In last week's "In a Vase on Monday" post, I featured artichokes as a prop. After the fact, it occurred to me that I could have tried using them in the vase as I've seen professional flower arrangers do on occasion. Later, as I was walking by my grapevine, I decided I should try incorporating some of the immature grape clusters into my next arrangement. I've used the leaves before but not the grapes themselves; however, as we never manage to get more than a handful of semi-ripe grapes from the vine before the critters strip it clean, there's little reason not to use them in an arrangement. And, the truth be told, I'd let the vine get completely out of control so it can only benefit from a little thinning.
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| The grapevine is shown in the background in the photo on the left, framed by 2 guava trees. Conveniently for the critters, the grape clusters are growing low to the ground this year. |
I kept the arrangement very simple.
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| Front view: I'm sure a florist would have come up with something more creative but I was stymied when it came to finding suitable companions for the grapes |
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| Back view: It occurred to me (again after-the-fact) that it might have been easier to have stuck the grapes inside the vase rather than trying to balance them on the vine outside of it |
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| Top view |
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| Close-ups of the materials included, clockwise from the upper left: Achillea 'Moonshine', grape leaves, sour grapes, and Tanacetum nivium |
I put together a second vase but also kept it simple. While the overall volume of flowers in my garden may be greater now than it's been to this point, there's less variety at the moment. Yellows and blues dominate.
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| Front view of triangular vase with its heart-shaped opening |
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| Back view, showing the purplish-blue backs of the petals of the Osteospermum |
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| Top view |
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| Close-ups of Osteospermum '4D Silver' (top) and Duranta erecta 'Sapphire Showers' (bottom left) and more Tanacetum niveum (bottom right) |
Visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden for more vase creations. I'm grieving with those of you in the UK over the latest senseless act of violence on your side of the pond. My condolences and best wishes to you all.
All material © 2012-2017 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
