'All Gold' Hakone Grass Planted in Container

Is your garden awash in green foliage? A few well placed bright gold-leaf shrubs or perennials can awaken almost any dull green landscape spot. Here are two shrubs, Mellow Yellow® spirea and Gold Nugget barberry, plus one perennial (‘All Gold’ hakone grass) that may add some flair.

Mellow Yellow® Spirea (Spiraea thunbergii ‘Ogon’) forms small white flowers which cover the branches in mid-spring, and bright yellow narrow leaved foliage soon to follow. Branches take on a drooping habit. The yellow leaves fade to green in the summer, and all leaves turn burnt orange in the fall. It grows 4-5 feet in height and spread in full to partial sunlight. Mellow Yellow tolerates dry soils in summer with little leaf burn.

Golden Nugget barberry (Berberis thunbergii ‘Golden Nugget’) offers bright colored foliage which does not burn in the summer heat. Grow in full sun to sharpen its golden hue. Barberry grows well in average soil as long as it is well drained. The foliage develops an orange cast in the cool autumn air. Golden Nugget is a low slow growing plant for the front border.

All Gold hakone grass (Hakonechloa macra ‘All Gold’) shimmers in a partially shaded spot. Foliage holds its spectacular color all summer, especially when sited in morning sunlight. All Gold grows as a neat, cascading mound, 12 inches high and 18 inches wide. It prospers in compost rich soil with regular watering. Just tuck one or more among green leafy plants and see what happens.

Pruning shrubs shortly after spring flowering as spirea and barberry bloom on last year’s wood. Hakone grass is mowed down in late fall to three inches in height. Bees and butterflies visit spirea and barberry flowers in the spring.