At this time of year, it's uncommon for me to step into the garden on a Sunday morning without some notion of what I'm going to cut for "In a Vase on Monday," the weekly challenge posed by Cathy at Rambling in the Garden to uncover something in one's garden to use in a flower and/or foliage arrangement. However, yesterday I had nothing in mind, other than a desire not to repeat myself. When I scanned my back border for plants I haven't featured in a vase this year, I immediately lighted on two suitable prospects.
The first was Penstemon digitalis 'Onyx & Pearls'. I put in three plants last July after purchasing them on a whim. I usually avoid planting anything other than succulents during the summer months as doing otherwise is generally a self-defeating exercise. To make matters worse, last July I was still engaged in an ongoing battle with gophers. But the label on the Penstemon claimed that it required only occasional water, which differentiated it from most other Penstemons I've tried to grow here. The foliage color was also unusual so I threw caution to the wind and went ahead. I did plant all three with their roots inside gopher cages, though!
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| I took this photo about ten days ago when the plant was just starting to bloom but, as the "onyx" color of the foliage is mostly hidden in my arrangement I wanted you to see it. Not only is the foliage a dark blackish-purple in color, it feels leathery to the touch. |
The Penstemons were flowering heavily on tall stems on Sunday so I cut three and went in search of appropriate companions.
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| I've used the purple foxglove before but there were two new spikes begging to be cut in my cutting garden. The flower front and center is the first of the seed-sown Daucus carota 'Dara' to open fully. |
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| Back view: Salvia canariensis and the sweet peas are making return appearances |
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| Top view: I used one of my tallest crystal vases for this arrangement and had to stand on a chair to photograph it overhead |
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| Top view: Abelia x grandiflora 'Hopley's Variegated', Consolida ajacis 'Splish Splash', and Daucus carota 'Dara' Middle row: Digitalis purpurea, Lathyrus odoratus 'Sir Jimmy Shand' (with 'High Scent'), and Nigella papillosa 'African Bride' Bottom row: Penstemon digitalis 'Onyx & Pearls'and Salvia canariensis var candidissima |
The second plant that caught my eye on the initial scan of my back border was a coral gladiola. It stuck out in part because its color is completely out of keeping with the surrounding plants. According to my records, I planted a dozen Gladiolus nanus 'Nymph' bulbs on May 2018. The flowers were supposed to be white with pink markings but those that survived to bloom in 2019 and 2020 are coral-pink with hot-pink markings.
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| It was surprisingly difficult to find flowers to complement the unusual color mix in the gladiola |
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| Back view: I used some of the remaining snapdragons with rust-encrusted foliage. I think I'll be pulling all the remaining snapdragons this week. |
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| Top view |
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| Top view: Aeonium haworthii 'Kiwi', Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', and noID Antirrhinum majus Middle row: Clarkia 'Salmon Princess'* and Gladiolus nanus 'Nymph' (or a relative) Bottom row: Melinus nerviglumis and Rosa 'Pink Meidiland' *The Clarkia was sold as C. unguiculata but it looks to be C. amoena |
For more IAVOM creations, visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.
All material © 2012-2021 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party