Our water pipe replacement project was up and running with last minute notice from the plumber late Tuesday afternoon. Another of the plumber's projects was delayed so he was able to fit us in and we scrambled to be ready with our final preparations before the crew arrived early Wednesday morning. The good news is that they finished in two days instead of the three days projected to complete the job. The bad news is that, among the usual collateral damage that comes with a project of that scope, the connection that controls sixty percent of our irrigation system was damaged in the process, which we didn't discover until yesterday morning when the system ran for the first time on the water provider's prescribed schedule. After a couple of hours work, my husband decided that the problem was going to require more physical effort than he was up for so we'll be placing a follow-up call to the plumber's office when it opens this morning. He was able to identify the nature of the problem and has already sent an email message - with photos - to pinpoint the damage.
My cutting garden (and the other areas) got beat up during the plumbing project but there are still dahlias suitable for inclusion in a vase. I'd hoped that the big, fat buds of Dahlia 'Fairway Spur' would be ready for inclusion in a vase this week but they need more time. A few others came through, however.
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Dahlias 'Enchantress' and 'Karma Prospero' combined forces to fill a vase, along with a few Zinnia stems
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Clockwise from the upper left: Acacia cognata 'Cousin Itt', Alstromeria 'Inca Vienna' (left over from last week), noID Angelonia, Dahlia 'Enchantress', D. 'Karma Prospero', Prostanthera ovalifolia 'Variegata', and Zinnia elegans 'Benary's Giant Purple'
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I put together a smaller arrangement for the kitchen island.
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While most dahlias seem to produce smaller and smaller flowers as the season rolls on, Dahlia 'Summer's End' apparently wishes to go out with a splash with what may be its largest bloom yet
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Clockwise from the upper left: Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', Dahlia 'Summer's End', Leonotis leonurus, and Zinnia elegans 'Queen Lime Orange'
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A slimmed-down collection of leftovers from one of last week's vases was shoved into a small vase for the front entry.
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I cut a fresh bloom of Dahlia 'Catching Fire' but the other elements are last week's cuttings. The flowers of the Australian fuchsia (Correa 'Wyn's Wonder') show up better in this trimmed-down arrangement. The first time I cut stems of Caladium 'Tapestry', they lasted more than 3 weeks.
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We'd made major inroads in putting portions of the garden back together on Friday and Saturday before that activity came to a halt with the new plumbing issue. I'm focusing on hand-watering now. It's always something...At least the heatwave is over.
For more IAVOM creations, visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.
All material © 2012-2022by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
