In a Vase on Monday: A new color palette to work with

I had a hard time getting excited about my flower choices this week. I'd just about settled on a flashy purple gladiola, when I noticed new blooms on my Grevillea 'Moonlight'. 'Moonlight' hasn't flowered often since the shrub was planted several years ago, and I can't recall ever using it for an 'In a Vase on Monday' post. However, once I settled on that choice, I was off and running with an entirely different color scheme.

Although 'Moonglow' got me started, it was one member of an ensemble cast that included Alstroemeria, Leucadendrons, and even a Leucospermum among other plants

Back view

Overhead view

Clockwise from the upper left are: Alstroemeria 'Claire', Corokia x virgata 'Sunsplash', noID Leucanthemum superbum, Grevillea 'Moonlight', Leucadendron 'Jubilee Crown', L. 'Wilson's Wonder', Leucospermum 'California Sunshine', and Grevillea 'Peaches & Cream'

Arrangement in place

I may make use of the gladiolas next week when there are more of them in full bloom.  Then again, the lilies may be ready to take off by then so there could be a tug of war.  The dahlia tubers are moving forward, but slowly, so there's plenty of time left to enjoy the current season without dashing into summer.

For posts from other IAVOM contributors, visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.

All material © 2012-2026 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

In a Vase on Monday: Spring explosion

Admittedly, Spring arrives early in coastal Southern California but it feels especially early this year.  I call it Spring when I spot new flowers whenever I walk through my garden, which is generally at least two times a day.  Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day is just around the corner and maybe when I tabulate what's flowering for my post, I'll discover that this year isn't an anomaly but, at the moment, it feels like one.  Finding flowers to fill my vases wasn't at all difficult - what was difficult was deciding what to rule out this week.

As much of the US is still shuddering in the face of very cold weather, it's remained warmer-than-usual here.  Unfortunately, we still haven't had any rain and even our marine layer, when it's appeared, has been light, usually clearing at my elevation by the time the sun rises.  However, there are two decent chances of rain on the horizon within the next ten days.  I focused on the Hippeastrums that might be marred by rain, should it actually show up.

Hippeastrum 'White Nile' got the starring role in this arrangement.  I hadn't originally planned to pair it with snapdragons but they've taken off in the past week and, all too soon, the sweet peas are going to demand some of the space the snaps currently occupy so cutting them seemed a good idea.

The back view is much like the front

Overhead view

Clockwise from the upper left: dark and light pink Antirrhinum majus, Coleonema pulchellum 'Sunset Gold', green Eustoma grandiflorum (aka lisianthus), Hippeastrum 'White Nile', and Narcissus papyraceus

The second Hippeastrum is flashier than the first, although I was happier with how the first arrangement came together than I am with the second.

Hippeastrum 'Flamingo Amadeus' is dramatic but I had a harder time finding other flowers that provided the right contrast with that orangy-pink color.  More white might have been better.

Back view

Overhead view

Clockwise from the upper left: Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', white Freesia, Grevillea 'Superb', Hippeastrum 'Flamingo Amadeus', and Leucospermum 'Spider Hybrid'

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

All material © 2012-2026 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

In a Vase on Monday: Change is in the air

A stretch of warmer weather earlier this month prompted the development of new blooms.  Even through temperatures dropped lower over the last few days (mid-60sF/18C), they're expected to climb again this week, at least for a time.  Meanwhile, last week's brush with rain delivered just one hundredth of an inch here.  There's currently no chance of rain showing in the ten day forecast but there's a moderately decent opportunity of some as we get closer to mid-February.  I remain hopeful that our brief rainy season, which started with such promise, won't bottom out early. 

The first of my Leucospermums is blooming but I didn't elect to use any of the stems this week.  However, I couldn't ignore Hippeastrum 'Amadeus Candy'.  I potted three bulbs in a single pot and two of the stems are now flowering with the bud of the third looking ready to open any day.

