Tag Archives: nature photography

In A Vase On Monday – Two Vases, One Bouquet

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In A Vase On Monday – Two Vases, One Bouquet

Cathy at Rambling In The Garden invites us to share an arrangement every Monday using materials collected from our gardens.

For today’s vase I chose a Raku pot purchased at our local Apple Chill street fair one autumn long ago, when five dollars was a significant investment.

Reliable and trouble-free, Angelonia ‘Purple’ caught my eye as I looked around the garden yesterday for flowers to feature. Also I included Dahlia ‘Fireworks’ because it is finally beginning to flower a bit more, though it remains rather lackluster. The three ‘Fireworks’ plants are the only dahlias in my garden this summer (my friend Libby’s mom’s red dahlia did not make it through our harsh winter).

In A Vase On Monday – Two Vases, One Bouquet

Zinnia Cut and Come Again continue to color the garden with fresh and long-lasting flowers, drawing hummingbirds, butterflies and other various insects. There is sign of powdery mildew on some of the leaves but the flowers power on. I used most of the zinnias I cut yesterday in a secondary arrangement, but several of the deep orange ones found their way into Monday’s vase, nestling among the purples of Angelonia and one stem of instensely blue-violet salvia.

In A Vase On Monday – Two Vases, One Bouquet

Two clusters of bright yellow Tansy flowers add a final touch.

In A Vase On Monday – Two Vases, One Bouquet

Many of my designs are viewed only from the front, but this one is meant to be seen from all directions.

In A Vase On Monday – Two Vases, One Bouquet

The asymmetry of this view looks more formal, yet gives a touch of personality.

In A Vase On Monday – Two Vases, One Bouquet

Some of the stems in today’s bouquet, especially part of the Angelonia and the dahlias, were not as long as I would have liked.  Concerned they may end of out of water at some point during the week, I decided after the photo shoot to trim all the stems evenly and place them into a different container.  Looking freer in this casual soup mug, the flowers will provide a cheery presence this week.

In A Vase On Monday – Two Vases, One Bouquet

Materials
Flowers
Angelonia ‘Purple’
Dahlia ‘Fireworks’
Salvia guaranitica ‘Black and Blue’
Tanacetum vulgare (Tansy)
Zinnia Cut and Come Again (Zinnia elegant pumila)
Containers
Lime green soup mug
Raku ware, unknown artist, circa 1978.

It is fun to share vases with others across the world. Thanks to Cathy at Rambling In The Garden for hosting each week. Visit her to discover what she and others found to place In A Vase On Monday.

In A Vase On Monday – Orange And White

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In A Vase On Monday – Orange And White

Cathy at Rambling In The Garden invites us to share an arrangement every Monday using materials collected from our gardens.

Zinnia Cut and Come Again are reliable for a profusion of summer blooms. Jason mentioned his were mainly white and orange and coincidentally those are the two colors I had selected for today’s vase. I seem to have a balanced mixture of colors this year, but the white is rare among the reds, pinks and yellows.

Zinnia Cut and Come Again (Zinnia elegant pumila

There are more oranges this year in the mix.

Zinnia Cut and Come Again (Zinnia elegant pumila

Heuchera villosa ‘Big Top Bronze’ is beginning to bloom in a dark corner behind other plants so I decided to bring a stem indoors.

Heuchera villosa ‘Big Top Bronze’ (Coral Bells)

For natural accents I reused a piece of bark from a previous arrangement, along with a seed pod from Asclepias tuberosa (Butterfly Plant) from a few weeks ago. The pod has transformed and burst open.

Asclepias tuberosa (Butterfly Plant)

A bunch of zinnias make a great summer bouquet, but even in small number they have great presence.

In A Vase On Monday – Orange And White

Materials
Flowers
Heuchera villosa ‘Big Top Bronze’ (Coral Bells)
Zinnia Cut and Come Again (Zinnia elegant pumila)
Other
Bark: Lagerstroemia (Crape Myrtle)
Pod: Asclepias tuberosa (Butterfly Plant)
Container
Porcelain Ikebana vase. Rectangle Blue Zen (6.75L x 3.75W x 2H inches)

Thanks to Cathy at Rambling In The Garden for hosting and giving us an opportunity to share flower designs across the world. Visit her to discover what she and others found to place In A Vase On Monday.

In A Vase On Monday – July Complementary

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In A Vase On Monday – July Complementary

Cathy at Rambling In The Garden invites us to share an arrangement every Monday using materials collected from our gardens.

Before thinking consciously of today’s vase in terms of complementary yellow and purple, I had in mind tall stems of fading sunny Rudbeckia, the green cone-heads featured prominently, and backed by a large purply patterned Canna leaf. I also wanted to use pieces of bark saved from a Lagerstroemia (Crape Myrtle), especially this lichen-covered section.

Lichen and Lagerstroemia (Crape Myrtle) Bark

Using two floral pins or frogs I began by inserting the bark.  Next the rudbeckia and canna went in as planned.

