Well, to be honest, I added more flowers than I'd originally intended to but it was the foliage that started me off with this week's "In a Vase on Monday." I cut stems of 4 different
Leucadendrons, 2 of which I've never cut before.
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| The flowers ended up dominating the front of the vase |
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| but I prefer the foliage-dominated view from the back |
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| The top view strikes a balance between the foliage and the flowers |
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| Clockwise from the upper left, the foliage elements are: Leucadendron salignum 'Chief', L. 'Ebony', L. 'Jester', and L. 'Wilson's Wonder'. Both 'Ebony' and 'Jester' are sports of L. 'Safari Sunset', which also grows in my garden. |
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| Clockwise from the left, the floral elements are: Grevillea 'Ned Kelly', Anigozanthos 'Yellow Gem', Gaillardia 'Arizona Sun', Jacobaea maritima, and Lobelia laxiflora |
As I had friends coming for lunch on Sunday and knew I'd have no time to fuss with flowers or foliage, I prepared vases for both the dining table and the front entry on Saturday afternoon. I had a list of tasks to complete in preparation for my visitors so both my arrangements and my photographs were completed in record time this week. In contrast to the flashy foliage and flowers of the first arrangement, I kept the second vase very simple.
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| The summer parade of Agapanthus has begun and I used 3 of the smaller blooms as the starting point for the vase intended for the front entry |
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| Back view |
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| Top view |
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| Clockwise from the upper left, the vase contains: noID Agapanthus, Achillea 'Moonshine', Tanacetum niveum, and Globularia x indubia |
Visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden for more "In a Vase on Monday" posts.
All material © 2012-2017 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
The combination of blue and yellow is difficult to beat but I adore the rich colours of your mostly foliage arrangement. I am always so envious of your fabulous leucadendrons which are impossible to grow here.
ReplyDeleteI think I've gone a little Leucadendron crazy since moving here. I had one plant in my former garden. By my current count, I have at least 13 plants in this genus at present - and I may have missed one or two.
DeleteLOVE blue, yellow and white combined - so beautiful. The foliage combo is spectacular, too, with the Grevillea and Anigozanthos 'Yellow Gem' catching my eye. You get to grow such great plants! <3
ReplyDeleteBut you can grow peonies, Eliza! And your bearded Iris actually bloom!
DeleteWow - the two so different. Both beautiful.
ReplyDeleteI saw the rich colours of the first arrangement in a sock yarn today in this post: http://attic24.typepad.com/weblog/2017/06/drifting.html
Synchronicity!
Those are lovely socks! And I liked the photo of the sleeping cat too.
DeleteThere is nothing like a deadline to focus the mind and reduce the faffing! The colours of each are inspired. The foliage is lovely in the first vase, as you say and I like the blue and yellow, it's so calm. This reminded me that many years ago my Mum coaxed an agapanthus into flower and my young son knocked it off with a football. I didn't really understand at the time but I do now!
ReplyDeleteGiving myself no time to fuss (or faff) was a very liberating experience in this instance, Alison. I need to put myself on a schedule more often! Fortunately for us, Agapanthus are very common here. They're actually maligned by many people for being so being so common but, after inheriting dozens of clumps with the garden, I've become very fond of them.
DeleteLove the variation of colour of the foliage - your vase really showcases them, and your spiky blue and yellow vase is so cool and refreshing looking. Hope your visitors enjoyed their lunch!
ReplyDeleteWe had a great time, Cathy!
DeleteWhat a wealth of dramatic foliage. I had friends coming Sat. Morning and did my vases early as well.
ReplyDeleteI hope your visitors appreciated those gorgeous peonies, Linda!
DeleteBoth arrangements are lovely Kris; I love your blue vase and who can resist Agapanthus? Foliage is of course close to my heart and your foliage is so exotic and proves that a garden and a vase can be perfect without flowers. I'm sure your guests were very impressed.
ReplyDeleteMost of my guests weren't gardeners and paid the arrangements little attention, Christina, but their creation was still an important part of dressing the house in my own view.
DeleteThey are so different and yet equally stunning!
ReplyDeleteThanks Leanne!
DeleteKris, think you need some funky Gallardia! Your blue vase made me wish Agapanthus liked my garden better,
ReplyDeleteI do need some of that funky Gaillardia, Amy! I didn't remember the cultivar name, 'Fanfare', until this evening. While 'Goblin' and 'Arizona Sun' are commonly sold here, I don't think I've ever seen 'Fanfare' offered locally. I'll have to resort to growing them from seed.
DeleteBoth arrangements are lovely but the first one with the fabulous foliage and those glorious Grevilleas makes my heart sing. (Okay, it makes me a little jealous that these aren't hardy here too but that's another thing.) Your guests must have been impressed!
ReplyDeleteGrevillea 'Ned Kelly' is looking particularly good right now.
DeleteMy visitors made nice remarks about the garden but none about the vases beyond noting that I'd created them. Most people in my local circle of friends aren't nearly as plant-obsessed as I am.
Can I email you my address and you can just get that first creation in the mail? I love it!
ReplyDeleteI tell you what, Loree, whenever you get down my way, I'll hand you clippers so you can wander about and cut your own bouquet.
DeleteFoliage combinations to swoon over...! I love the simplicity of your second vase too :)
ReplyDeleteAs time goes on, I'm coming to appreciate simple arrangements more and more, Amy...
DeleteYour play with colour and texture combinations is so good, and effortless!
ReplyDeleteThanks! I hesitated to cut 'Ebony' but justified it because the plant was growing off-kilter. Ditto with 'Jester'. But I don't expect to make a habit of cutting stems from either unless or until the plants get much bigger - or so I tell myself.
DeleteAll so pretty. I'll try again with a garden creation if I can get something that will last more than a few days
ReplyDeleteMost vases are ephemeral creations, Patsi. Jump in!
DeleteLove them both Kris... one hot vase and one cool, what a great combination! And your Agapanthus is lovely. I have finally got one bud on my plant!!!
ReplyDeleteI hope you get many more buds and blooms on your Agapanthus, Cathy! They're in bloom all over my garden and all over the city here at the moment but then they're made for this climate.
DeleteBeauty again. I love that blue-and-white vase, too.
ReplyDeleteThat vase was an expected find at Roger's. I bought 3 in complementary patterns but have already given away one.
DeleteI love them both, but I can totally see your infatuation with the foliage of the first one. So very lovely!
ReplyDelete'Ebony' and 'Jester' have been slow growers and should never get as big as "Chief' or 'Wilson's Wonder' but I'm happy that they've settled into the garden at last.
Delete