In a Vase on Monday: Maybe I'm in a rut

It feels as though I'm recycling the same dahlias week after week.  I checked my posts since my first IAVOM post featuring dahlias in mid-August.  I found that I've used Dahlias 'La Luna', 'Mikayla Miranda' and 'Summer's End' three times prior to today's post.  I've used two of those cultivars again this week even though I've ignored Dahlia 'Enchantress' for weeks.  Next week, 'Enchantress' will get her due!  And maybe one or more of the dahlias that have buds but have yet to bloom will come through for me too.

 

Vase #1:

While I've used Dahlia 'Mikayla Miranda' repeatedly, I've used 'Lavender Ruffles' just once before, even though the latter is more prolific with its blooms.  'Lavender Ruffles' is a dinnerplate type and most of the flowers swamp everything paired with them but this week I found one stem in a more reasonable size.

Back view, featuring aster stems and Leucophyllum laevigatum.  Leucophyllum usually burst into bloom as soon as we get rain but my plant didn't flower until weeks following Tropical Storm Hilary.

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left: Amaryllis belladonna 'Alba', Clematis terniflora, Dahlia 'Lavender Ruffles', D. 'Mikayla Miranda', Leucophyllum laevigatum, and Prostanthera ovalifolia 'Variegata'.  Also included but not shown in closeup is Symphyotrichum chilense.

 

Vase #2:

Dahlias 'Summer's End' and 'Labyrinth' mesh together nicely

Back view

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left: Dahlia 'Labyrinth', D. 'Summer's End', Xylosma congestum, Zinnia elegans 'Candy Mix', and Z. e. 'Queen Lime Orange' with Benary's Giant Salmon Rose'

 

Vase #3:

Dahlia 'Belle of Barmera' also has huge dinnerplate blooms,  It's a prolific bloomer too but one I've only used once before for IAVOM because the size and neon pink color of the blooms overpower just about anything else I include in an arrangement.

Back view

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left: Acacia cognata 'Cousin Itt', Cuphea 'Honeybells', Zinnia elegans 'Candy Mix', Dahlia 'Belle of Barmera', and Leucadendron 'Jester'

 

We've had clouds and not a ray of sunlight for the past two days.  We even got steady drizzle on Saturday morning, although it didn't amount to much in total.  Morning clouds are expected to be with us all week but a we may get sun Monday and Tuesday afternoons.  Meanwhile, the cooler temperatures have allowed me to make a dent in my end-of-summer garden cleanup.

 

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

All material © 2012-2023 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Bloom Day - September 2022

I'm getting a one day jump on Garden Bloggers Bloom Day as Wednesday is a better fit for my schedule this week.  Due to the extended heatwave that concluded just last Friday, there are far fewer flowers to be found in my garden this month.  We're also in the middle of a 15-day outdoor watering ban and I've been running around like a madwoman with watering cans just trying to provide emergency rations to plants where I can.  A random tropical storm, the remnants of Hurricane Kay in the Pacific, provided an assist but any rebound the garden may get from that event isn't evident yet.

I took many of the following photos during the heatwave.  I'm going to start with those that don't usually receive much attention.

My ornamental grasses are getting started.  This Pennisetum advena 'Rubrum' looks better than almost anything else in my front garden.

Tulbaghia violacea (aka society garlic) is easily overlooked most of the year but it makes a statement when it's one of the few things in full bloom

Clematis terniflora (aka sweet autumn clematis) is the only member of the genus I've been successful at growing.  I managed to train most of the vine up the arbor but one long stem evaded me and managed to weave itself through a Cistus shrub (photo on the right).

I took this photo of Leucophyllum laevigatum (aka Chihuahuan sage) a little before our heatwave swung into full gear.  Responding to an uptick in humidity, it exploded into bloom for a brief period before fading away almost as quickly as it appeared.

Gomphrena decumbens 'Itsy Bitsy' may have tiny flowers but they're abundant and keep on blooming regardless of weather conditions

I haven't been thrilled by the performance of my dahlias this year.  Even now, in mid-September, there are several that have yet to bloom.  Clockwise from the upper left, here are those that are blooming now with varying levels of vigor: Dahlia 'Calin', D. 'Summer's End', D. 'Southern Belle', D. 'Catching Fire', D. 'Enchantress', D. 'Lavender Ruffles', D. 'Karma Prospero', and D. Mikayla Miranda'.

The performance of my zinnias have also been spotty.  These 3, all grown from seed, have been the most rewarding: Zinnia elegans 'Carmine Rose', Z. 'Benary's Giant Deep Red', and Z. 'Benary's Giant Purple'.  For some reason, those in the 'Queen Lime' series, also grown from seed, have been disappointing this year.

I've crammed everything else into collages organized by color.  This month even old standbys like my large-flowered, ever-blooming Grevilleas are looking a little forlorn.

