Early March Floral Design
In preparation for joining Cathy’s In A Vase On Monday challenge I went out yesterday in late afternoon to see what plants I could rescue. After Sunday’s sunny 71°F. high the forecast for the upcoming week brings a blast of Arctic air with possible snow and ice, and low temperatures near 15° tonight.
It turned out there was little to rescue. The long-awaited fragrance of Daphne is beginning to be detectable near the front entrance, but the shrubs still are not in full bloom. Though there is a touch of color on several Camellia japonica buds, the daffodils continue to bide their time. Except for the hellebores the garden has surprisingly little in flower.
To hold the plant material for today’s arrangement I used 3 floral pin holders inserted into a shallow, blue and sienna glazed ceramic dish. First I added two stalks of Helleborus x hybridus (Lenten rose). Then I selected some branches of spiraea to add height and airiness in the back of the container.
Spherical brown cones and clipped sprigs of greenery from ‘Carolina Sapphire’ Arizona Cypress made a contrasting filler along the baseline of the arrangement.
[Note: I liked the way the helleborus looked in the arrangement but sadly they did not last even overnight this time.]
Thanks very much to Cathy at Rambling In The Garden for hosting. Visit her site to see her arrangement this week and see what other participants are placing In A Vase On Monday.
pbmGarden 
Sorry to hear you have more cold weather on the way.
What a pretty arrangement. Your Spiraea buds look as if they are close to opening and I like your two- tone green Hellebore.
Thanks Chloris. It will be nice to have the Spiraea in bloom–maybe another week or two. I’m glad to have Hellebores blooming at least.
How did you get your lovely hellebore to stand upright, I thought they were famous for collapsing when brought indoors? Beautiful arrangement !
Pauline, in fact, I made the arrangement and photographed it last evening and by this morning the hellebores had collapsed. Disappointing. In the past I have kept some in a bud vase for several weeks, but recently they have not been reliable keepers.
Lovely, as always Susie. I have hellebores blooming too, but just a few bulbs so far. There are daffodil leaves too. I shall go and cut some hellebore now and see what I can do with them! 😀
Thanks Cathy. I should warn you though these hellebores didn’t last very well this time in my arrangement, but they usually work well if you float them. Let us see what you come up with and have a good day. susie
I can learn a lot by studying your arrangements Susie. this one is very elegant and not actually using very much material, lovely.
Thank you Christina! I like using the floral pins to hold the stems–makes arrangements come together quickly.
I must try to get some when I’m next in the UK.
Another lovely arrangement and though plant material was scarce, I love your choices. And, of course, no one need know that the hellebore was only a ‘night’ lily.
Thanks Stepheny. Having limits sometimes makes it easier than having a wide choice of materials, although I do look forward to having more plants in bloom. Have a good day.
It amazes me how tall and vertical some hellebore stems are, but what a shame these didn’t even last overnight as their colour is spot on with the rest of your material. I love the way you add height with those long sprigs of spiraea, and your fillers around the base are perfect. I must go and order some pins – meant to do it when you talked about them before. Thanks for joining in with the meme, Susie.
It was fun as always Cathy. You don’t always need pins (as with your twisted hazel today) but they can be handy.
susie
This is just beautiful, Susie. Well balanced, simple and yet sophisticated. I just don’t have the heart to cut any of my helleborus…maybe if winter would threaten to visit but then I hope not!
Thanks Annette. This is the first year I’ve cut my hellebores, but I have some planted around the side of the house where I seldom see them. This way I can enjoy them indoors. Susie
I love the way you put this together Susie – it is very elegant and understated. I have read that older hellebore flowers that are setting seed last longer in arrangement than newly opened ones and it sometimes helps to cut the stems and then sear them in very hot water for a few seconds before using them in an arrangement. Hellebores are tricky though, so it does make it difficult to cut them when they last so well on the plant.
I appreciate your kind comment about the arrangement and will give your tip for prolonging the hellebore using hot water. I must have had beginner’s luck a month or so ago when I first brought indoors some cuttings. It’s valuable to experiment to find out what works though. Thanks. Susie