March started out warm here but turned cold again (low-mid 50sF/13C) as a storm moved through the area on Thursday into Friday. Unfortunately, the storm blew through without delivering a drop of rain in our location. Nonetheless, the periodic warm spells seem to have pushed spring into hyperdrive. I wasn't sure what to cut for In a Vase on Monday simply because there were suddenly too many choices. However, when strong gusty winds knocked over Hippeastrum 'Ambiance' twice before I tucked it into a corner next to the house, I figured I might as well cut at least one of its tall stems before another gust caused it to crash and break.
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| I potted the Hippeastrum 'Ambiance' and Hippeastrum 'Luna' bulbs at about the same time but, while the latter shot up quickly, 'Ambiance' didn't show any sign of growth whatsoever until recently, when it suddenly produced 2 bloom stalks that towered above the remaining 'Luna' blooms |
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| Back view: I hadn't planned on using yellow in this arrangement but the brick red streaks in the petals of 'Ambiance' sent me on the trail of red-orange flowers and the colors in Lobelia laxiflora in turn led me to include 2 leftover blooms of Leucospermum 'Goldie' from last week's arrangement. I added a third Leucospermum to round things out. |
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| Top view: Even though I cut the Hippeastrum and other stems down dramatically in size, this arrangement was so tall I had to use a chair to take this overhead shot |
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| Clockwise from the upper left: Hippeastrum 'Ambiance', Leucospermum 'Goldie', Leucadendron salignum 'Chief', Lobelia laxiflora, and Lotus berthelotii 'Amazon Sunset' |
The wind also blew over the tall stems of the 'Chantilly' snapdragons so I cut some of those and let their colors dictate the remaining selections for my second arrangement.
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| In retrospect, I realized that this arrangement is similar in many respects to one of my Valentine's Day creations. There are no Grevilleas in this one but there are Leucospermums, both of which are members of the Proteaceae family. I even used the same vase. |
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| Back view: The stems of Leucospermum 'Goldie' are stretching into my flagstone path so I didn't feel badly about cutting them for 2 vases this week. I also remember that the squirrels started consuming these flowers in large numbers last spring and I'm reluctant to make their "harvest' easy. |
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| Top view: The peach-colored Leucospermum at the center of the arrangement is 'Royal Hawaiian Brandi', which is just starting to bloom |
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| Clockwise from the upper left: Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', Antirrhinum majus 'Chantilly Bronze' and 'Chantilly 'Peach', Freesia, and Leucospermum 'Royal Hawaiian Brandi' and 'Goldie' |
For more IAVOM creations, visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.
All material © 2012-2022 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
