The unripe fuzzy peach-pink cones on the
Magnolia tree in the front garden got me started on Sunday morning as I assembled materials for "In a Vase on Monday," the meme hosted by Cathy at
Rambling in the Garden. I've used these at least once before but I'd forgotten how heavy they are before they dry and fall from the tree. When I added a couple of branches from the persimmon tree currently sporting brightly colored leaves, I had a mix that tested the capacity and stability of my usual go-to vases. Out came a vase I've had for well over a decade, which I seldom use. In fact, I can't remember using it all since we moved into our current home almost 8 years ago. It created a super-sized display.
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| Even with glass marbles to help hold everything in place, I had challenges with this arrangement |
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| Back view |
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| People have asked if I stand on a chair to photograph my vases from the top. Usually, I don't have to but this time I needed both a chair and a more open area of the kitchen to get a clear shot. |
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| Clockwise from the upper left: Grevillea 'Peaches & Cream', Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', Magnolia grandiflora cone, Grevillea 'Superb', Magnolia leaves, and leaves of what I think is a 'Fuyu' persimmon (Diospyros kaki 'Fuyu') |
There weren't many ingredients in the first vase but they were cumbersome and, for once, I gave serious thought to stopping with vase #1. But I've become accustomed to having fresh flowers in the front entry too so I put together a second smaller vase for that spot, incorporating a bloom that surprised me when it made its first appearance in my back garden last week.
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| The Camellias that performed so well in a vase last week are back this week but, in my view, the star of this arrangement is the single Nerine |
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| Back view, showing off the Leptospermum currently blooming in abundance, as well as Westringia foliage recycled from one of last week's vases |
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| Top view, once again showing off the Nerine bloom. As I recall, I planted perhaps a dozen of these bulbs in one area of the back garden 2 or more years ago. They've previously produced foliage but this is the first bloom I've had. |
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| Clockwise from the upper left: noID Camellia sasanqua, Abelia grandiflora 'Hopley's Variegated', Westringia fruticosa 'Morning Light', Leptospermum scoparium 'Pink Pearl', and noID Nerine |
Cutting and arranging flowers gave me a nice break from the garden clean-up activities that consumed much of my time during the extended holiday weekend. I was aching all over Saturday night and Sunday morning but I feel almost normal again now so I can get back to work. We had rain early Thanksgiving morning and there's a chance of another storm later this week. Both major fires in California are finally fully contained and it's possible to take deep breaths again. Things are looking up here.
For more floral/foliage arrangements,
visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.
All material © 2012-2018 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
