This week I put together two smaller arrangements using flowers in colors on opposite sides of the color wheel. The first one was created using blue flowers.
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| Because I so frequently have difficulty accurately capturing the color of blue flowers, I photographed this arrangement from a different vantage point to take advantage of the kitchen's under-cabinet lights |
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Back view
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| Top view: The near-black flowers on the right were cut from Salvia discolor (aka Andean silver-leaf sage). Its wiry stems trail languidly on the ground. The leaves and stems are sticky and the plant is said to smell like black currants but my nose only detects the faintest scent. |
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| Clockwise from the upper left: noID Ceanothus, Osteospermum '4D Silver', Salvia discolor, Teucrium fruticans 'Azureum', and Westringia fruticosa 'Morning Light' |
Orange is blue's complimentary color.
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| After 4 weeks, it was time to retire the arrangement I've had on the kitchen island. Its replacement kicked off with 2 snapdragon stems. |
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| Back view: Grevillea 'Superb' is always available to fill any role required of it in an arrangement |
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| Top view |
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| Clockwise from the upper left: Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', Antirrhinum majus, Grevillea 'Superb', and Tagetes lemmonii |
The Triplets are still on the living room mantel, looking exactly like they did last week without the benefit of any water whatsoever. The arrangement created using Hippeastrum 'Luna' last week is still in place too. With warmer temperatures last week, the remaining Hippeastrum bloom stalks on my back patio are opening quickly but hopefully they'll hold their blooms at least another week.
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| I'm still scouting my garden for suitable companions to compliment the Hippeastrum's color |
For more IAVOM creations, visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.
All material © 2012-2022 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
I like small arrangements. I always go for an Ikebana-like display maybe because I don't have the heart to cut my flowers :-)
ReplyDeleteI find Salvia discolor so dramatic, it adds beautiful contrast to the softer blues. I love snapdragon a lot... I can't get over seeing it in January!
Having a cutting garden helped me get over the angst about cutting flowers to bring inside. I promised myself that I wouldn't hesitate to cut what I have in that area, although that hasn't stopped me from having an occasional twinge about it ;) Having a much larger garden than I used to also helps!
DeleteSnapdragons are best here in the cool season. Once it starts to warm up, they are inevitably plagued with rust and I end up unceremoniously pulling them out.
Ooh, three hippeastrum bulbs in one pots makes a great display, and I love the shade of this one, Kris - and especially like your 'blue' vase today, with the perfectly complemntary greens
ReplyDeleteThis is the first time I've planted more than one Hippeastrum bulb in a pot, Cathy. I did it mainly because I didn't have enough pots in the right size on hand to plant them singly but I like the effect!
DeleteNice explorations in complementary colors. I especially love the first one and am amazed with your salvia discolor. Grevillea 'Superb' is always stunning and looks lovely with the snapdragons.
ReplyDeleteThis Salvia discolor is doing better than my old one (pulled out by mistake when I was digging up aster rhizomes). I wish I'd bought one or two more! They're hard to find.
DeleteLove the grevillea and those bright snaps (they look like they have yellow buck-teeth!)... any brighter and they'd border on neon. ;) The blue vase is nice, too, I esp. like the teucrium flowers' interesting shape and the shot from above reveals a cool swirly effect.
ReplyDeleteHope your weather is good this week... we had 4 or 5 inches of snow overnight, followed by rain... what a soggy mess! We have to clear it away pronto as it is due to drop below freezing tonight and stay there for days, the world will be an ice rink. January in New England is never boring!
I was afraid you were going to end up in the middle of the storm in the northeast, Eliza! I hope it's manageable and that you don't have any problems with power or anything else. There's been chances of rain here and there but nothing much has materialized as yet. We got 0.02/inch on Saturday but it passed us by this morning.
DeleteQuite a contrast to my own vase, Kris, and definitely a welcome sight. The blue vase suits the colour palette perfectly and the hot vase is beautiful too. How nice to be able to pick these treasures in the middle of winter.
ReplyDeleteCalifornia offers some blessings, Annette. If only rain was one of them!
DeleteI'm not usually a "blue" fan, but love your arrangement, especially the back view. And the vase is gorgous.
ReplyDeleteI found the vase in a second hand shop while poking around in Ventura with a friend. It was a great buy!
DeleteLovely but am especially drawn to the orange hues. So bright and cheerful. Another big storm coming in tonight so those colours keep spirits up.
ReplyDeleteI hope the storm doesn't cause too much trouble, Elaine!
DeleteI love color theory and the wheel is alot of fun to spin! Well done. I have just had my first T. lemmoni germinate, having tried 3 previous batches of seed. Love yours!
ReplyDeleteI hope the Tagetes takes hold and prospers, Amelia. It's a very reliable plant here, at least when I can avoid having the gardeners treat it like a hedge, trimming off all the flower buds ;)
DeleteI love the starry effect of that first vase. The Salvia discolor looks fantastic; how much water does it need? I'm guessing a bit more than the desert species, but I love that color! I don't think I've seen it before.
ReplyDeleteYour orange vase has so much swirling movement to it--wonderful! And I agree with Cathy that the three Hippeastrum bulbs in one pot makes a great display.
Salvia discolor hails from Peru, where it apparently grows mainly in a small area. It's reputed to be hard to find in both its native habitat and in cultivation. Dave's Garden says it's hardy in USDA zones 8a-10b. My older plant (dug out in error with my aster last year) never did much of anything, although it did bloom sporadically. This one, in a different area of the same bed, is doing much better, at least thus far. The area is irrigated, although on the dry side. I got my newest plant this past fall at Roger's Gardens in Corona Del Mar, the first time I've seen the plant for sale in many years.
DeleteI must admit both your vases are beautiful. I admire the colour co-ordination and artistry. I often come back when I have a little more time, and check out the plants too, cross checking with the web and wondering if any of them are growable in our climate, as you have such a well selected range of plants. Many thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteThanks Noelle. My area of coastal Southern California is regarded as one of the world's relatively few Mediterranean climates. In addition to California natives suitable to my coastal scrub area, I rely heavily on plants from other Mediterranean climates, especially the Cape of South Africa and South and southwestern Australia.
DeleteI have this feeling that you must be always be on the lookout for vases that complement the vast selection of flowers that you grow. Next year I will get a Hippeastrum. It will be my first!
ReplyDeleteI do keep my eyes open for interesting vases, Jenny, although I'm usually also looking for those I consider a bargain. The blue/green vase shown in this post came from a second hand shop in Ventura when I was poking around with a friend. Serendipity!
DeleteHippeastrum are a joy to grow. I've been trying to get the bulbs to naturalize here but have had limited luck thus far. They liked my former garden better than this one but I haven't given up yet ;)