I grow Astrantia major against Arundo donax versicolor. The deep red flowers of the Astrantia look stunning by the variegated foliage of the arundo.

I also have growing a white clematis and a Niobe deep red clematis interweaving itself through scores of sweet peas. The huge cupped flowers of the Clematis are a welcome sight now, and later when the sweet peas are in flower, the clems. are already going into seed, so I can cut back everything at one time!

Last summer I put some bunnytail grass around and through a dark red crested cockscomb just for fun. But they ended up looking good together

Lastly I have huge clumps of houttuynia cordata in front of the white Zantedeschias, and they look great.

My book says Arundo donax versicolor is half hardy. How do you manage it? Astrantia major is one of my favourites.

It isn't really unusual but one of the combinations I've been most pleased with this year is Spiraea japonica ÂGoldflame planted beneath Ceanothus dentatus var. floribundus. The bright orange-red of the Spiraea foliage against the dark glossy green of the Ceanothus with it's dusty blue flowers is very pleasing to me.

The only downside is when the Spiraea opens its pink flowers, then the combination becomes rather sickly.

One I've enjoyed this summer gone is Athyrium nipponicum 'Ursula's Red' and a pink-cream Tradescantia (in a pot to prevent escapes!). Just below the combination, in-on a tree fern stump, is Saxifraga fortunei 'Black Ruby' whose flowers pick up the pink/silver of the other two, and the leaves of Corydallis lutea.

burnt orange pilosella/hieracium aurantiaca -um coming up through a hot pink cistus. Also coming up through purple salvia verticillata "Smouldering Torches"...actually coming up all over the place!!! but the burnt orange is just too perfect a colour and it's easy to weed out.

Jane_of_the_Gable, the climate is pretty mild here in south-east Ireland and the Arundo seems to love it. It just keeps coming up year after year and spreading by leaps and bounds too. This year I've also planted some dark purple Agastache against the Arundo in another bed and am waiting to see how they look together. It is also a very easy plant to grow as it looks after itself, like so many grasses.

A bog-standard orange-flowered nasturtium might not be most people's idea of excitement, but against the huge, milk-chocolate coloured leaves of Plantago major 'Rubrifolia' (also known as 'Purpurea') it looked absolutely stunning.

Wow! Some of these combinations sound good enough to eat. And am I right in thinking that you can use nasturtium leaves in salads, or is this just wishful thinking?

You can... but it's not to everyone's taste! I like strong-tasting leaves like rocket and watercress, but I find Nasturtium leaves just too coarse-flavoured and pungent. But do try them - best to use the young leaves, I think. Also you can put the flowers in salads. They look good but again, the taste is strong. Some people also pickle the unripe seeds as a substitute for capers (but then again, some people also think ground up dandelion root is a good substitute for coffee!)

The brilliant red opium poppies have come up next to a clump of gladiolus byzantinus this year- hot magenta. The clash makes my eyeballs vibrate but I love it!

For a non-green combination, I found by accident that the leaf colour of the purple-leaved Maple, Acer palmatum Atropurpureum, matches the stem colour of the painted Japanese Fern, Athyrium niponicum Pictum.