In a Vase on Monday: More than I expected!

When I stepped into the garden on Sunday morning, I really had no idea what I could put in a vase this week that I hadn't already used recently.  I made an entire circuit of my garden ruling out possibilities until I saw the white snapdragons in my cutting garden.  They'd been beaten down by rain on Saturday (one-third of an inch) and their stems were lying on their sides as if to say "save me" so I cut them.  That started me on a roll collecting bits of this and that in white and blue.

Anemone 'Lord Lieutenant', also in my cutting garden, had one small bloom and another bud just opening

Back view: the Osteospermums have responded quickly to the shift back to cooler temperatures and sea lavender (Limonium perezii) is beginning its annual flush

The top view highlights the bloom of a noID tazetta Narcissus that was supposed to be Narcissus 'Geranium'

Top: Anemone coronaria 'Lord Lieutenant', Antirrhinum majus, and noID Ceanothus
Middle: Echium handiense (recycled from last week), Lavandula multifida, and Limonium perezii
Bottom: noID Narcissus, Osteospermum 'Violet Ice', and Westringia fruticosa 'Morning Light'

As I was assembling my varied collection for that vase, I suddenly remembered that I'd seen buds on a bearded Iris by my shade house the week before.  I'd planted all blue and white varieties in that area - or so I'd thought.  The Iris in question was indeed blooming but it wasn't blue or white.  I cut it anyway and then did another round of the garden looking for suitable companions for it.  I checked my records, which showed no Iris in a mauve and burgundy color, leading me to conclude that the rhizome I planted had been mislabeled.

I played off the yellow beard of the Iris and the flower's petal colors in selecting the plants to accompany it in a vase

Back view: as usual, Gomphrena 'Itsy Bitsy' came in handy

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left: Coleonema pulchellum 'Sunset Gold', Coprosma repens 'Plum Hussey', Gomphrena decumbens 'Itsy Bitsy', Hebe 'Purple Shamrock', noID Iris germanica (possibly 'Prince of Burgundy' or 'Right Already'), Narcissus 'Geranium', and Hebe 'Grace Kelly' (in bud)

Buds are forming throughout my garden.  I could swear that the Freesias next to my backyard fountain covered themselves in buds in response to Saturday's rain.  More rain is expected this week and I hope I'll be tripping over new blooms in the weeks to come.  Spring does come early in coastal Southern California!

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

All material © 2012-2021 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

In a Vase on Monday: Fruit Sherbet

We had beautiful weather this past weekend and I spent a lot of my time in the garden, at intervals even managing to forget the circumstances currently facing everyone everywhere to one degree or another.  When it came time to pick flowers for "In a Vase on Monday," I targeted two tall stems of peach foxglove that had finally opened after keeping me waiting impatiently for weeks.  With a glance at the one snapdragon still left in my cutting garden, my fruit sherbet color scheme was set.

The relatively short stems of Antirrhinum majus 'Peachy Dragon' pulled all these colors together and gave me an excuse for recycling two stems of Leucospermum 'Spider' I'd cut last week and cutting a third to fill out the vase

In retrospect, I can't say why I didn't put the 2 foxglove stems together rather than separating them like this.  Maybe I was unconsciously thinking of Easter bunnies?

This was the best I could do in way of an overhead shot

Clockwise from the upper left: Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', Arbutus 'Marina', Digitalis 'Dalmatian Peach', Leucospermum 'Spider', Narcissus 'Geranium', noID Ixia, pink Ranunculus and, in the middle, Antirrhinum majus 'Peachy Dragon'

Remembering that a purple bearded Iris at the bottom of my back slope has been blooming off and on, I trooped down there to see if my timing was right to get a flowering stem for a vase, and I was gratified to find that it was.  It determined the color scheme for my second vase.

The blue Anemones stole the show from the noID Iris.  I did some sleuthing online and determined that the dwarf Iris might be 'Darth Vader'.

Once again, I got carried away, stuffing the vase with a lot of other plant material, including a few bedraggled stems of the unusual noID purple Abelia growing on my back slope.  Purchased several years ago labeled simply Abelia species I've been unable to find a proper name for it and I've never seen it anywhere else.

Top view

Top row: Abelia sp., Agrostemma 'Ocean Pearls', Anemone 'Mistral Azzurro', and Babiana rubrocyanea
Middle row: Coloenema album, Freesia, noID Iris germanica, and Lavandula multifida
Bottom row: Pelargonium 'White Lady', noID Pericallis, Salvia lyrata 'Purple Volcano', and Verbena lilacina 'De La Mina'

We had rain overnight and more is expected today and possibly at intervals through Thursday.  As our season-to-date total is still well below the average for Los Angeles and as our rainy season generally ends in early April, the storm system is welcome.  And it's not as if I need to drive anywhere...

