Romancing the whites: white flowers and creamy foliage can make magic in moonlight or dappled shade

Sunset, July, 1998 by Sharon Cohoon

Tranquility has its strength, says Honolulu interior designer Mary Philpotts-McGrath. When Philpotts-McGrath moved into her home in historic Nu'uanu Valley, the basic elements of her green-and-white garden (pictured on page 56) were already in place - a taro irrigation stream (auwai) weaving through the front yard, a sweeping lawn of Hilo grass, and a swath of white-flowered spathiphyllum forming a low hedge along the drive. The serenity of the scene was immediately appealing to Philpotts-McGrath. "There's a peaceful, restorative, spiritual quality to this garden that I love very much and have been careful to preserve," she says.

The classic green-and-white garden is the horticultural equivalent of the little black dress, suggests Corine de Libran Longanbach, an interior designer in Rancho Santa Fe, California. Longanbach had an all-white garden when she lived in Provence, and she created another when she moved to California. A tall oleander hedge (white-flowering, naturally) wraps around her backyard pool, providing a backdrop for cream-colored flowers in containers and small island beds. "White gardens have a timeless elegance," says Longanbach. "They're never out of style, and you never tire of them."

Though the Carolee Shields White Flower Garden at the University of California at Davis Arboretum (pictured on page 53) is the most romantic spot on the campus, superintendent Warren Roberts, one of its creators, appreciates it for more practical reasons. "White gardens look their best when you most want to see them," he says. Summers are blazing hot in California's Central Valley, making early evening the most enjoyable time to be in the garden. White remains visible long after other colors have faded into the shadows, says Roberts, so white flowers make great sense in a garden enjoyed mostly by moonlight. White flowers are often their most fragrant after dusk, which is another plus.

They are quiet gardens, these cool, white ones. But their silence speaks volumes.

Designing in white

Successful white gardens take planning. Here are a few guidelines.

* Provide a dark background for contrast. Yew, the traditional English choice for this role, is too formal for the more casual Western style. But euonymus, Italian cypress, myrtle, natal plum, oleander, pittosporum, viburnum, and many other common Western shrubs can play the same roles.

* Cluster white plants in dappled shade. Western light is strong compared to foggy old England's. White flowers can look washed-out in full sun here, but they always look inviting in dappled shade. (A massive monkeypod tree shades most of Philpotts-McGrath's garden, for instance, and southern magnolias soften the light at the Carolee Shields White Flower Garden.)

* Plant for all seasons. English white gardens need to look good only for the summer, but many Western gardens have no real downtime. So use plants that flower often - modern roses such as 'Iceberg', for instance - and use sufficient foliage with white variegation to make sure part of the garden always reads white.

* Consider lime instead of gray for additional interest. Where the English may use gray foliage to separate icy whites from creamy ones, some Western gardeners prefer to use yellow-green foliage and flowers.

White gardens to visit

If you need inspiration when designing your white garden, plan a visit to one of these public gardens.

Carolee Shields White Flower Garden, Davis Arboretum, on the UC Davis campus. Always open. Occasional special curated moonlight tours (go to www.aes.ucdavis.edu/arboretum/arbhome.html for days and times). For more information call (530) 752-4880.

Descanso Gardens, 1418 Descanso Dr., La Canada Flintridge, CA. One-quarter acre of the International Rosarium is devoted to white roses and white companion plants. There is also a small silver foliage garden near Descanso's entrance. The gardens are open 9-4:30 daily except Christmas. Call (818) 952-4401 for more information.

William Land Park, 15th Ave., east of Land Park Dr., Sacramento. In the park's WPA Rock Garden section, look for the large white border designed by Daisy Mah (no signage).

Summer whites

These 10 flowering plants are especially fragrant at night.

* ANGEL'S TRUMPET (Brugmansia candida). Rangy shrub with large, trumpet-shaped flowers in single and double forms. Sunset climate zones 16-24.

* GARDENIA (G. jasminoides). Evergreen shrub with very fragrant, double flowers. Zones 7-9, 12-16, 18-23.

* NICOTIANA. Tender perennials usually grown as summer annuals. Unimproved white species (N. alata and N. sylvestris) more fragrant than hybrids. All zones.

* NIGHT JESSAMINE (Cestrum nocturnum). Evergreen shrub with clusters of cream-colored flowers in summer. Zones 13, 16-24.

* STAR JASMINE (Trachelospermum jasminoides). Evergreen vine, ground cover, or sprawling shrub. Profuse clusters of sweet-scented flowers. Zones 8-24.

* STEPHANOTIS (S. floribunda). Tropical, evergreen vine with waxy, funnel-shaped flowers. Zones 23-24; elsewhere a house plant.