In a Vase on Monday: Not much to work with

Dahlia production seems to be on pause.  The plants that have been blooming for a month or more are still producing buds but there wasn't much in bloom to construct an arrangement around and the buds on the remaining dahlias have yet to open.  I cut three bright red Zinnias and two stems of the white Amaryllis belladonna that appeared last week as a starting point and stuck with a red and white theme.

Caladium 'Tapestry' stole center stage from the flowers surrounding its colorful leaves.  I planted a variety of Caladium bulbs in the bed along our front walkway years ago but most have either produced small leaves on virtually nonexistent stems or disappeared altogether.  'Tapestry' is the exception.

Back view: I supplemented the Zinnias with several flower-like stems of Leucadendron 'Safari Sunset'

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left: white Amaryllis belladonna, Caladium 'Tapestry', Leucadendron salignum 'Safari Sunset', Crassula pubescens, Leucadendron salignum 'Chief', Persicaria capitata, and Zinnia elegans 'Benary's Giant Deep Red'

I'm still preoccupied with my husband's post-surgical care so I didn't go over-the-top on flower arrangements this week as I usually do, although I prepared a very simple arrangement for the kitchen island.

I used one stem of Dahlia 'Calin', the first flowering stems of Clematis terniflora (aka sweet autumn clematis), Corokia x virgata 'Sunsplash', and Leucadendron 'Summer Red'

 For more IAVOM arrangements, visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.

I hope to have at least one other post this week but it may be awhile yet before I resume my regular Monday-Wednesday-Friday posting schedule.

All material © 2012-2022 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Mostly Foliage

The heat switch has been stuck in the "on" position for over a week but we're expecting to move back into the 80s starting today.  I haven't been doing much more than watering the garden during the past week but, as I wandered about in the morning hours checking for evidence of heat stress, I took my camera with me.  After a Bloom Day glut of flowers, I focused most of my attention on foliage.  I thought I'd share some of what looks good, as well as a few recent losses.

After focusing my camera on the Leucadendron 'Wilson's Wonder' in the center of this shot, I pulled back for a wider view of the area, which may be the greenest section of my garden at present

When it's really hot I pay more attention to the plants that provide shade.  My initial focus was the peppermint willows, Agonis flexuosa.  There are six of these trees in the garden, four of which filter the sun on the west side, providing a lacy curtain.

I was trying to get a good shot of the wispy Agonis leaves here but the trunk of the strawberry tree, Arbutus 'Marina', ended up front and center

I couldn't ignore that flashy bark even though I showed the bark of another Arbutus in a July post

I had the peppermint willows in the front garden cut back last year.  I may leave them alone during this fall's pruning cycle to get a better curtain next year.

The only annoying thing about these trees is that two of them are planted in the middle of the path that leads from the lower level of the front garden to the driveway

I have to squeeze along the path but, combined with the Xylosma hedge, the trees do a good job of screening us from the street

This peppermint willow stands on the northwest side of the property.  It was thinned last year too but I'll leave it alone this year as well.

Relatives of the peppermint willow trees, Agonis flexuosa 'Nana' provides some privacy on the south side of the house, although the dwarf shrubs offer little in the way of shade.  However, an overgrown Coprosma adjacent to the patio has helped out a bit in that regard.

I cut the three shrubs down to nearly a foot tall this past winter.  They're less than half the height they once more but they recovered well.

Pulling down the shades in our living room (in an effort to keep the house from heating up) allowed me to get a halfway decent shot of this Coprosma repens 'Plum Hussey'.  It's an exceptionally pretty mirror plant with glossy leaves that range from lime green to burgundy.  I frequently use the stems in floral arrangements.

Grasses and grass-like plants also caught my attention.

I love this Pennistum advena 'Rubrum' combined with Centaurea 'Silver Feathers', especially when the grass sports its graceful plumes as it's doing now

This is Lomandra 'Platinum Beauty', shown in two different areas of my garden.  Lomandra isn't a true grass but it creates the effect of one.

I admire foliage that adds color to the garden when my flowering plants start to take a step back.

I've previously grown Caladium in pots here but this year I planted the bulbs in the ground in semi-shaded areas by the front door.  The plant on the left is 'Creamsicle' and the one on the right is 'Debutante'.

This plant goes by the cumbersome name of Pseuderanthemum 'Texas Tri-star'.  It develops a tall, woody stem as it ages, even when periodically cut back.  I usually replace it when it gets this tall but my nursery rounds have been drastically curtailed this year and I haven't found starter plants.  When it's cooler, I'll try taking cuttings.

Other foliage stood out on account of its sheer resilience against the heat.

I've actively worked at ridding my garden of Asparagus densiflorus 'Myers' and its thick masses of bulbous roots but I'm somewhat more favorably disposed to this 'Sprengeri'. The stems have an attractive foxtail form and it doesn't seem quite as invasive as 'Myers'.  It's also the only plant that's survived in this extremely dry spot, where even succulents struggle.

This is Phormium 'Tom Thumb', shown here mingling with Acacia cognata 'Cousin Itt' on the left and Cordyline 'Renegade' on the right.

