In a Vase on Monday: A Juggling Act

We've been lucky with conditions along the Southern California coast for the past week with temperatures in the upper 70sF (26C).  The ten-day forecast shows more of the same ahead.  I even put in little time working in my garden this past week, cutting back some of the plants that burned or baked during the last extended heatwave.  I still have some dahlias, although far fewer than I had earlier in the season, and many of those are flowering on thinner, more feeble stems prone to breaking.  I can't guarantee how much longer they'll last but I'm hopeful that they may fill my vases at least through the end of September, which or course isn't far away.

This week's vase provided a pinky-purple mix.  As the vase I'd selected proved to be a bit too tight to accept everything I'd cut, after juggling what I could into place, I ended up discarding some of what I'd selected but the overall arrangement was better for the edits.

As the stems varied significantly in length, I struggled to fit them together in a cohesive fashion so the arrangement I ended up with wasn't what I'd initially envisioned

Back view

Overhead view

Clockwise from the upper left: Dahlia 'Admiral Rawlings', D. 'Enchantress', D. 'Mikayla Miranda', Zinnia 'Benary's Giant Purple', Z. 'Benary's Giant Wine', Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', and Dahlia 'Table Dancer' 

I was happy with the mix even though I ended up tossing quite a few flowers, most notably the stems of Polygala grandiflora (aka sweet pea bush).  I couldn't get its short stiff branches shoved into place.  However, they weren't a big loss as the shrub had planted itself where it didn't belong in the first place, and then got torched by the heat.  I have a lot of the same plant elsewhere in any case.

The final arrangement in place at the front entry

You can find more IAVOM arrangements by checking in with Cathy at Rambling in the Garden to discover what she and other gardeners participating in this weekly meme have found to share.

All material © 2012-2026 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Sparse Flower Power

The garden always looks less flowerful in September and this year the bloom display is perhaps sparser than usual as I just haven't been able to invest the time and energy my garden needs to stay on pace.  It didn't help that, after cooler than usual summer temperatures at the start of the season, it got much hotter during the past month.

However, my garden did provide a few surprises recently.

This Hippeastrum appeared out of the blue from one of the bulbs I'd planted in my back garden 2-3 years ago with the intention of allowing it to naturalize.  The bulbs don't seem to flower on any set schedule.  This one may be 'Luna' but I'm no longer certain.

I deadheaded all my Agapanthus more than a month ago, assuming they were done for the season.  These stragglers appeared out of nowhere.  The dark blue one was added to my collection a few years ago and has bloomed slightly later than those that came with the garden but even its flowers were unexpected.

I sowed sunflower seeds in June and only half expected to see any results.  I only got a few seedlings but this Helianthus 'Astra Rose' really pleased me.

I never know if or when this Leucophyllum laevagatum will bloom but it seems to respond to summer storms.  We seldom have those but I guess the remnants of Hurricane Marie are responsible for this appearance.

This noID Caladium obviously isn't a flower but it's pretty enough to warrant a shout out

Not to be outdone, the real stars of the garden this month were these:

A few of the dahlias were disappointing and several seemed to have already bloomed out but this group is still producing flowers.
Top row: Dahlia 'Admiral Rawlings' and D. 'Enchantress'
Middle row: D. 'Labyrinth', D. 'Karma Caroline', and D. 'Omega'
Bottom row: D. Mystery Day', D. Snowball', and D. 'Table Dancer'

The zinnias also got a late start this year and most have appeared only in small numbers at any one time.  Clockwise from the upper left, those currently flowering include: Zinnia 'Benary's Giant Salmon Rose', Z. 'Oklahoma White', Z. 'Benary's Giant Purple', and Z. 'Benary's Giant Wine'.

The most prolific and dependable of my daylilies, Hemerocallis 'Spanish Harlem', is midway through its second bloom cycle for the year

I don't have many roses but 6 Rosa 'Pink Meidiland' shrubs came with the garden and continue to flower at the front of the house

And then there are the usual old dependables, which serve as the backbones of my garden.

Abelia grandiflora 'Kaleidoscope' and A. g. 'Radiance'

The everblooming Grevillea 'Superb'

Lantana camara 'Irene' and noID yellow variety

Not flowers but rather colorful leaf bracts imitating flowers, these are Leucadendron 'Devil's Blush' and L. 'Summer Red'

I'll wrap up my late summer overview with a handful of honorable mentions tucked into a collage.