Before long I had rescued a stem of Tansy from last week’s vase for more yellow and more texture.

In A Vase On Monday – July Complementary

More purples slipped in—Angelonia and Euphorbia ‘Blackbird.’ Much of the bark which was expected to provide a strong impact receded in favor of the angelonia.

Euphorbia ‘Blackbird’ (Spurge)

Dahlia ‘Fireworks’ has disappointed this year, giving only one or two blooms at a time, but the flowers called out when I was cutting materials and found their way into the design.

Dahlia ‘Fireworks’

Materials
Flowers
Angelonia ‘Purple
Dahlia ‘Fireworks’
Euphorbia ‘Blackbird’ (Spurge)
Rudbeckia laciniata (Green-Headed Coneflower)
Tanacetum vulgare (Tansy)
Foliage
Canna
Lagerstroemia (Crape Myrtle) Bark with Lichen
Container
Oasis Lomey 11″ Designer Dish, black, round
Two Three-inch floral pins (frog)
Black Stones

In A Vase On Monday – July Complementary

In A Vase On Monday – July Complementary

Thanks to Cathy at Rambling In The Garden for hosting and giving us an opportunity to share flower designs across the world. Visit her to discover what she and others found to place In A Vase On Monday.

In A Vase On Monday – Old-Fashioned Blooms

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In A Vase On Monday – Old-Fashioned Blooms

Cathy at Rambling In The Garden invites us to share an arrangement every Monday using materials collected from our gardens. Thunder and lightning was exciting briefly late Saturday night, but the activity brought very little rain.

Zinnias began flowering ten days ago, cheering up the garden with colorful old-fashioned loveliness.

In A Vase On Monday – Old-Fashioned Blooms

By early June when daffodil foliage had finally died back so I could reclaim some space, I was losing interest in gardening because it was so extremely hot. But I found an old packet of Zinnia ‘Cut and Come Again’ (Zinnia elegant pumila), packaged for 2017 by Botanical Interests, and sprinkled out the seeds. Simple, colorful, heat-loving and reliable—what could be easier?

In A Vase On Monday – Old-Fashioned Blooms

In-between the time of planting seeds and harvesting the flowers, I celebrated a birthday with lots of family. The container today is one of a pair of mugs I received during a big family get-together that unexpectedly turned into a bit of a birthday fest for me. The cups were crafted by my niece’s mother-in-law, featuring beautiful form and blue glaze. The blue batik table runner was made by my sister using special Japanese fabric.

Mugs and Table Runner

Light in the dining room was fading so for staging pictures I draped the table runner over a chair in the foyer. I decided to include another gift. This spring I began teaching yoga and meditation regularly so this Tibetan meditation chime from another sister was particularly thoughtful.

In A Vase On Monday – Old-Fashioned Blooms

Well back to this Monday’s design, a single stem of fern-like foliage of Tanacetum vulgare (Tansy) inserted into the mug created support structure that worked well to hold the zinnias in place. As well, there is a cluster of Tansy flowers just beginning to open.

In A Vase On Monday – Old-Fashioned Blooms

The flowers look sparser from the back but I love the color of this largest zinnia.

In A Vase On Monday – Old-Fashioned Blooms

Materials
Flowers
Zinnia ‘Cut and Come Again’ (Zinnia elegant pumila), Botanical Interests. Heirloom. (packed for 2017)
Foliage
Tanacetum vulgare (Tansy)
Vase
Stoneware mug. Mary Murray, Mountain Forest Pottery, Brevard, NC.

In A Vase On Monday – Old-Fashioned Blooms

Thanks to Cathy at Rambling In The Garden for hosting and giving us an opportunity to share flower designs across the world. Visit her to discover what she and others found to place In A Vase On Monday.

In A Vase On Monday – Purple, Orange, Pod and Bark

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In A Vase On Monday – Purple, Orange, Pod and Bark

I look forward each week to joining Cathy at Rambling In The Garden, along with other garden bloggers from around the globe, in sharing an arrangement every Monday using materials collected from our gardens.

After enjoying an exciting and special time with family during the weekend, I quickly pieced together a simple Ikebana design for today. A few Asclepias plants are still blooming despite very dry conditions in the garden, but pods are forming as well. One seedpod and one flowering stem were the starting point for today’s vase.

I paired the Asclepias with a section of bark from a crape myrtle from the front garden (another storm mishap for those of you who are familiar with the history of my poor trees–this one being a particularly galling incident considering how dry it is still).

Just before photographing the vase I tucked in two sprigs of angelonia to kick up the color impact. Angelonia is a great annual for summer color.

Angelonia (Summer Snapdragon)

Materials
Flowers and Seedpod
Angelonia (Summer snapdragon)
Asclepias tuberosa (Butterfly Plant)
Bark
Lagerstroemia (Crape Myrtle)
Vase
Porcelain Ikebana vase, Georgetown Pottery, Maine. Triangle Ikebana Blue Wave (6.5 W x 6.5 L x 2H inches)

Walking down the hall toward this vase after I had already finished this post, I noticed the the design is much more engaging from the side, than from head on the way it was designed. More rhythm, more interest. If it were not so late I would be tempted to experiment from this angle, but there is always next week.

