Plants to highlight a pool

Which plants would properly highlight the pool in my yard?

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##FULL QUESTION## Dear *Gardening Life*, I have a 75-foot-long yard with a turquoise-coloured pool backed by a narrow planting bed. I want to create a beautiful backdrop to the pool, but dark colours like purple disappear and bright yellow doesn’t fit with the pool colour. Any suggestions? *—Myroslava Dubyk, Toronto*

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##FULL ANSWER## Myroslava, For my money, the most eye-catching plant would be a variegated dogwood, *Cornus controversa* ‘Variegata’, sometimes called the wedding-cake tree for its tiered form and pale cream-edged leaves. It will grow slowly to 25 feet and is so striking you’ll see it at a distance. Surround it with lower shrubby dogwoods that have bright bark for winter interest, but don’t crowd it. *—Marjorie Harris, Editor at Large* Other questions recently answered by the GL team: Using black walnut leaves for mulch Stopping powdery mildew on maples Planting trees near a swale Growing on a septic field How to battle weeds between flagstone and alternative options Mysterious orange powder on the lawn What to do with end-of-season potatoes on the vine How to control Japanese knotweed What to grow in a dry area The proper way to plant astrantia What is the star flower and how do I manage it? How do I eliminate my ant problem? Preventing red beetles from attacking lilies Vine types to grow on a new pergola Maintaining purple fountain grass Keeping bougainvilllea healthy throughout the winer How to rid invasive green goutweed Good garden uses for fireplace ashes Growing grape hyacinth indoors The best way to convert a lawn into a meadow The proper way to grow rhododendrons Eliminating beetle damage to spruce trees Annual resembling Japanese maple Planting ivy near cedar trees In search of the 'Sundance Kid' sunflower Caring for canna bulbs A supplier for barren strawberry ground cover Winter care for roses Cutting back mauna loa The best time to harvest curly-leaf lettuce Eliminating invasive trumpet Caring for double-flowering hibiscus trees Eliminating white aphids from honeysuckle vine Where to purchase Japanese blood grass An alternative to rhododendrons Growing a vegetable garden over a septic field Dividing and replanting daylilies Proper care for oakleaf hydrangea The best care for shrub roses 'The Fairy' Pest eating purple leaf sand cherry Preventing lawn brown spots Keeping plants sturdy Preventing suckers from a cut-down serviceberry tree Best tomato seeds to sow Preventing wind damage to grasses

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