Clockwise from the upper left: Eustoma grandiflorum (aka Lisianthus) 'Balboa Blue Rim' and a noID blue variety, Geranium 'Tiny Monster', Petunia 'Night Sky', and noID Phalaenopsis

From the upper left: Agastache 'Morello' (still in its temporary pot), Alstroemeria 'Inca Vienna', Anthurium 'Maine', Cosmos bipinnatus, Eustoma grandiflorum, Hoya carnosa, Osteospermum 'Berry White', and Persicaria capitata

From the upper left: Abelia grandiflora 'Hopley's Variegated', A. g. 'Kaleidoscope', Amaryllis belladonna 'Alba' (which crashed early into the heatwave), Cosmos bipinnatus, Pandorea jasminoides, Pelargonium peltatum 'White Blizzard', noID Phalaenopsis, and Phyla nodiflora

From the upper left: Grindelia camporum, noID Phalaenopsis, noID Plumeria, Grevillea 'Peaches & Cream', G. 'Superb', Gaillardia aristata 'Spintop Copper Sun', Leonotis leonurus, and Rudbeckia 'Denver Daisy'

From the upper left: Alstromeria 'Inca Lucky', Cosmos bipinnatus (in true red!), Leucadendron salignum 'Blush', Bauhinia x blakeana (aka Hong Kong orchid tree), Pelargonium sidioides, and noID Phalaenopsis

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

 

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

Bloom Day - September 2020

As if the pandemic and the awful political state of affairs in the US weren't bad enough, Mother Nature threw us a couple of new challenges in September: a truly nasty heatwave and a boatload of terrible wildfires that have left us blanketed in smoke that refuses to move out of here.  Still, I recognize that my husband and I are very lucky - we have our lives, our home, and our health, ignoring the persistent throat irritation and headaches I've had since the smoke arrived.

As spending a lot of time outside is inadvisable at the moment, half the photos I'm using for this Bloom Day post were taken earlier in the month; however, with one exception, all the plants shown are still in bloom now.  I'll start with the exception.

The second (and largest) Yucca 'Bright Star' developed a bloom stalk in late August.  It was nearly at full bloom when I took this photograph on September 4th, just before the horrendous heatwave settled in.  It declined rapidly in the heat and I cut it down on September 11th.

The Yucca bloom was a short-lived surprise but let's proceed to September's floral stars, starting with the dahlias and the zinnias.

Dahlia 'Labyrinth' wins the top spot.  It has big, beautiful flowers and it's produced a steady stream of new blooms. 

Other dahlias currently in bloom include, clockwise from the upper left: 'Belle of Barmera', 'Loverboy', 'Mr Optimist', 'Iceberg', 'Enchantress' and 'Einstein'.  'Candelight' bloomed at the end of August but the next set of blooms haven't fully opened yet and 'Rip City' is full of buds but no blooms.  'Rancho' and 'Gitts Crazy' are still keeping me waiting.

I planted two mixed packets of Zinnia seeds and four named varieties but they were also mixed together when I seeded the raised planters in my cutting garden.  I think flowers from 'Northern Lights Mix', 'Unicorn Mix', 'Benary Giant Lilac' and 'Envy' are represented in this array.

I planted plugs from 'Dreamland' and 'Profusion' Zinnia mixes here on the south side of the house

There are plenty of other blooming plants making a statement this month too.

The Hong Kong orchid tree (Bauhinia x blakeana) looked terrible for months but its twiggy branches are finally covered in both leaves and flowers

I finally got Clematis terniflora (aka sweet autumn Clematis) properly tied up against the south side arbor, encouraging it to climb but a couple of stems have also sought to weave themselves through the Coprosma 'Plum Hussey' at the plant's base

Cosmos bipinnatus is continuing its bloom-fest this month

The sunflower seeds I sowed produced disappointingly small plants but the Helianthus 'Delta Sunflower' (left) and 'Sunfinity' (right) I bought as plants are doing well

Pennisetum advena 'Rubrum' will only get better as we head into fall

Rudbeckia hirta 'Denver Daisy' lasts longer in a vase than anything else in my garden

I made repeated attempts to get a decent shot of this large Vitex trifolia purpurea in full bloom but none of my photos captured the plant's beauty well.  The leaves are olive green on top and purple on the bottom and the flowers are a delicate blue.

The dependable large-flowered Grevilleas are particularly floriferous this month.  They didn't pay our recent heatwave a speck of notice as far as I can tell.

This is Grevillea 'Peaches & Cream'

and this is Grevillea 'Superb'

I had a few surprises as well this month.

I didn't notice the blooms on this Leucophyllum laevigatum until mid-day yesterday.  Regrettably, the greatest profusion of flowers faces the hedge.

This is the first time I've ever gotten a passionflower vine to bloom in this garden and this is the only bloom I've seen thus far.  This is hybrid Passiflora 'Oakland'.

I discovered this noID Stapelia (aka starfish flower) in bloom earlier this month.  It didn't last long.  It's odor is said to attract flies but I didn't see many.

