I've always had trouble growing snapdragons, which is sad because I love the flowers. But our morning marine layer; the fact that most, if not all, of the rain we get comes in winter when the plants are commonly offered by local garden centers; and the frequency with which moisture-laden mornings are followed by stretches of warm, dry days creates an incubator for rust. Within a couple of weeks of planting the plugs or four-inch pots I buy, their foliage is covered in rust and I end up pulling them up. The one upside of the exceptionally dry winter we've had is that my snapdragons look great. I've used snapdragons in both arrangements I created this week.
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| While snapdragons set the course for this week's floral parade, it can be argued that Leucospermum 'Brandi' stole the show |
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| Back view: The Freesias are fading fast as our daytime temperature climbed to 87F (30C) yesterday so I threw in some of those too |
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| Top view |
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| Clockwise from the upper left: Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', Freesia, Lotus berthelotii 'Amazon Sunset', orange Anthirrhinum majus, and Leucospermum 'Brandi' |
I used two colors of snapdragons in the second arrangement.
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| Once again, although the snapdragons dictated the color palette, another flower, this time an Anemone, grabbed center stage. The Anemone coronaria 'Bi-color' may not be the one I ordered but in this case I'm not unhappy with the substitution. |
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| Back view |
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| Top view |
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Top row: Anemone coronaria 'Bi-color' and Helleborus 'Anna's Red'
Middle row: red and white Antirrhinum majus
Bottom row: Leptospermum 'Copper Glow', white Freesia, and Coleonema 'Album' |
For more IAVOM creations, visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.
All material © 2012-2021 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
You are a really determined gardener, to persist with your snapdragons, and this year it has certainly paid off. Each of your arrangements is very well coordinated. I don't know which one is best..two very good ones here.
ReplyDeleteI have a soft spot, stemming from childhood, for pansies, primroses and snapdragons, none of which I'd probably grow under conditions here if my practice of gardening was entirely governed by good sense, Noelle.
DeleteGlad to see you’ve had success with them this time, enough that you can use them for a floral display indoors :)
ReplyDeleteI keep expecting rust to show up but it hasn't yet :) Our rainy season appears to be over (having delivered just 3.95 inches of rain since October 1st) so, unless the marine layer comes back, the snapdragons may last until I have to oust them to make room for the dahlias.
DeleteI used to have luck with snapdragons, but haven't recently. I'm not sure why. I haven't planted them in a few years, but I love them. Maybe I'll try again this year. They're certainly fabulous cut flowers, as your photos and skills display. :)
ReplyDeleteIf I'd known this was going to be a good year for snapdragons, Beth, I might've planted more. I noticed that the local garden center is still selling some but as it's suddenly gotten very warm here, I decided I won't push my luck.
DeleteWill you always persist in growing them, even if success is by no means certain? As always you have come up with the perfect foliage to reflect the colourway of both your vases, both of which make lovely but very different statements. Thank you for sharing
ReplyDeleteSnapdragons, like pansies, are plants I seem compelled to try every year here despite generally poor results, Cathy. It's an action driven more by emotion - a connection to my past - than common sense.
DeleteLove snapdragons! Haven't grown them in a while, but I really should get them back into the rotation. And sometimes our strange weather has it's side benefits.
ReplyDeleteThe question now is, Margaret: Is the weather just strange this year, or is this the new normal? Maybe I'll just avoid snapdragons in "El Nino" years, when rain is generally heavier in SoCal, and plant them in "La Nina" years, when rain tends to be below average.
DeleteGorgeous as always, Kris. I can't imagine there's anything you don't succeed with. Never grew snapdragons from seed but had them coming up naturally in our Irish courtyard. Your arrangements look always so tropical, I'd love to get a glimpse of the garden where they grow. :)
ReplyDeleteI post wide (panoramic) shots of my garden on a quarterly basis, Annette. The last post was in January. The next series is due in early April. In fact, I'm hoping to get around to it this week.