I hope you are doing well.  To see more IAVOM creations, visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.

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

In a Vase on Monday: Wild & Loose

Neither of my vases this week are anything like what I contemplated when I walked into my garden Sunday morning to see what there was to cut.  My Renga Lilies (Arthropodium cirratum) and Agapanthus have produced their first blooms and I had vague plans of using each in an arrangement but I'd no idea what to pair them with.  Then I remembered the multi-flowered stem of Matilija Poppy (Romneya coulteri, aka California Tree Poppy) I'd seen Saturday while working on the back slope and I headed down there to see if the flowers were suitable for cutting.  The bees tend to scatter pollen all over the ruffled white petals but the cluster of flowers I'd identified was still pristine.

In keeping with the wild look of these Southern California natives, I kept the arrangement loose and simple

I tucked the Sideritis cypria I used in last week's vase into this one.  (Note: I mistakenly labeled this as S. syriaca, a different species, in last week's post.)

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left, the vase contains: Achillea 'Moonshine', Sideritis cypria, Coleonema pulchellum 'Sunset Gold', and Romneya coulteri

While down on the back slope, I noticed that another stalk of bearded Iris was blooming and, since I spend relatively little time down there, I cut it too.  I threw a lot of other long-stemmed flowers into the mix with it, creating a second vase with a wild look and loose composition.  However, like the first vase, it might have looked better had I simplified the flower palette.

It's a bit of a mish-mash

The stem of Melaleuca thymifolia at the base of the arrangement was a last minute addition.  It has an interesting flower, although the plant itself has a sloppy look in the border and I've contemplated pulling it out.

Clockwise from the upper left, the vase contains: Arthropodium cirratum, Coriandrum sativum, noID Delphinium, Digitalis purpurea 'Dalmatian White', Lathyrus odoratus, noID Iris germanica, and, in the middle, Melaleuca thymifolia

For more Monday vases, visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.

All material © 2012-2018 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

In a Vase on Monday: Springing toward summer

I'm already looking at my cutting garden with an eye toward what I can remove to make room for summer bloomers.  I've cleared out some of the Ranunculus and I think the peach foxgloves and the Calendula will be the next to go as both were badly burned by the brief heatwave we experienced in early April.  However, despite their ugly foliage, the foxgloves and Calendula have continued to produce bloom spikes so I cut several of each as the starting point for this week's first vase.

The garden provided plenty of other blooms to add zing to the soft peach flowers

Back view

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left, the vase contains: Alstroemeria 'Indian Summer', Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', Calendula 'Bronzed Beauty', Digitalis purpurea 'Dalmatian Peach', Grevillea 'Ned Kelly', and Lantana camara 'Irene'

The bearded Iris on the back of the slope I'd hoped to use last week bloomed last Monday afternoon.

The blooms are violet, not the deep purple I'd expected based on the color of the buds.  I don't know the variety as the bulbs were planted by a prior owner.  I believe this is the first time in the 7 years we've lived here that they've bloomed.

Fortunately, our weather turned a bit cooler again last week (upper 60s to low-70sF) so there were still viable blooms available to cut this week.

There are 2 more bloom stalks still in bud on the back slope but, with warmer temperatures expected to return this week, I thought this might be my only chance to feature the Iris in an arrangement.  Thus far, none of the other bearded Iris in my garden shown any indication that they're preparing to bloom this year.

The back view is remarkably similar to the front view this week

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left, the vase contains: noID Iris germanica, Lathyrus odoratus, Coriandrum sativum, Cerinthe major purpurascens, and Polgala myrtifolia 'Mariposa'

Visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden to find more "In a Vase on Monday" posts.

All material © 2012-2018 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Bloom Day & IaVoM - May 2017

The garden is already switching into summer mode here, although thankfully the toasty temperatures we had in late April and early May have shifted back to spring-like levels in my area of coastal Southern California, if only temporarily.  I recently pulled out my Iceland poppies and my sweet peas, both of which suffered when the temperature soared and winds up to 30 miles per hour battered us for days.  I've planted Dahlia tubers and Zinnia and sunflower seeds in my cutting garden, which I hope will enjoy summer's heat when it returns.

This month, I'm featuring some of my favorite plant combinations for Bloom Day, hosted by Carol of May Dreams Gardens.  I've also added a floral bouquet for In a Vase on Monday, hosted by Cathy of Rambling in the Garden.  I've used collages in most cases but, be warned, this is still a photo-heavy post.

Only one of my large-flowered bearded Iris have bloomed thus far.  Iris germanica 'Haut les Voiles' is shown here with Alstroemeria 'Claire', Euphorbia 'Blue Lagoon', Anagallis monellii, and Lobelia erinus.

