Isn't it odd that even a five day absence seems like a dereliction of duty when it comes to one's garden? As my July 19th post indicated, I had plans to tackle several jobs quickly upon my return from the Puget Sound Garden Fling. I even had delusions of creating a late "In a Vase on Monday" post after snapping a few photos of an arrangement I'd hastily put together for the contractor who directed the replacement of our water pipes and the related repairs to our walls - or really his wife, who'd just had surgery. I'd handled most of my garden's immediate watering needs and tidied up a few areas before general fatigue and then a positive COVID test put a crimp on all my plans early Wednesday morning. Defying my symptoms and ignoring disapproving looks from my husband, I've put in an hour here and there since Wednesday but I can't claim I've accomplished much; however, I did cut flowers for IAVOM early Sunday morning when temperatures were comfortable.
I'd identified what appears to be the last of my lilies as a starting point. The bloom stalk proved to be past its prime but I used its one presentable flower as my centerpiece. Luckily, my dahlias are finally stepping up to fill the gaps in my garden's supply of flowers as summer temperatures wither the blooms that were prominent just two weeks ago.
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| The lily is 'Pretty Woman', which for some reason is pure white this year without the pink blush it's produced in prior years. I paired it with the purple and white flowers of Dahlia 'Vancouver', the only dahlia I purchased "off the rack" from local garden center this year. I cut all the blooms it came with immediately after purchase and it's coming out swinging with a fresh flush of blooms now. |
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| Back view: I filled out the vase with stems of one of the few remaining foxgloves in my garden |
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| Overhead view |
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| Clockwise from the upper left: Dahlia 'Vancouver', Orienpet Lilium 'Pretty Woman', Digitalis purpurea 'Dalmatian Purple', Leptospermum 'Copper Glow', and Monarda hybrid 'Peter's Purple' |
I filled a second collection bottle with an assortment of other flowers and foliage, originally planning to fold everything into a single second arrangement. After some futzing, I decided I preferred to break them up into three (!!!) smaller, more carefully coordinated mixes.
The first of these centered on a single bloom of Dahlia 'Summer's End'.
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| I purchased a single Dahlia 'Summer's End' tuber in 2021 and it's performed well every year since. It's a "waterlily" type. |
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| Back view: I got lucky with a fresh flush of flowers from Callistemon 'Cane's Hybrid' which appeared seemingly overnight to offer the perfect accent |
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| Top view |
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| Clockwise from the upper left: Callistemon 'Cane's Hybrid', Cuphea 'Honeybells', Dahlia 'Summer's End', and Tanacetum parthenium |
The next arrangement is even simpler, including just three elements.
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| Clockwise from the upper left: front and overhead views of the arrangement, Abelia grandiflora 'Kaleidoscope', Dahlia 'Creme de Cognac', and Daucus carota 'Dara' |
The last remnants of the morning cuttings went into a third vase, which sits on the desk in my home office.
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| The vase contains the first flower of Rudbeckia hirta 'Sahara', Tanacetum parthenium, and seedheads of Helichrysum 'Icicles' |
For more floral and foliage creations visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden, who leads the merry band of IAVOM contributors.
All material © 2012-2024 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