DeleteCongrats on your beautiful snapdragons Kris! Even though Leucospermum 'Brandi' tried to horn in on the attention I think the snapdragons are fine competitors, holding their own. Rabbits ate my snapdragon seedlings last year and I was so disheartened. I admire your persistence. The second arrangement is very dramatic. Both are really lovely.
ReplyDeleteRabbits have reappeared in my garden recently, Susie, as they have each spring for the last couple of years so I guess I'm lucky that my snapdragons are all in containers off the ground. They've got plenty else to nibble on that's more conveniently placed.
DeleteGorgeous colours Kris.
ReplyDeleteThanks Elaine.
DeleteGreat color combinations, Kris! I share your love of snapdragons, esp. in a vase... you've picked some rich colors to go with the others. Great to see the Lotus flowers again, I love their hooked petals. And yes, 'Brandi' is a showstopper. Beautiful!
ReplyDeleteI've been wondering when the Lotus was going to bloom, Eliza. The plants took their time this year - perhaps waiting for rain to take off.
DeleteSnappy snappy - or so I have said to my children and grandchildren when introducing them to snapdragons! Such a fun flower and those colours you have in your lovely vases are so velvety and lovely when you see them close up! So glad they grew so well for you Kris! Amanda https://therunningwave290580645.wordpress.com/2021/03/29/a-last-look-in-a-vase-on-monday/
ReplyDeleteThanks Amanda. I was pretty pleased with the snapdragons myself.
DeleteSnapdragons are as common as dirt in our garden centers here and I've never given them a second look, but you make them look stylish! Proving it's all in the company you keep (the rest of the vase contents up the snapdragon style).
ReplyDeleteSnapdragons are common in the garden centers here too, Loree, so apparently not everyone has problems with rust like I usually do. They're great accent plants and I'm glad to have had some success with them this year.
DeleteFantastic colors today, what a riot!
ReplyDeleteAll vivid colors this week, that's for sure!
DeleteYou have a wide range of colors with your Snaps. Fun to see.
ReplyDeleteI bought a six-pack of snapdragon plugs so I'd no real idea what I'd get, Lisa. I bought a few more once I realized that my experience this year was different too, a dwarf pink for the window boxes of my shade house and 3 orange varieties from my favorite mail order nursery - the latter have yet to bloom.
DeleteYour snapdragons are wonderful Kris! I really love the explosive colours in the first vase. Freesias and snapdragons together in a vase are just fabulous!
ReplyDeleteThanks Cathy. Soaring summer-like temperatures are putting a quick end to the Freesias so I've been using them whenever I can.
DeleteAt any given time, I bet you have a bigger variety of flowers than I have in a whole season. And what is even more amazing, is you know all their names. I've never given a hoot about plants names other than their common ones, and I suppose that's a good thing since my brain is too old to hold all that info. But I am still impressed with your knowledge and selections of every color and kind. You really should have owned and run a nursery. You are a wealth of information and knowledge. Your vases are pretty as always.
ReplyDeleteThanks Cindy. I made a point to learn the botanical names of the plants I buy as common names don't always translate from area to area, especially across countries. It's been a useful memory exercise for me but I admit that, in relying on the Latin names, I often lose track of the common names!
DeleteReally like the drama of that 2nd one--intense!
ReplyDelete'Brandi' is a beauty! Saw it for sale, but nowhere to plant it. I'll enjoy your bouquet photo instead.
I think twice before I cut 'Brandi's' flowers, HB, but you may get to see them at least once more before its season is done.
DeleteShe will branch nicely from the trims, then more flowers next year! Yay!
DeleteOkay, I'll keep that in mind!
DeleteGood to hear that your snapdragons are flourishing this year Kris. Thy look fabulous in both of your vases. I sowed quite a few annuals in September to try and get ahead of the game. These included snapdragons but only one germinated 😂 They always remind me of my childhood home where they grew in abundance in the garden often surviving the winters.
ReplyDeleteI sowed my sweet pea seeds in October and other cool season seeds in early November but they've been slow to get going this year, Anna, possibly due to the low rainfall. It's frustrating as it seems that summer is already moving in!
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