The mass of Achillea 'Moonshine' is probably the most dramatic element in my back garden at the moment.  Erigeron glaucus 'Wayne Roderick' and Geranium 'Tiny Monster' (photo upper right) provide accents on one side while Gaillardia 'Arizona Sun' and Euphorbia x martinii 'Ascot Rainbow' (lower right) offer accents on the far side.

Clockwise from the upper right, the bed adjacent to the back patio on the north side contains: Anigozanthos 'Yellow Gem', Gaillardia aristata 'Gallo Peach' (shown with blue and yellow violas), Leucadendron 'Pisa', self-seeded California native  Solanum xanti, and Tanacetum niveum

This bed directly across from the previous one contains: a noID yellow-red Anigozanthos, Grevillea 'Ned Kelly', Lantana camara 'Irene', and Lobelia laxiflora.  After more than a year in the ground, Leucospermum 'Brandi' in the same bed still isn't blooming but at least the plant seems healthy.

I took the photo on the left from the dirt path just inside the hedge surrounding the main level of the back garden looking toward the house.  The bed in the foreground contains: the fading flowers of Pelargonium cucullatum 'Flore Pleno', Polygala myrtifolia 'Mariposa' and no ID Scabiosa (row, top right).  The bed in the background contains: Santolina chamaecyparissus, Lobelia valida 'Delft Blue', and Santolina rosmarinifolia (row, lower right).

The floral highlights of this area are (bottom row): Euphorbia characias 'Black Pearl', Nierembergia linarifolia 'Purple Robe' and Ozothamnus diosmifolius

These photos show 2 sides of the arbor between my vegetable-turned-cutting garden and the dry garden on the northeast side of the house.  The vines in flower over the arbor are: dark pinkish-red Pelargonium peltatum, Trachelospermum jasminoides, and Pandorea jasminoides. 

I don't have a good photo that captures all of the blooms on the steep back slope but, clockwise from the left, the blooms there include: Bignonia capreolata (first 2 photos), a very happy artichoke, Centranthus ruber, Drosanthemum floribundum, Oenothera speciosa, and Romneya coulteri.  I inadvertently omitted photos of Pelargonium 'White Lady' and Euphorbia 'Dean's Hybrid' but they're still in full bloom on the slope too.

There are also some heavy bloomers with a presence in spots throughout the garden.

Clockwise from the left: Dorycnium hirsutum (aka Hairy Canary Clover), Gaura lindheimeri, Gazania 'White Flame', Gazania 'Yellow Flame', Pelargonium peltatum, Pelargonium "Georgia Peach' (one of several of the Regal Geraniums currently in bloom), and noID Violas.

And, as usual, I have a few color collages of flowers I didn't manage to work into the preceding collections.

Top row: Aquilegia 'Spring Magic', Catananche caerulea, and Cynoglossum amabile
Middle row: Eryngium alpinum, Limonium perezii, and skunky smelling Plectranthus neochilus
Bottom row: Salvia 'Mystic Spires', Verbena bonariensis, and Wahlenbergia 'Blue Cloud'

Top row: Cistus ' Grayswood Pink', Cuphea 'Starfire Pink', and noID Dianthus
Middle row: Hebe 'Wiri Blush', Hesperaloe parviflora 'Brakelights', and Lotus berthelotii 'Amazon Sunset'
Bottom row: noID rose, Salvia lanceolata, and Rosa 'Pink Meidiland'

Tow row: Aloe 'Rooikappie', noID Calendula, and thuggish Cotula lineariloba
Middle row: Cuphea 'Vermillionaire, Hemerocallis 'Elizabeth Salter', and noID Lonicera
Bottom row: Rosa 'Golden Celebration', Rosa 'Joseph's Coat', and Tagetes lemmonii

Finally, to close the Bloom Day portion of this post, here's a look at some of the blooms that signal summer's arrival here:

Clockwise from the left: the first of 200+ Agapanthus, Arthropodium cirratum (aka Renga Lilies), Centaurea 'Silver Feather', Globularia x indubia (or what I call "hairy blue eyes"), dwarf Jacaranda 'Blue Bonsai', Leucanthemum x superbum, and recent purchase, Leucospermum 'High Gold'

Visit Carol at May Dreams Gardens for more Bloom Days posts.

Those of you who follow my posts for IaVoM may be surprised that I'm offering only one vase this week.  Last week's yellow vase is still holding up well in my front entry so I've prepared just one vase inspired by the first blooms of the Arthropodium cirratum and Centaurea 'Silver Feather' for my dining room table.

From left to right, views of the vase from the front, back and top.  The vase contains: Arthropodium cirratum, Centaurea 'Silver Feather', Jacobaea maritima, Polygala myrtifolia 'Mariposa', Trachelospermum jasminoides, and Verbena bonariensis.

Visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden to see more vases created from materials on hand in bloggers' gardens.


All material © 2012-2017 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party