My 2

Word on the streets is that Pantone has announced the color of the year for 2010- And it's turquoise.

How does this impact us gardeners since turquoise is pretty much a coloro non grata in nature (Outside of Arizona, Texas,New Mexico...Old Mexico)? Meh.

Seriously. Try and find a color that you see in gardens less. It can't be done.

How can I be so sure?

I ♥ turquoise.

Always have, always will. I know, I know- you think of me as a pink sort of gal- but that's just because pink is SO obnoxious/in yo' face and I can't pass that up. But turquoise and me- we go way back. When I was a wee lass, I took Crayola's Blue-Green crayon (or was it Green-Blue? I can never remember the difference) and carefully colored in the mortar,that I could reach, in our family's grand stone fireplace.

Several years after that, when I was fully recovered, I was nearly hit by a car while picking up some spilled aquarium stone at the end of a neighbor's driveway because I thought it was, you guessed it, turquoise.

When I finally had my own place, I painted it shades of teal and tuquoise and aqua- to the point that Dan can no longer stomach any shade in that color family. And now I have to sneak it into rooms he frequents a little less- like my developing "squirrel bathroom". Because nothing says "squirrels" like turquoise.

I'm not saying there isn't any way to work turquoise into a garden, I myself have come up with 4,000 ways. You just have to be super tricky about it.

Here are a few ideas...