I had a surprisingly difficult time finding flowers to echo the bright pink of the petal tips.  Two Grevilleas with small flowers stepped up to help.  The white jasmine with pink buds was provided courtesy of a neighbor's plant that's currently spilling over my side of our fence.

I used more pink snapdragons this week to fill the back side of the vase

Overhead view

Clockwise from the upper left: Acacia cognata 'Cousin Itt', Antirrhinum majus (aka snapdragon), Grevillea rosmarinifolia, G. 'Scarlet Sprite', Hippeastrum 'Amadeus Candy', and Jasminum polyanthum

The 'Bordeaux' and 'Lord Lieutenant' Anemones continue to produce new blooms and two more varieties are slowly unfurling.  I used one of the newbies and 'Lord Lieutenant' in my second arrangement.

Anemone 'Mistral Azzurro' is one of the new bulb flowers to make an appearance.  It's looking paler than I recall when I previously grew it but perhaps I just cut the first 2 flowers prematurely.  Interestingly, I've learned that these Anemones, like tulips, continue to grow taller after they've been cut.

Back view

Overhead view

Clockwise from the upper left: Anemone coronaria 'Lord Lieutenant', A. c. 'Mistral Azzurro', Limonium perezii, Matthiola incanum (aka stock), Osteospermum 'Violet Ice', and Prostanthera ovalifolia 'Variegata'

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

All material © 2012-2026 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

In a Vase on Monday: A Burst of Sunshine

Grevillea 'Peaches & Cream' called to me this week.  This Grevillea is another year-round bloomer but it produces nowhere near the number of flowers as its cousin 'Superb' so I don't often cut the flowers for a vase.  However, we've woken up to a dense marine layer for a few days now and I needed some sunshine to bring inside.

I couldn't bring myself to cut more than 2 stems of 'Peaches & Cream' but I filled in with yellow and white daisies, a few stems of an early blooming Narcissus, and some orange berries to echo the peachy tones in the Grevillea's flowers

Back view

Overhead view

Clockwise from the upper left: Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', Argyranthemum frutescens 'Mount Everest', A. f. 'Beauty Yellow', berries of Auranticarpa rhombifolium, Grevillea 'Peaches & Cream', and Narcissus tazetta 'Geranium'

I pulled together a few stems for a second smaller vase for the kitchen island too.

As there's not much to this one, I'm sharing just this photo of the vase in place, the overhead view shown below, and a collage showing closeups of the flowers.

 

Overhead view

From the upper left: noID Alstroemeria, Antirrhinum majus, Boronia crenulata 'Shark Bay', and a noID Dianthus barbatus

The marine layer delivered two-hundreths of an inch of precipitation over the past two days but there's still no prospect of significant rain in the forecast at least until January, and I'm not prepared to bet on that.  It's too bad Santa can't deliver rain!

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

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

In a Vase on Monday: A November surprise (but without pizzazz)

I disposed of all but one of my dahlias about two weeks ago, the majority because they showed signs of the mosaic virus, and a few others simply because they hadn't performed well.  The one I left in place was purchased on a whim from my local garden center in April, labeled as 'Caproz Pizzazz'.  The photo attached to the tuber's package showed a flower with deep magenta petals touched with pinkish-white.  I planted it in a half-barrel in May and it grew well but stubbornly refused to produce any buds.  I was ready to toss it with the rest of my tubers when it surprised me with a single bud a few weeks ago.  That bud finally opened late last week, revealing the fact that it is most definitely not 'Caproz Pizzazz' (which you can see here.)  As pickings to fill vases are very limited now, I cut that bloom for the first of this week's vases.

I asked Google AI to identify white dahlias with lavender petal tips.  It offered 6 possibilities, one of which was 'Ferncliff Illusion', which is the one that most resembled the dahlia shown above.  In addition to its color, both flowers are dinnerplate varieties. The dahlia has unexpectedly developed a few more buds so I've left it in place for now.

