As I write this I am still reflecting on my recent (and first of many, I hope) trip to the Polly Hill Arboretum on Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts. I was delighted to be part of the lineup of speakers for their summer programs.

What made the experience even more special, beyond the glorious weather and amazing plant collections, was the chance to reconnect with my good friends Laura Coit and her husband, Tim Boland.

Erica Glasener / AJC Special (ENLARGE)

The dark purple of Physocarpus opulus 'Diablo' blends well with Butterfly Weed.

Erica Glasener / AJC Special (ENLARGE)

Cotinus 'Golden Spirit' fits in a border with evergreens and perennials.

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Tim is the director of the PHA and Laura, a horticulturist, perennial garden designer and garden writer, designed the Homestead Border at the Arboretum, the focus of a workshop we taught together about Using Shrubs in the Mixed Border.

Many of the shrubs she selected to use in the border also will thrive in our Georgia gardens.

Laura explained that her approach to the border was to come up with a color scheme. That scheme then dictates the plants she uses.

For this border, she chose flowers and foliage with sunset colors like, red, orange and purple. Her one exception is the native Rudbeckia maxima with bright yellow flowers (she thinks of this as the sun).

She also uses color echoes, like pairing the selection of Ninebark, Physocarpus opulus 'Diablo,' with dark purple foliage and a dark red-stemmed native Butterfly Weed, Asclepias tuberosa.

Behind the Ninebark is a cultivar of Butterfly Bush, Buddleia davidii 'Nanho Blue.' Laura treats both the Butterfly Bush and the Ninebark as cutback shrubs. In early spring, before new growth starts, she cuts them back hard, to about 1 foot tall. Not only does this help control their size, it keeps them vigorous.

Another cutback shrub which blooms in the fall is Bush Clover, Lespedeza thungbergii 'Gibraltar.' Although graceful in appearance, once established, this rugged shrub will tolerate periods of drought.

In keeping with her color scheme, Laura has included herbaceous perennials such as Nepeta 'Walker's Low,' a Catmint with lavender-blue flowers and Crocosmia 'Lucifer,' also called Montbretia, with orange-red flowers, as well as Lavendar and Coneflowers.

In my own mixed border, I grow the Smoketree, Cotinus coggygria 'Royal Purple,' which has dark purple foliage and smoky flowers in spring. Like the Ninebark, if you cut this shrub back hard in the spring, it will stay bushy and vigorous but you will sacrifice its blooms.

I have paired this Smoketree with hardy red Amaryllis, Amaryllis x johnsonii and red verbenas. Other shrubs I include in my border are small roses, Hydrangea paniculata 'Tardiva' and a type of Ninebark called Physocarpus opulifolius 'Coppertina' with coppery-orange foliage that turns more of a dark red in summer and fall.

Planted behind the Ninebark is a day lily, over 5 feet tall, called Hemerocallis 'Autumn Minaret' with elegant yellow flowers marked a dark peach eye.

When planning your own mixed border, consider starting with a color scheme which will help you limit your plant selections.

Depending on the size of your border you can also use repetition, with both shrubs, herbaceous plants and bulbs. This will give the garden a sense of continuity and help tie it together.

More shrubs for mixed borders

• Abelia x grandiflora 'Rose Creek'

• Buxusspecies and cultivars

• Callicarpa americana, Callicarpa dichotoma

• Camellia japonica cultivars

• Caryopteris divaricata 'Snow Fairy'

• Caryopteris incana 'Jason'

• Corylopsis pauciflora

• Cotinus 'Golden Spirit'

• Fothergilla gardenii 'Mt. Airy'

• Hibiscus syriacus 'Bluebird,' 'Diana,' or 'Minerva'

• Hydrangea paniculata 'Limelight'

• Hypericum 'Hidcote'

• Rosa 'Knockout' and 'Weopop'

• Spiraea thunbergii 'Ogon'

• Viburnum carlesii 'Compactum'

• Viburnum macrocephalum

• Weigelia florida 'Wine and Roses.'

ERICA'S PICK

Golden Spirit Smoketree

Botanical name: Cotinus coggygria 'Golden Spirit'

About the plant: This smoketree glows in the garden with spring foliage that ranges from lime green to golden and pink flowers in summer. In autumn, the leaves turn shades of red, orange and yellow. It grows to 8 feet high and 6 feet wide, but you can cut it back hard in the spring to keep it vigorous and control its size. (You'll miss out on flowers though.)

Use in the garden: Plant this in the border against a background of evergreens and combine it with perennials with blue flowers. It also makes a good container plant.

Planting and care: Plant 'Golden Spirit' in full sun or part shade in a well-drained soil.

Source: McMahan's Nursery, 5727 Cleveland Highway, Clermont, GA 30527; 770-983-3666

Erica Glasener is a horticulturist and host of HGTV's "A Gardener's Diary" at 7 a.m. Thursdays.