I headed out into the garden with the intention of cutting stems of
Barleria obtusa to use in this week's arrangement for "In a Vase on Monday," the meme hosted by Cathy at
Rambling in the Garden. I did make up a small vase using the
Barleria but this week it's the unplanned arrangement, created on the fly, that makes my heart sing. It features an anonymous lavender rose I inherited with the house. To the best of my recollection, this is only the second time it's produced a bloom all year. The bloom was full blown when I cut it so it may not last long but I'll appreciate it while it lasts.
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| The best guess thus far is that the sweetly scented lavender rose is 'Angel Face' |
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| In addition to the lavender rose featured in the top row, the vase contains a white rose (also unidentified), Pentas 'Kaleidoscope Appleblossom', Gomphrena decumbens 'Itsy Bitsy' (aka 'Little Grape') and Leptospermum 'Copper Glow' (not included in the collage photo) |
The second vase with
Barleria obtusa as a focal point didn't turn out as I'd envisioned it. The
Barleria has relatively short stems, which flower from base to tip. Using it in an arrangement requires stripping the lower blooms to create a clean stem to place in the vase, which seems a pity so I cut just 2 stems and used a short vase. I'd intended to stick to blue and white flowers but, with white blooms in short supply in my garden at the moment, I tucked in a few pink flowers to fill out the vase.
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| Front and back views |
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| I like the view of the vase from the top best in this case |
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| The vase contains (clockwise from the left): Barleria obtusa, Cuphea ignea 'Starfire Pink', Leucanthemum x superbum, Pelargonium reniforme, Pittospormum tobira and, not shown in the collage, Duranta 'Sapphire Showers' and Lobularia maritima (aka sweet alyssum) |
The second vase sits in the front entry. The first sits on the dining room table, where we can enjoy its scent.
Visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden to see what she and other gardeners have in their vases this week.
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© 2012-2015 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
