In a Vase on Monday: Ephemeral Beauty

The choice of material suitable for cutting remains skimpy but I ended up filling two vases anyway.  The first was built around Camellia sasanqua flowers, which although plentiful at the moment, are fragile and prone to shattering quickly, especially when cut.  Hence the title of this post.

I lost 3 Camellia flowers just in the process of cutting and arranging them

Back view: I used my "clasped hands vase" but, as if often the case, I ended up covering the hands with the pretty manicured fingernails with the vase's contents.  The curly green foliage shown here is scented Pelargonium 'Colocho'.

Overhead view

Clockwise from the upper left: noID Camellia sasanqua (possibly 'October Magic Rose'), Correa pulchella 'Pink Eyre', Leptospermum scoparium 'Pink Pearl', and Pelargonium graveolens 'Colocho'

The second arrangement was inspired by my first Hippeastrum bloom.  I'd ordered thirteen new Hippeastrum bulbs (commonly called Amaryllis) this year, all of which I potted up between late October and early November.  I'd planned to give away some of those I'd planted in individual pots as holiday gifts but, to date, only one has shown any signs of growth.  Once it took off, it speedily reached bloom stage.  However, as I allowed it to get battered by rain in its early stages of development, it was stunted and not gift-worthy so I cut it for my vase.

This is Hippeastrum 'Double Razzmatazz'.  The other 2 of these have yet to show any sign of producing buds, even though they were planted in pots of the same size at the same time.  All the bulbs would probably respond better if grown inside where it's warmer but I don't have the space for them in my kitchen window (or anywhere else).

Back view: The stems of Leucadendron 'Safari Sunset' are colorful bracts but they're doing a good job of imitating flowers when set against the dark green foliage I included 

Overhead view, showing off 2 stems of the first paperwhite Narcissus to make an appearance in my garden

From the upper left: Cistus ladanifer 'Blanche', Hippeastrum 'Razzmatazz', Leucadendron salignum 'Safari Sunset', and Narcissus papyraceus

We've had no rain since the two storms that moved through in late November.  There was a little rain in the forecast afterwards but that didn't materialize.  There's now a projection for rain in mid-December and again in late December but it's still too early to get invested in either possibility.  Meanwhile, I'm rapidly using up the rainwater I collected earlier.

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

All material © 2012-2025 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

In a Vase on Monday: Sodden flowers

An atmospheric river has been moving through Southern California since late Thursday night.  It's delivered a lot of rain, albeit not as much as I was led to believe it would at the outset.  It's come down in torrents at times and, while the showers paused Sunday afternoon, the rain is expected to pick up again Monday morning with heavier showers in the afternoon.  My flowers have suffered in the process and even my beautiful blue bush violets (Barleria obtusa) are looking sad; however, I hope they'll bounce back once the rain has passed.

I'd targeted my Camellia sasanquas to fill a vase this week.  Camellia flowers are prone to shattering and they were taking a beating on Saturday so I cut several of the longest, prettiest stems I could find that afternoon and put them aside, planning to put my vase together Sunday morning.  Unfortunately, the bulk of the flowers dropped their petals overnight.  I made another pass at cutting the flowers on Sunday between morning showers but the stems weren't as impressive as the first ones I'd cut.

The result turned into yet another of my "everything but the kitchen sink" arrangements

Back view: The Amarine wasn't bothered by the rain at all and neither were the Australian fuchsias (Correa)

Overhead view

Clockwise from the upper left: Coleus 'Florida Sun Rose', noID Dianthus, Correa pulchella 'Pink Eyre', Amarine 'Belladiva Emanuelle', 2 Camellia sasanqua (possibly 'Early Wonder' and 'October Magic Rose', and white Eustoma grandiflorum

I wasn't going to bother with a second vase but I'd cut some snapdragons and a late-blooming zinnia mid-week for my kitchen island.  That arrangement needed a refresh so I pulled a couple of the faded flowers and filled in with blooms of Grevillea 'Superb', a plant that is utterly unfazed by rain.

The arrangement of an orange Antirrhinum majus, Grevillea 'Superb', Zinnia 'Benary's Giant Coral', and a single stem of Agonis flexuosa 'Nana' is very matchy-matchy in terms of color but at least it's a cheerful mix

I also rehabbed both of the vases I created last week and placed them elsewhere.

I cut last week's vase containing Protea 'Claire' down by half, as shown on the left.  Other than removing the spent Cosmos flowers, the Chrysanthemum arrangement on the right remains the same.

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

All material © 2012-2025 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Bloom Day - December 2024 (Early Edition)

For the record, I'm two days ahead of schedule for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, hosted on the 15th of each month by Carol at May Dreams Gardens.  This month the outlook in my garden is very pink.