Of course, not all is well.  Late yesterday afternoon, I noticed that one of my Helichysum 'Icicles' has suddenly turned a sickly beige, although the others look fine.  Heat contributed to the demise of a couple other plants as well.

This was Echium wildpretii.  I planted it in early February and it was looking good until about 2 weeks ago.  It was probably too dry for it here even though I made an extra effort to give it extra water.

Phylica pubescens (aka featherhead) has been in this bed for two and a half years, although I can't say it ever really thrived 

I don't think the heat had anything to do with the loss of the tree-sized Toyon, Heteromeles artbutifolia, on the south end of the garden but there's no longer any denying that it's dead.  The only question is whether I can continue to put off dealing with it until the fall when I usually have a tree-trimming service in for our annual pruning exercise.

It turns out that Toyons are sensitive to the same pathogen that causes sudden oak death.  It was a rapid transition from first notice that it was in trouble to this state of red-leafed suspended animation.

To conclude on a more positive note, I'm including a photo of my Yucca 'Bright Star'.  These plants get a lot of coverage in this blog and I hadn't planned to share another photo this month, until I noticed a new development.

The Yucca on the right bloomed months ago and now the largest of the trio planted in this area has a flower spike too

And, even though I intended to focus this post on foliage, I'm closing with photos of the latest dahlias to make an appearance in my cutting garden because I simply can't stop myself from doing so.

Clockwise from the top are Dahlias 'Labyrinth', 'Loverboy' and 'Enchantress'

I'm looking forward to cooler temperatures but poor air quality, the product of the mass of wildfires that have sprung up all over California, may still limit my time outside.  It looks like we're in store for another difficult summer season after all.

Best wishes for a safe and peaceful weekend.

All material © 2012-2020 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

In a Vase on Monday: Do you prefer pastel or bold colors?

Dahlia 'Sellwood Glory' didn't quite make it to the gate in time to be featured on "In a Vase on Monday," the popular meme hosted by Cathy of Rambling in the Garden but I'll be surprised if it doesn't bloom within the next few days.  

Photo taken Sunday afternoon

Meanwhile, 'Mr Optimist' is sprinting, followed closely by 'Enchantress', 'Labyrinth' and 'Loverboy'.  The rest of my dahlias currently seem content to produce more and more leaves but I'm reasonably sure they'll come through eventually.  The first of Zinnias I pinched back are finally budding up too, a self-seeded Amaranthus has made an unexpected appearance, and more than half a dozen Gladiolas have bloom spikes so things are looking up in my cutting garden.  However, this week I once again made do with what my larger garden had to offer.

My first vase was inspired by the light pink Scabiosa in the front garden.

While the pink Amaryllis belladonna are still dominating my backyard border, a few white specimens finally showed up.  At the same time a few white Lisianthus blushed with pink also popped up in different areas of the garden.  Serendipity!

I dressed up the back of the vase with stems of Abelia 'Edward Goucher', Ammi majus, and Salvia canariensis.  The Salvia is more bracts than flowers now. 

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left: Amaryllis belladonna (aka naked lady), Abelia grandiflora 'Edward Goucher', Eustoma grandiflorum (aka Lisianthus), Scabiosa columbaria 'Flutter Rose Pink', Ammi majus 'Dara', and Salvia canariensis var candidissima

The second vase is comprised of more foliage than flowers but includes stems of some of the Leucadendrons with bracts that mimic flowers.

There are no actual flowers visible in this front view.  I used two stems of Caladium to pull the colors together.

The back view offers just two real flowers, those of a white-flowered Crassula pubescens and a red-flowered Penstemon mexicali

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left: Leucadendron 'Devil's Blush', Crassula pubescens ssp radicans (aka red carpet stonecrop), Helichrysum petiolare 'Licorice Splash', Caladium 'Creamsickle, Penstemon mexicali 'Red Bells', and Prunus caroliniana (I also used Leucadendron 'Safari Sunset', not shown in close-up)

To find more IAVOM posts, check in with Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.

All material © 2012-2020 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

In a Vase on Monday: Understudies steal the show

I had a couple of blooms in mind as focal points for this week's vases but, in both cases, other flowers ended up stealing the spotlight.  In the first case, a tall-stemmed Lisianthus (Eustoma grandiflorum) was intended to be the centerpiece of a pink-themed arrangement but the shorter stems of a noID Camellia sasanqua I cut as an accent commanded more attention.

The Lisianthus, purchased in 4-inch pots a couple of months ago, were supposed to have deep red flowers.  In fact, I passed on them twice because the red color shown in the tag photo didn't appeal to me.  But, hoping that the blooms would resemble the 'Arena Red'  variety I planted in window boxes in 2018, I finally took them home.  So far, 2 of the 5 plants are blooming in this pretty - but not red - pale pink.

Back view: I was surprised to find a couple of Caladium leaves left in my shade house

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left: noID Camellia sasanqua that came with the garden, Caladium 'Candyland', mis-labeled pink Eustoma grandiflorum (Lisianthus), foliage of Lobelia laxiflora, and Tanacetum parthenium (feverfew)

For my second case, I'd focused on the blooms of Metrosideros 'Springfire', which just began flowering off-season.  Then I discovered that one of Amaryllis (Hippeastrum) bulbs I'd planted in late October had produced its first bloom stalk.  This significantly overshadowed the small Metrosideros stems, although it's arguable that Grevillea 'Peaches & Cream' outshines even the Amaryllis, at least at present.

