My two arrangements this week have little in common. They're far apart on the color wheel but not actually complementary. One's small and the other's considerably larger. Other than that they both feature some daisy-like flowers, the only quality I could think of that they share is a degree of buoyancy often lacking in my compositions.
The first was constructed around leggy Osteospermums I felt compelled to cut back to the ground yesterday morning. I saved every half-decent bloom and used almost all of them. However, the arrangement's energy was provided by my bubbly favorite, Gomphrena 'Itsy Bitsy'.
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I don't use most of my Osteospermums in arrangements because the flowers close in low light but plants in the '3D' and '4D' series like the 'Berry White' shown here have densely petaled centers that allow them to remain fully open day and night
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Back view, much like the front
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Top view, showing off the Gomphrena's tiny flowers on almost invisible stems
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Clockwise from the top: Osteospermum 'Berry White', Gomphrena decumbens 'Itsy Bitsy', and Leptospermum 'Copper Glow'
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My second arrangement was inspired by the bright orange leaves of one of my persimmons (Diospyros kaki 'Fuyu'), which I suspect may be gone by next week. I initially thought I'd pair the colorful foliage with flowers of Grevillea 'Superb' but, with the nearby Copper Canyon Daisy (Tagetes lemmonii) currently in full bloom, I shifted my palette.
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The long stems of the Copper Canyon Daisies float above the heavier elements below. Their scent bothers some people, including my husband, but thus far he hasn't said a word about them, although I wouldn't be entirely surprised to find the vase moved outdoors at some point
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| The back view shows off the grass plumes and grass-like Restio stems that add an airiness to the arrangement |
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Top view
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Clockwise from the upper left: Tagetes lemmonii, berries of Auranticarpa rhombifolia, foliage of Diospyros kaki 'Fuyu' (aka 'Fuyu' persimmon), Chondropetalum elephantinum, Gaillardia 'Arizona Sun' flowers and seed heads, and Pennisetum 'Fireworks'
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As I'd already cut two stems of Grevillea 'Superb', I popped those into a small, narrow-necked vase rather than tossing them out.
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The Grevillea blooms do look good with the persimmon foliage. They just didn't play well with the Copper Canyon Daisies.
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Pop over to
visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden for more IAVOM arrangements created by other contributors from materials they have on hand in their gardens.
For those of you in the US, my best wishes for Happy Thanksgiving. It may be a much different affair this year with the necessity to keep everyone safe by keeping them at a distance but it's possibly more important than ever to take a close look at what's really important in our lives and provide thanks for what we have, and what we hope to still have next year.
All material © 2012-2020 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