My Camellia sasanqua came with the garden and I had no IDs for the the 2 cultivars I inherited.  An Instagram commentator suggested a name for this one, which sent me down a rabbit hole.  While the ID that was offered didn't fit based on the specifications I found online, I determined that this one might be 'October Magic Rose'. 

I also think the other 2 Camellia sasanqua could be 'Early Wonder'

Correa pulchella 'Pink Eyre' lagged behind my other Australian fuchsias but it's blooming heavily now

Leptospermum scoparium 'Pink Pearl' usually blooms lightly during the fall and more heavily in spring but the 2 tall shrubs are putting on a pretty good show this month

The bracts of Leucospermum salignum 'Blush' are doing a good job of mimicking flowers

I had to use a telescope setting on my camera to capture a photo of the flowers of Bauhinia x blakeana (aka Hong Kong orchid tree), all of which can only be found in the upper reaches of its branches

Here are some more pink flowers:
Top row - Argyranthemum 'Aramis Apricot', Cuphea 'Honeybells', and Gomphrena 'Itsy Bitsy'
Middle - Medinilla myriantha, Pelargonium hortorum, and P. 'Little Pink Splash'
Bottom - Pentas lanceolata, Persicaria capitata, and Protea neriifolia 'Claire'

There were several standouts in the garden that weren't pink.

Aloe vanbalenii x ferox is finally letting its color show

I wasn't able to get the rust-resistant snapdragons (Antirrhinum majus) I prefer this year but I picked up a dozen mixed plugs in November when it came time to prepare my cool-season cutting garden 

I found some lisianthus (Eustoma grandiflorum) at my local garden center in November too and scooped up 8 plants, just now getting their bloom on

Meanwhile, Senna bicapsularis is still flaunting cheerful flowers in December

As usual, there were a few blooms I hadn't anticipated.

Haemanthus albiflos (aka paint brush lily), which I often don't catch in flower until it's already bloomed out 

Two daylilies flowering off-season: Hemerocallis 'For Pete's Sake' on the left and a paler than normal H. 'Persian Market' on the right

Mahonia x media 'Charity' didn't flower at all last year for some reason

This is an unusual shrub I picked up somewhere years ago, Ruscus hypoglossum (aka butcher's broom).  It produces tiny flowers in the middle of its leaves.  It creeps out some people who feel the flowers look like insects but I think it's interesting.

I've once again dumped my other floral photos into color-coded collages.

Top row - Barleria obtusa, Evolvulus glomeratus, and Felicia aethiopica
Middle - Lavandula multifida, Osteospermum '3D Silver', and O. 'Violet Ice'
Bottom - Pelargornium peltatum 'Lavender Blizzard', Polygala myrtifolia, and Vitex trifolia

Clockwise from upper left: Argyranthemum frutescens 'Everest', noID Cyclamen, Correa 'Ivory Bells', Fuchsia 'Windchimes White', and noID Impatiens 

Clockwise from upper left: Alstroemeria 'Indian Summer', Cuphea 'Vermillionaire, Faucaria tuberculosa, Grevillea 'Superb', Nasturtium 'Alaska', Senecio amaniensis, and Tagetes lemmonii

Clockwise from the upper left: noID Anthurium, Gaillardia 'Arizona Sun', Grevillea 'Ned Kelly', Metrosideros collina 'Springfire', Pelargonium peltatum, and Primula vulgaris

The holiday season is speeding forward, leaving my head spinning.  Best wishes to all!  For other GBBD posts, check in with Carol at May Dreams Gardens on December 15th.

All material © 2012-2024 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

In a Vase on Monday: Responding to a challenge

Cathy of Rambling in the Garden is celebrating the eleventh anniversary of her "In a Vase on Monday" meme. Last week she threw down a challenge to participants with the simple suggestion to use "eleven" as a theme. Even though I tend to create more than one floral arrangement each week, eleven new arrangements, even tiny ones, was out of bounds, especially as the volume of flowers in my garden is at a low point now. Instead I decided to pull photos of one arrangement for each year I've participated in IAVOM. I joined up in late March 2014 and therefore pulled photos of arrangements for years 2014 through 2023, delivering a newly prepared arrangement for 2024 as the eleventh.

The search process was fun initially but I admit it did get a little tedious by the time I slogged through my 2023 photos.  I tried to balance the colors and choices to prevent repetition so I won't claim that each choice represents the very best arrangement of that particular year but here they are:

Left, created August 2014, and right, created June 2015

September 2016 and January 2017

March 2018 and July 2019

March 2020 and November 2021

August 2022 and September 2023

For the eleventh arrangement, I elected to use stems of Camellia sasanqua as my centerpiece.  The Camellias won't last long so I used one of my smaller vases.

