There are lots of flowers in bloom in my garden but there isn't much that's new at present. The Agapanthus are at their peak but I've used them more than once "In a Vase on Monday" post already this year. I pulled out my sweet peas last week as they were looking sad, and the larkspur are well on their out way out the door too. So I decided to use three of my Leucadendrons as the centerpieces of this week's arrangement. One of these does a particularly good job of imitating flowers.
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| The dark red rose-like "buds" are stems of Leucadendron 'Blush' |
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| The back view of the vase shown here highlights sprays of the white flowers of Leptospermum 'Copper Glow'. It's blooming well this year. The shrubs are large but the flowers themselves are quite dainty. |
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| Overhead view |
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| Clockwise from the upper left are: Leucadendron salignum 'Blush', L. 'Jester', L. 'Jubilee Crown, Leptospermum 'Copper Glow', and Leucanthemum x superbum (a noID Shasta daisy) |
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| Arrangement in place on the dining room table |
It's been sunnier the past week but thankfully it hasn't gotten hot yet. All but three of my dahlia tubers have sprouted; however, none of those look anywhere near reaching bloom stage yet. And I have scads of Zinnia seed packets I haven't opened much less planted. My nearly continuous therapy sessions and doctor visits give me much less time for gardening than I'd like!
Check in with Cathy at Rambling in the Garden for more IAVOM posts.
All material © 2012-2026 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
I was going to say that it's exciting to see an arrangement with so much red this "early" in the season and that I don't have much of that color in the garden right now...but then the more I thought about it, the more I realized I do - Eccremocarpus, our native columbine, bread poppies, and Dichelostemma ida-maia. I just needed to reflect a bit, I guess. I tried to grow zinnias this year. Bought three packets and was disappointed when I opened them up and it mainly looked like chaff. I planted them anyway and got two measly seedlings. There have been other packets too with extremely low germination rates. It seems like the quality of seeds has really gone downhill lately while the prices have gone up.
ReplyDeleteI'm very late for getting my zinnia seeds planted. I hope mine don't do as poorly as yours despite the fact. I bought a LOT of them before my "incident" but the skids on my plans for the garden year!
DeleteOf course, I'm a fan of a Leucadendron heavy arrangement. And it lasts such a nice long time in the vase. I'm glad therapy is going so well!
ReplyDeleteNot as well (fast) as I'd like but I'll have to settle for it, Tracy!
DeleteThat 'Copper Glow' leptospermum is lovely,, I much prefer it to the pink-flowered kinds, and then those leaves, wow. So good to hear you are a diligent therapy-goer! Hard work but makes such a difference. Hang in there, Kris, the garden will be ready when you are.
ReplyDeleteThat's likely to be more next year than this one, Denise, but that's life!
DeleteThey remind me of roses, and they don't wilt and last a good deal longer! I hope you continue to make your way back to 100% health, we're rooting for you. xo Eliza
ReplyDeleteThanks Eliza. The doctor in the rehab facility for the first 24 days out of intensive care told me it'd be a slow process initially before things jumped into gear...Sigh,
DeleteLove the Leucadendron!!!
ReplyDelete'Blush' is one flashy Leucadendron, Loree!
DeleteYes, the leucaendron does make a good flower substitute, and the white of the leucanthemum lifts the arrangement just enough. Is the therapy quite hard work? I hope it is doing what is needed to help you regain all your faculties
ReplyDeleteTherapy is almost continuous work, Cathy! It gives me very little time to garden and that's yet to change :(
DeleteLove this collection of Leucadendrons, the reds are so intense.
ReplyDeleteGlad you're getting plenty of PT--I have a lot of faith in those therapists.
I've got 3 therapists now but no actual physical therapists anymore - that one said I could get what I need just following the initial lesson plan on my own, which I do religiously!
DeleteI LOVE the deep wine and red tones of this arrangement--including the stems in the clear vase! I hope your treatment and therapy are healing and restorative. It's so hard to stay ahead of all the garden activities, but I hope you're able to spend time relaxing and enjoying your beautiful place, too. ❤️
ReplyDeleteI'm lagging well behind on all my the garden chores but I squeeze in that I can!
DeleteMy goodness that vase is such an explosion of red. Love the variegated foliage. Thinking of you as you heal. It is frustrating not be able to garden as much as we'd like.
ReplyDeleteI expect we share those feelings, Donna!
DeleteI love how foliage-forward this arrangement is!
ReplyDeleteFoliage-forward! I love that expression, Gerhard!
DeleteVery nice!
ReplyDeleteThanks Phillip!
DeleteLooks good! and the Zinnias are patient. Unlike us! Ame.lia..
ReplyDeleteI'm hoping the zinnias will be especially patient this year, Ame!
DeleteI love those leucadendrons, the arrangement is so pretty. Good that you are having plenty of therapy to help regain your strength. Sometimes, we have to allow ourselves time to just enjoy our gardens and not worry about the jobs that need doing.
ReplyDeleteI can't help wishing I could get a little more time to putter in my garden. I'm lucky if I can carve out more than a a couple of hours in total each week.
DeleteHi Kris! A lovely arrangement with your Leucadendron and the Leptospermum as highlighters. I am sure you still have plenty of time to sow the zinnias. Mine came up so quickly and have been coping with excessive heat ever since! And better to focus on getting completely fit before immersing yourself in the garden completely. Have a good week Kris!
ReplyDeleteMaybe the cooler than usual weather we've had this year (with the exception the heatwave we had in March) will give us a break on the zinnia season!
DeleteFoliage is underrated, as seen in this fabulous arrangement. Well done! My Leucadendrons are all coloring up again--they really are great plants.
ReplyDeleteBest wishes for successul recovery therapy--it certainly helped my knee (and me) a whole lot.
I wish the therapy could deliver a fast reset on my brain but that seems to require more extended effort, HB!
DeleteLate to your vase on Friday. Quite lovely, as always. High vibration go on…
ReplyDeleteThanks!
DeleteYour vase positively glows with colour Kris! Please translate - "scads" - does it equate to lots which I'm guessing it does 😀 I imagine that the therapy must eat into your time but I hope that it's proving to be beneficial.
ReplyDeleteI take it that "scads" may be more of an American term! Yes, I'd translate it as "a lot" or "too much"!
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