Back view: Vitex trifolia has an annoying habit of drooping after being cut but it's still pretty and it usually straightens up eventually

Overhead view: Among other things, I added 2 stems of Medinilla myrinatha (aka the Malaysian or grape orchid) to the mix.  It's not as flashy as Medinilla magnifica but it's survived in my garden for years and gets points for that.

Clockwise from the upper left: Correa 'Ivory Bells', Cosmos bipinnatus, Cuphea 'Starfire Pink', Dahlia 'Ferncliff Illusion' (maybe), Medinilla myriantha, and Vitex trifolia

I considered Camellia sasanqua flowers for a second arrangement as they've just begun to bloom but the flowers of Senna bicapsularis have reached their peak so I decided to make use of them.  Although I featured a couple of stems in a vase two weeks ago, they were still in bud at that point.  They're making a bolder statement now.

I filled in with stems of 2 of the ever-blooming Grevilleas.  The addition of a single Rudbeckia up front was due to accidentally cutting its stem as I was tidying up the plant.

Back view

Overhead view

Clockwise from the upper left: Grevillea 'Peaches & Cream', G. 'Superb', Leucadendron 'Wilson's Wonder', Rudbeckia 'Juliana', and Senna bicapsularis

The green Lisianthus (Eustoma grandiflorum) I cut last week are still looking good so I stuck them in the small vase on my kitchen island to accompany the Leucadendron 'Jester' stems I cut two weeks ago.

The Lisianthus haven't been prolific this year but at least they have a long vase life

Following a moderate heatwave last week with temperatures in the low 90sF/32C), temperatures have dropped over the last couple of days, courtesy of dense morning marine layers.  Current expectations are that our temperatures will remain in the 60s to low-70sF throughout most of November. However, Weather West predicts that Southern California (if not necessarily the northern part of the state) will remain dry for the "foreseeable future."

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: Retreads

Although I have more dahlia flowers than I can use to fill my vases, some of those in my cutting garden are still keeping me waiting.  Five varieties have promising buds but have yet to bloom.  Two other plants have been stingy with their flowers and another has failed to produce any buds to date.  So, while I wait out the stragglers, I've put together two arrangements using my more vigorous cultivars, hence the reference to "retreads."

I'd meant to give Dahlia 'Labyrinth' top billing this week but 'Summer's End' played tug-of-war for that spot

Back view: I added several stems of Grevillea 'Superb' for extra interest

Overhead view

Clockwise from the upper left: Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', Dahlia 'Labyrinth', D. 'Summer's End', Grevillea 'Superb', Zinnia elegans 'Benary's Giant Salmon Rose', and Z. e. 'Queeny Lemon Peach'

I previously used Dahlia 'La Belle Epoque' in a mix with Dahlia 'Cafe au Lait Rose' but she's gone solo this week as the star of my second arrangement.

Well, Dahlia 'La Belle Epoque' received a little competition from Eustoma grandiflorum 'Carmine' (aka lisianthus)

Back view: Lisianthus has a much longer vase-life than dahlias.  The stem of pale pink lisianthus tucked into the back of the arrangement is a leftover from one of the vases I put together 2 weeks ago.

Overhead view

Clockwise from the upper left: Argyranthemum 'Grandaisy Dark Pink', Leptospermum 'Copper Glow', Eustoma grandiflorum in pale pink and carmine, Dahlia 'La Belle Epoque', Zinnia elegans 'Benary's Giant Wine', and Z. e. 'Queeny Red Lime'

After a couple of days of moderate temperatures due to a brief recovery of the morning marine layer last week, we saw another uptick in temperatures again late last week.  Temperatures in the low 90sF (32-33C) are expected to continue through Labor Day into at least the middle of this week before slowly dropping into the upper 70sF (25-26C). Until then I'm taking my daily walks during the early morning hours and minimizing work in my garden.  Overall, however, California's coastal temperatures have been cooler than usual.  In fact, one climate scientist's recent report indicates that our coastal area is experiencing one of the coolest summers in thirty years.  Unfortunately, that can't be said for either California's inland areas or the Pacific Northwest.

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

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