Clockwise from the upper left are: Catharanthus 'Blueberry Kisses', a noID Coleus, Daucus carota 'Dara', Rudbeckia 'Juliana', and Tanacetum parthenium 'Aureum'

 

With the arrival of cooler temperatures this week, I'm hopeful that we're on the bridge heading into the fall season.  My garden needs work and I need take stock of what should be yanked, what should be pruned back, and then compile a list of the prospects for replacements.  What about you?  Are you getting ready for the fall season yet?

All material © 2012-2026 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

In a Vase on Monday: I lost my patience

I had two floral arrangements in mind when I got up Sunday morning but the Hippeastrum I'd planned to use in one arrangement wasn't looking its best and the red dahlias I wanted to use in the other arrangement were no longer in prime condition.  So I did my best to cobble something together.  I added stems of Protea 'Pink Ice' to jazz up the elements but I struggled to get them to balance one another.  I finally threw up my hands and decided that the mix would have to do as it was.

I used the most respectable red 'Good Day' Dahlias I could find and combined them 3 'Omega' Dahlias, then added 3 Proteas

Back view: I used stems of Leucadendron 'Summer Red' and Agonis flexuosa as fillers.  This Leucadendron is much paler in color than others of the same variety growing in sunnier areas of my garden. 

Overhead view

Clockwise from the upper left, the vase contains: Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', Leucadendron 'Summer Red', Dahlia 'Good Day, D. 'Omega', and Protea 'Pink Ice'.  (My Protea 'Claire', which flowered earlier, got toasted during recent heatwave.)

Arrangement in place in the front entryway

After nearly two weeks of hot and humid weather, it's finally cooled down a bit.  Last week, our afternoon temperature hit 102.5F (39C) at one point and got stuck there for a good part of the day.  Hurricane Marie left us with miserably humid conditions for a time too but at least we avoided the flooding that plagued other areas and resulted in serious damage and evacuations elsewhere along the coast.  We got a total of 0.56/inch of rain here.  Yesterday's temperature hovered around 80F (26C) and we're hoping for more of the same for the rest of this week.  It's time for me to get back to work in the garden!

Check in with Cathy at Rambling in the Garden to discover what she and other contributors to IAVOM have put together this week.

All material © 2012-2026 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Wordless Wednesday: Visitors

 

All material © 2012-2026 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

In a Vase on Monday: Rain!

I'm celebrating the fact that we had rain on Sunday, which is something of a minor miracle for us at this time of time of the year.  It's usually dry here from early April until sometime in October.  Yes, we do occasionally have a tropical storm move through but it's not common.  Although forecasters said we could get rain over the Labor Day holiday weekend, the predictions were on the order of a twenty-five percent shot for our area.  But a thunderstorm did indeed come through Sunday morning, delivering over half an inch or rain.  Luckily, we didn't experience any of the flooding some nearby areas did.

As the possibility of rain increased on Saturday, I decided to pick flowers late that afternoon just in case.  That worked out well as I suspect the downpour would've wreaked havoc on many of the dahlias I still had in bloom.  I was able to put together two arrangements again this week, the first of which included Dahlia 'Snowball', which I hadn't had many opportunities to use previously this season.

I did have to gather a scattering of other dahlias to flesh out the arrangement, though

Back view: I used several of the white zinnias as filler material too

Overhead view

Clockwise from the upper left, the vase contains: Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', Tanacetum parthenium 'Aureum', Dahlia 'Enchantress', D. 'Mikayla Miranda', D. 'Snowball', and D. 'Table Dancer'.  I note that 'Enchantress' and 'Mikayla Miranda' are still not pulling their expected weight this year.

The second arrangement is also heavy on dahlias but I squeezed in some sunflowers too.  Last week, I identified the sunflowers I used as Helianthus 'Astra Rose'; however, I think that was incorrect and that the sunflowers I used this week actually fit the description of that plant.  I haven't found the seed packet for the other sunflower.

The sunflower adds a nice note to the arrangement but the real stars are the 'Omega' dahlias

 

I tucked a single stem of Dahlia 'Break Out' into the back of the arrangement.  'Break Out' was the most vigorous of all my dahlias at the start of the season but it has effectively burned itself out more recently.

Overhead view

Clockwise from the upper left, this vase contains: Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', Dahlia 'Break Out', D. 'Omega', Helianthus 'Astra Rose', Zinnia 'Benary's Giant Salmon Rose', and Z. 'Queeny Lemon Peach'

The dahlias are still fading fast but I hope I'll be able to pull together a couple more bouquets before I call an end to my summer season.  Be sure to check in with Cathy at Rambling in the Garden to see what she and other IAVOM contributors have to share this week.

All material © 2012-2026 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

In a Vase on Monday: Dashing to the finish line?

