Deconstruction of my cutting garden is well underway. I left four dahlias with large buds in place for awhile last week but ultimately gave up on all but one of them. All the other dahlias - or at least those I've chosen to keep - have been dug up, washed, divided, and tucked away in the garage for the duration of their dormant period. The last dahlia produced a single bloom and I cut it for an arrangement as a nod to the end of my dahlia season.
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| Dahlia 'Breakout' is the centerpiece. I added bits and pieces from elsewhere in the garden to fill out the squat decorative teapot, including a stem of Amarine 'Emanuelle'. I planted 5 Amarines 2 years ago and so far 4 have bloomed, albeit each on its own schedule. |
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| Back view: I added 2 stems of the pale yellow Senna bicapsularis to play off the yellow tones at the center of the dahlia |
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| Top view |
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| Clockwise from the upper left: Amarine belladiva 'Emanuelle', Callistemon 'Cane's Hybrid', Correa 'Wyn's Wonder', Dahlia 'Breakout', Leucadendron 'Jester', Senna bicapsularis, and noID Zinnia elegans |
With the dahlias and also the zinnias now gone, the pickings will be slim for the next few months. This week I made use of some of the remaining Rudbeckias and Helianthus before they're also gone. Rudbeckia hirta is a short-lived perennial but I generally treat it as an annual as it gets scruffy at the end of the summer season. Helianthus 'Sunbelievable Brown-Eyed Girl' is classified as a half-hardy annual and, given that we're frost-free, it could hang on but, after four solid months of bloom, it's suddenly looking tired so I may retire it in favor of a plant that will add color to my cutting garden.
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| The remaining Rudbeckias are short-stemmed but Tagetes lemmonii and Pennisetum grass added needed height to the arrangement |
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| Back view: I also added stems of Aristea inaequalis studded with seedheads to play off the dark tones of some of the flowers |
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| Top view |
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| Clockwise from the upper left: Aristea inaequalis seedheads, Corokia virgata 'Sunsplash', Helianthus 'Sunbelievable Brown-Eyed Girl', 2 colors of Rudbeckia hirta 'Cherokee Sunset', Leucadendron 'Wilson's Wonder', Pennisetum advena 'Rubrum', and Tagetes lemmonii |
For more IAVOM creations, visit Cathy at Rambling in the Gardens. For those of you who observe the holiday, Happy Halloween!
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| I added a few Halloween-specific props to my arrangements this week |
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material © 2012-2023
by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