In A Vase On Monday – Purple, Orange, Pod and Bark

I will finish with an homage to our little crape myrtle out front. Until I photographed the bark I had not really noticed the little heart. I think it loves me too.

Crape Myrtle Bark

Thanks to Cathy at Rambling In The Garden for hosting each week, allowing us to share our passion. Visit her to discover what she and others found to place In A Vase On Monday.

In A Vase On Monday – Pink Florals

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In A Vase On Monday – Pink Florals

Cathy at Rambling In The Garden invites us to share an arrangement every Monday using materials collected from our gardens. After weeks of hot, dry weather there finally were rain sprinkles on the Fourth of July just as everyone was getting excited about fireworks. The rain quickly moved on that evening, hurrying north toward town. Since then there have been several other showers, none bringing much precipitation.

Indifferent to the preceding, long dry spell, Cleome hassleriana has opened in the meditation circle and throughout portions of the borders. I gathered a dozen or more stems to feature in today’s vase.

Cleome hassleriana (Spider Flower) With Liatris

Some of the flowers come out white.

Cleome hassleriana (Spider Flower)

Companions include fresh cuttings of Lathyrus latifolius (Perennial Sweet Pea) along with several clusters of Hydrangea macrophylla left over from last week.

Sweet Pea, Hydrangea and Artemisia

Lathyrus latifolius (Perennial Sweet Pea)

Soft silvery gray foliage of Artemisia ‘Powis Castle’ (Wormwood) mixes into the soft gray-green band of glaze of the stoneware pitcher.

Hydrangea and Artemisia

Materials
Flowers
Cleome hassleriana (Spider Flower)
Hydrangea macrophylla
Lathyrus latifolius (Perennial Sweet Pea)
Liatris spicata (Gayfeather)
Foliage
Artemisia ‘Powis Castle’ (Wormwood)
Vase
Stoneware pitcher glazed with bands of cream, green, blue. (pitcher and 4 cups, Pringle Pottery, North Carolina, circa 1977).

In A Vase On Monday – Pink Florals

Thanks to Cathy at Rambling In The Garden for hosting and giving us an opportunity to share flower designs across the world. Visit her to discover what she and others found to place In A Vase On Monday.

In A Vase On Monday – Vintage

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In A Vase On Monday – Vintage

Each Monday Cathy at Rambling In The Garden invites us to share an arrangement using materials collected from our gardens. Today’s vase is filled with a selection of old-fashioned flowers, all rescued from the heat on Saturday.

The starting point was a fading border of shasta daisies. The shastas were nice for a few weeks but now most are wilting in the hot sun. I have lost interest in keeping them deadheaded and watered, so picking the freshest blooms to enjoy indoors seemed a good idea.

To accompany the daisies I cut some stems of Rudbeckia laciniata (Green-Headed Coneflower), whose yellow petals are just beginning to unfold this week.

Rudbeckia laciniata (Green-Headed Coneflower)

I wish I had taken a picture at that stage. The Green-Headed Coneflower paired with the daisies made a winsome combination and I had planned to stop there. The arrangement ended up distinctly different though when I tested to see what would happen if I added some of the other flowers I had gathered, starting with Hydrangea quercifolia ‘Ruby Slippers.’

The panicles of this oakleaf hydrangea sported quite a bit of red color this summer, but without enough rain they recently began to turn brown.

Hydrangea quercifolia ‘Ruby Slippers’

Other flowers added were small clusters of Hydrangea macrophylla, Liatris spicata (purchased as ‘Alba’ yet not white after all), and some under-performing calla lilies.

Shasta Daisy and Coneflower With Addition of Liatris, Calla Lily, and Hydrangea

In A Vase On Monday – Vintage

The container for today’s arrangement is a cream-colored, crazed ceramic urn on which “Vintage 4” has been stamped. Why “4” is unclear but I like the vase’s shape.

In A Vase On Monday – Vintage

In A Vase On Monday – Vintage

Materials
Flowers
Calla Lily
Hydrangea macrophylla
Hydrangea quercifolia ‘Ruby Slippers’ (Lil’ Ruby dwarf Oakleaf Hydrangea)
Leucanthemum x superbum (Shasta Daisy)
Liatris spicata (Gayfeather)
Rudbeckia laciniata (Green-Headed Coneflower)
Verbena bonariensis (Tall Verbena)
Foliage
None
Vase
Ceramic Urn Stamped “Vintage 4”

In A Vase On Monday – Vintage

In A Vase On Monday – Vintage

Thanks to Cathy at Rambling In The Garden for hosting and giving us an opportunity to share flower designs across the world. Visit her to discover what she and others found to place In A Vase On Monday.