Postcard from Chelsea: Friday

Astrantia 'Roma', Astrantia 'Buckland', Digitalis x mertonensis, Pimpinella major 'Rosea', Iris 'Dutch Chocolate', Anthriscus sylvestris 'Ravenswing' and (you'll have to take my word for it as it's just outside the picture) Nectaroscordum siculum, besieged by bumblebees.
The surprisingly gentle, calm and utterly sublime planting combination used by Luciano Giubbilei on his Laurent-Perrier garden to evoke rosé champagne. I spent all day yesterday looking at it as I was handing out leaflets and explaining what was what to the public; and I never once tired of it.

I seem to remember going on about Luciano's planting last time he was at Chelsea; this is a man who knows his way to a girl gardener's heart.

Perfect partners #2

Cornus alba 'Sibirica' and Hamamelis x intermedia 'Pallida' lighting up a corner on a gloomy February day at Capel Manor's gardens in Enfield, London, underplanted with Erica x darleyensis 'Silberschmelze'.

Perfect partners #1

Ophiopogon planiscapus 'Nigrescens', Hakonechloa macra 'Aureola' and Pittosporum tenuifolium 'Silver Magic', spotted at Wisley on a frosty day.

(By way of explanation: We've been set an assignment for the Plant Design course I'm doing at Capel Manor to compile lots of plant combinations that we particularly like, so since it's going to take me all year to do, I thought I'd share them as I go along.)