  

I'd also like to offer special notice to a plant that normally gets little love.

Phyla nodiflora (aka Lippia and frogfruit) has done a nice job as a groundcover below the backyard fountain.  The flowers are tiny but colorful.

With that I'll conclude as I usually do with color-coded collages featuring the best of what else is in bloom this month.

Clockwise from the upper left: self-sown Amaranthus, Gaillardia 'Arizona Sun', Grevillea 'Ned Kelly', Penstemon mexicali 'Mini-bells Red', Rudbeckia 'Cherry Brandy', Salvia lanceolata and, in the middle, Grevillea 'Scarlet Sprite'

Clockwise from the upper left: Cuphea 'Vermillionaire' , Lantana camara 'Irene', Rosa 'Medallion', and Rudbeckia 'Sahara'

Left to right: Alstroemeria 'Inca Sunshine', Lantana 'Samantha', and noID Phalaenopsis

Clockwise from upper left: Allium tuberosum, Asparagus fern, noID Hoya, Gaura lindheimeri, self-sown Osteospermum, Pandorea jasminoides, and Coriandrum sativum

Clockwise from upper left: Cuphea 'Honeybells', C. 'Starfire Pink', Rosa 'Pink Meidiland', Eustoma grandiflorum, Osteospermum 'Berry White', Pentas lanceolata, and Echinacea 'Cheyenne Spirit' (with 'Pow-wow Berry')

Top row: Erigeron glacus 'Wayne Roderick', Liriope muscari, and Melaleuca thymifolia
Middle row: noID Phalaenopsis, Plectranthus neochilus, and Plumbago 'Imperial Blue'
Bottom row: Polygala fruticosa, Symphyotrichcum chilense, and Trichostemma 'Midnight Magic'

For more Gardeners' Bloom Day posts, visit our host, Carol at May Dreams Gardens.

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

In a Vase on Monday: Escapees from the brutal heat

Unfortunately, the weather forecasters were right last week when they predicted a miserable record-breaking heatwave.  For two days prior to the heatwave's arrival I spent early mornings and early evenings hand-watering sensitive areas of my garden.  Even so, I was still scrambling on Saturday and again early Sunday to cover areas I'd missed on my initial rounds.  As Sunday was supposed to be particularly nasty, I cut flowers for "In a Vase on Monday" early Saturday morning rather than Sunday as I normally do.  In retrospect, I only wish I'd cut everything that was in full bloom in my cutting garden.  Our temperature didn't drop overnight on Saturday - when I went to bed near midnight, it was still 100F (37.8C), down from a mid-day peak of 106F (41C), and when I got up in the morning the temperature was the same.  It quickly rose over the course of Sunday morning and got stuck on 108F (42C) for most of the day.  Other areas, like our inland valleys, had it far worse, though.  The inland valley I grew up in peaked at 121F (49.4C) on Sunday.

Luckily, on Saturday I'd cut both of the Dahlia 'Einstein' blooms in my cutting garden, as well as several Zinnia stems and selected fillers from other areas of the garden.

One of the two dahlia blooms was already a little past its prime on Saturday but there was no sense in leaving it in place to wither

Back view, featuring Zinnias

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left: Dahlia 'Einstein', Clematis terniflora, Coriandrum sativum, Gomphrena decumbens 'Itsy Bitsy', Melaleuca thymifolia, Polygala fruticosa, Prostanthera ovalifolia 'Variegata', and Zinnia elegans (mostly 'Benary's Giant Lilac')

The last gladiola in my cutting garden was already struggling so I cut that too and searched the garden for a few companions.  Another of my 'Bright Star' Yuccas was in full bloom and, although I wasn't sure how its stems would hold up in a vase, I cut two of those as well.

This is a photo of Yucca 'Bright Star' shortly before the heatwave began

The last stem of Gladiolus 'Vuvuzela' took center stage

Back view, featuring more Clematis stems

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left: Gladiolus 'Vuvuzela', Clematis terniflora, Yucca 'Bright Star', Liriope muscari, and Vitex trifolia purpurea

The first bloom of Dahlia 'Belle of Barmera' has been opening every so slowly in the cutting garden and I'd hoped to include it with this week's arrangements but, as of Sunday evening, it still wasn't fully open.

If it opens within the next day without shriveling in the heat, I may create another vase mid-week

The heat isn't expected to abate significantly until Tuesday and even then it'll remain above average through the balance of the week.  We haven't had a power outage thus far but our air conditioning has been running continuously.  The window shades are down throughout the house so it feels a little cave-like.  I've ventured outside several times but it isn't pleasant.

Even my cat, Pipig, who hates air conditioning, wasn't willing to stick things out lounging in her screened catio and took refuge in a corner of the living room

I hope your weather isn't as brutal!  For more IAVOM creations, visit the meme's host, Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.

My late addition:

Featuring Dahlia 'Belle of Barmera', a late arrival, and Zinnia elegans 'Queen Lime Blush'

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