The persistent heat has a taken toll on both the garden and the gardener.  According to climatologists, the problem at present here isn't so much the daytime peaks in our temperatures as the fact that we're not seeing the drops in the evening and nighttime temperatures we're used to, and which we rely on to provide relief.  We finally got a break in the daytime highs on Sunday with temperatures falling from the mid-90s (35C) to upper 80s (30C) along the coast but it remains to be seen whether the nighttime temperatures will show a similar decline.

There are still dahlias in my cutting garden but there are fewer varieties making an appearance. Nonetheless, I was able to cobble together two arrangements this week.  The first was headlined by another flush of Dahlia 'Labyrinth' with a few assists from some bit players.

One large, multi-branched sunflower finally bloomed recently and I was looking forward to featuring it this week with just a few dahlias as accents.  But the majority of the sunflowers were looking sad after last week's blistering heat so the sunflowers slipped into the background and the dahlias stepped forward once again. 

Back view: One Dahlia 'Honeymoon' stem also showed up after a long wait so I included it too.  Pretty as that dahlia is, it's been a disappointment overall.  I think it's given me only 4 flowers in total thus far.

Overhead view

Clockwise from the upper left, the vase contains: Dahlia 'Labyrinth', D. 'Honeymoon', Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', Helianthus 'Astra Rose', Tanacetum parthenium 'Aureum', and Zinnias 'Benary's Salmon Rose' and 'Queeny Lemon Peach'.  The sunflower doesn't look anywhere near as pink as it looked in the seed catalog.

Arrangement in place in the front entry

The second arrangement was comprised of a group of dahlias I've largely ignored this season.

Dahlia 'Mystery Day' is the focal point of this arrangement.  I was looking for a red and white dahlia last year to replace the 'Catching Fire' variety I lost to the dreaded dahlia virus but this one hasn't made the grade with me.  I'll be scouting around for a replacement again when I shop for next year's tubers.

Back view: I threw in 3 other dahlias to fill out the arrangement

Overhead view

Clockwise from the upper left, this vase contains: Abelia grandiflora 'Hopley's Variegated', more Digitalis purpurea (!), Dahlia 'Admiral Rawlings', D. 'Mystery Day', D. 'Snowball', and D. 'Table Dancer' 

As our dining table has been taken over with various therapy materials these days, secondary floral arrangements have been consigned to the kitchen island

I've cleaned up the plants in my cutting garden that have suffered most from the combination of heat and mildew but it's not at all certain that will give them the boost they require to carry on through September.  There's little in the way of new floral content on the horizon at the moment.  I may have to turn to succulents soon, although even those plants are also looking battle weary at this point.

To find more IAVOM contributions, be sure to check in with Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.

All material © 2012-2026 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

In a Vase on Monday: Plonked in Place

After an all too brief period of temperatures in the mid-80sF (29C), they soared into the mid-90s (35C) last week and appear to be stuck there.  I made half-hearted attempts at cleaning up a couple areas of my garden but the heat sent me back into the air-conditioned comfort of the house all too quickly.  I did my best just to keep my cutting garden watered on a periodic basis.  Still, I managed to fill two vases with flowers that hadn't withered in place.

The first vase contains two dahlia varieties that have been stingy with with their blooms so far this year.

I didn't do much of anything in terms of arranging the flowers here beyond plonking them in this mug I've always used as a vase.  I let Dahlias 'Enchantress' and 'Mikayla Miranda' carry the show with an assist from Zinnia 'Benary's Giant Purple'.

Back view: what was most incredible was that I'm still getting new stems of foxgloves in this heat! 

Overhead view

Clockwise from the upper left are: Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', Dahlia 'Enchantress', D. Mikayla Miranda', Digitalis purpurea in white and purple, and Zinnia 'Benary's Giant Purple'  

The arrangement sitting on the front entry table

The second arrangement features Dahlia 'Nicholas'.  I fell in love with its waterlily-like flowers at first sight but the plant's foliage has presented problems from the outset.  Mildew has gradually become an issue for many of my dahlias this year but none are as sad as 'Nicholas'.  However, although it hasn't produced a lot of flowers, the mildew hasn't tarnished the flowers themselves.

The Dahlia's color mellows as its flower ages.  I paired it with stems of Leucadendron 'Wilson's Wonder' and Tanacetum parthenium 'Aureum'.

While many of the dahlias appear to be in retreat, the zinnias continue to pop up here and there in small numbers (without any sign of mildew from them as yet!), and one sunflower stalk is now in bloom, awaiting its turn in the limelight.

For more IAVOM creations, check in with Cathy at Rambling in the Garden to see what she and other contributors have to share this week.

All material © 2012-2026 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party