I'm hoping the Amaryllis (Hippeastrum) will raise its heavy head once the blooms open further.  Concerned that the flower's hollow stem might cause its premature collapse as a cut flower, I followed the guidance offered by the Swedish Plantguys in this You Tube video.

Back view: I almost lost the Metrosideros during a severe heatwave in July 2018 at the height of our drought. The shrub slowly recovered but it didn't bloom in spring or summer this year as expected, only recently producing buds.  The shrub's name has a nice origin story.  Hawaiian legend has it that, if the flowers are cut, the lovers representing the tree/shrub and the flower will shed tears in the form of rain.  Given our history of drought, it seems I should be cutting the flowers on a regular basis!

Top view

Clockwise from the top: Hippeastrum 'Zombie' (Amaryllis), Grevillea 'Peaches & Cream', Leucadendron 'Wilson's Wonder', and Metrosideros collina 'Springfire'

I'd cut 3 foxglove stems for inclusion in the first vase but they didn't complement the Camellias as well as I'd hoped so they were popped into a third vase with a few other stems snatched from the garden at the last minute.

In addition to the Digitalis purpurea (foxglove), this vase contains Osteospermum 'Berry White' and Gomphrena decumbens 'Itsy Bitsy'

For more IAVOM creations, visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden to find links to posts to other contributors.

All material © 2012-2019 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

In a Vase on Monday: Seeking Inspiration

There was no shortage of flowers to cut for "In a Vase on Monday" this week but I wasn't feeling inspired.  The last of my Dahlias, 'Diva', produced her first bloom last week but with only one bloom fully open I decided to put her off awhile.  Dahlia 'Bluetiful' produced 2 fresh blooms so I decided she deserved another spin; however, her pinkish-lavender color presented a challenge and I didn't want to simply duplicate my prior arrangement.  As usual, perseverance in scouring my garden for other options paid off.

I was able to find color echoes for 'Bluetiful' in a Salvia and an Osteospermum

Surprised to find Leucophyllum in bloom in the backyard border, I tucked a couple of stems into the back side of the vase.  Leucophyllum has the reputation of blooming after summer showers but we haven't had any of those and even our morning marine layer has been thin-to-invisible for the past week.  There's no rain in the long-term forecast here until November.

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left: Dahlia 'Bluetiful', Helichrysum petiolare, Leucophyllum laevigatum, Achillea ptarmica 'Peter Cottontail', noID Osteospermum, and Salvia canariensis var candidissima

While working in my lath (shade) house earlier in the week, I'd discovered that the 'Cherry Sorbet' lisianthus I planted in the window boxes there last year were coming into flower on ridiculously tall stems out of proportion to the boxes themselves.  I love the flowers and would like to find more but I need to put them somewhere other than window boxes and replant those with something more size-appropriate.  However, 2 cut stems of the lisianthus provided a jumping-off point for my second vase.

Of course, Dahlia 'Otto's Thrill' took over the show, pushing the pretty rose-like lisianthus into the role of bit player 

I still have lots of Caladium leaves in the lath house to use in arrangements too

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left: Dahlia 'Otto's Thrill', Amaranthus caudatus, Caladium 'Tapestry', Westringia 'Morning Light', Eustoma grandiflorum 'Cherry Sorbet' and 2 other noID varieties of Eustoma grandiflorum (lisianthus) in pink and white

I hadn't planned on a third vase but the stem of another of the Dahlias, 'Citron du Cap', had collapsed under the weight of its own bloom so I cut a couple of those too.  The simple yellow and white color mix made it my favorite vase this week.

Dahlia 'Citron du Cap' hasn't produced many blooms and the stems are prone to breaking once the flowers open so, much as I like the flower's shape and soft color, I probably won't grow it in future years

Back of the vase, filled out using feverfew

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left: Dahlia 'Citron du Cap', Abelia grandiflora 'Hopley's Variegated", noID Cosmos, noID Lantana, and Tanacetum parthenium (feverfew)

Today's Labor Day in the US, which marks the unofficial end of summer; however, Mother Nature didn't get the message.  While it's uncomfortably warm and muggy, with air quality indices solidly in the "unhealthy" category here, Florida and other areas of the US eastern seaboard facing Hurricane Dorian will have an even tougher time finding enjoyment in the extended holiday weekend.  The second mass shooting in Texas in a month's time added yet another dark cloud over the US holiday.  You needn't expect another rant from me on the subject of gun violence - I'm too sad to summon the energy for it at the moment.  All I can do is to wish you a safe week.

For more IAVOM creations, visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.

As last week's sunflower arrangement is still in good shape, I'm running out of spots for flowers while we continue to live in less than half a house during our remodel.  The last arrangement was photographed sitting on the counter in our 50 square foot temporary kitchen but my husband has already ejected it - there's a premium on counter space.

All material © 2012-2019 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party