The vase features 2 clasped - and well manicured - hands arranged to hold flowers, although as usual I mostly covered up the hands with too many flowers 

Back view

Top view

A closer look at those manicured hands

Clockwise from the upper left, the vase contains: Argyranthemum frutescens 'Aramis Apricot', noID Camellia sasanqua, Leptospermum scoparium 'Pink Pearl' with foliage of Prunus caroliniana, and Plectranthus scutellarioides 'Florida Sun Rose' (aka coleus)

For the record, we received not a drop of rain here last week.  However, I understand that the foothill areas got some and the mountains to the east received a dusting of snow.

Photographed Saturday morning, the mountains in the distance show the snow, partially hidden by clouds.  On Sunday, when you could still see the mountains behind the smog, the snow had already mostly retreated.

For more IAVOM creations, visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.  Thanks, as always, for hosting this weekly meme, Cathy!  I know it's appreciated by many, whether they throw their own arrangements into the mix or not.

All material © 2012-2024 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Bloom Day - November 2024

My garden is less colorful this month but, in coastal Southern California, there's always something to share.  I'll start with some of the plants that make a habit of blooming at this time of the year.

Many of my aloes are getting ready to bloom but Aloe lukeana in ahead of the pack.  It bloomed back in July and I didn't expect another round this year.

Hybrid Aloe 'Safari Sunset' also got an early start

Barleria obtusa was just starting to bloom last month but all 4 of my shrubs are flowering now

The Camellia sasanquas that came with the garden weren't put off schedule by the recent Santa Ana winds but they do seem inclined to bloom facing the house instead of outward

Senna bicapsularis (aka winter cassia) has once again sent its flowers sky high

Tagetes lemmonii (aka Mexican marigold) blooms in spring and then again in the fall

As is true in most months, there are some blooms that surprised me.

Callistemon 'Cane's Hybrid' reliably flowers during late summer but it's only produced a flush of flowers in November once before in 2016

I've previously missed all the flowers of Disocactus anguligar (aka fishbone cactus, syn. Epiphyllum anguliger) but I finally caught one before it withered away

I picked up a Helianthus 'Sunfinity' in late September and it took its time about getting its bloom on.  I'd thought that most sunflowers would have thrown in the towel for the season by November.

Medinilla myriantha (aka Malaysian orchid) always surprises me when it graces me with a flower or 2

While the Protea 'Pick Ice' in another area has already bloomed out, Protea neriifolia 'Claire' is made of stronger stuff (or it just gets more water from the irrigation system)

And then there are the dependable plants that offer color all or most of the year, at least off and on.

Correas (aka Australian fuchsias), left to right: 'Ivory Bells', 'Pink Eyre', and 'Wyn's Wonder'

Cupheas 'Honeybells', 'Starfire Pink', and 'Vermillionaire'

These noID self-seeded Gazanias are coming back with cooler temperatures

Grevilleas 'Moonlight' (left) and 'Peaches & Cream' (right) are more sporadic with their flowers than others in my gardens

Grevillea 'Superb' blooms all year round but it's current flower frenzy has been greatly appreciated by the hummingbirds since the flowers of Arbutus 'Marina' have faded

The Pelargoniums are putting on a decent show too.  Clockwise from the upper left are: P. hortorum 'Dynamo Hot Pink', P. hybrid 'Little Pink Splash', and 3 varieties of P. peltatum.

There are a few recent additions to my garden in bloom too.

Clockwise from the upper left: Antirrhinum majus 'Sonnet Speedy White', Argyranthemum 'Aramis Apricot', Nasturtium 'Alaska', and Primula vulgaris

I'll close as I always do with collages featuring the best of the rest.

Clockwise from the upper left: Felicia aethiopica, Polygala myrtifolia, Salvia 'Mystic Spires', Salvia discolor, and Vitex trifolia

From the upper left: noID Cyclamen, noID Dipladenia, Eriocapitella hupehensis, Fuchsia 'Windchimes White', and noID Impatiens

Gomphrena decumbens 'Itsy Bitsy', Osteospermum '4D Pink', and Persicaria capitata

Faucaria tigrida, Leonotis lonurus, and Pennisetum 'Sky Rocket'

noID Anthurium, Gaillardia 'Arizona Sun', and Leucadendron salignum 'Summer Red'

It's been more than six months since we've had anything that could be characterized as real rain.  Ours is characterized as a Mediterranean climate so long stretches without rain aren't unusual but this is getting ridiculous.  The marine layer has made tiny contributions at intervals since then but, since the start of the current "water year" on October 1st, those only amount to 0.03/inch of precipitation.  We're very, very dry.  Forecasters keep teasing us with reports of rain that "might" spill down the state from Northern California but, to date, that hasn't happened.  There's another slight chance in the wee hours of Friday morning but I'm trying not to get my hopes up.

For more Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day posts, check in with our host, Carol at May Dreams Gardens.

All material © 2012-2024 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party