I confess I’ve rarely met a variegated plant I didn’t like.

  12. Dee says:

    Hey, Miss Digg. I love variegation too. It helps the garden be a bit more lively like it’s doing a bit of a tango. Love your pics. Love foliage. Can’t wait to see you soon.~~Dee

    See you at the Asheville Fling soon, Dee! —Pam

  13. Heather says:

    So pretty Pam – I love the lushness – what a spring! I need one of those aloes – I think that is my favorite from all your pictures.

  14. Shyrlene says:

    I LIKE all the “spiky” ‘jungle’ plants in your garden!! Texture is a huge bonus, and you can grow many succulents that we could only dream of — much less capture the “wow factor” you do with your designs. These guys rock the house! ;D

  15. Scott Weber says:

    Better late than never, right, Pam??? I agree…the yellow offers a nice contrast to all the blue-green.

  16. Here I am, late to the party again. Your variegation is FINE with me, jungly or not! I’d take those gorgeous, blooming Aloe saponaria in a heartbeat, too.

    My post is pretty plain, especially in contrast to your contrasts…you’ll see what I mean. Thanks for hosting, Pam!

  17. ricki says:

    I’m sighing over the jungle look…surely you don’t mean to say it’s a bad thing. I, too, combined bloomday & foliage in one post this time: trying to catch up. Thanks, as always.

    No, Ricki, I’m actually crazy enough for variegated foliage that I love that look. —Pam

  18. Like Jane… I’m late to the party! But I took my cue from your post and decided to lead off with a yellow-striped plant for April. 🙂

    Your aloe reminds me that I keep meaning to tell you: After years of DROOLING every time you post a picture of your mangave… I bought one! I was volunteering at the Cleveland Botanical Garden during the Northeast Ohio Cactus & Succulent society plant sale, and I found a little mangave (unnamed variety) in a 3 inch pot… along with a few other treasures. I’m a little excited about this–and promise to post pictures soon!

    Congrats on the mangave acquisition, Kim! If you send a picture, perhaps I can ID it for you. —Pam

  19. Just a PS – thank you for the extra visitors you have sent to my blog from this Foliage Followup! Diana of EE

    I’m quite pleased to hear it, Diana! —Pam