Tag Archives: nature photography

In A Vase On Monday – Fragrant Pair

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

Recently I identified a peony that has been perplexing me. When it bloomed for the first time several years ago I expected to see the dark red flower of Paeonia lactiflora ‘Black Beauty’ (Nightlife Peony). A rich pink double bloom, lovely in its own right, greeted me instead.

The plant, I believe, turned out to be Paeonia ‘Madame Emile Debatene,’ hybridized by Dessert-Doriat in 1927. I cut this and several other peonies in bud and have been storing them in the refrigerator for a couple of weeks. Today this one appeared eager to make its way out of cold storage and into the world.

Paeonia ‘Madame Emile Debatene’

The peony is paired with a branch of gardenia, laden with promising buds.

In A Vase On Monday – Fragrant Pair

Materials

Paeonia x ‘Madame Emile Debatene’
Gardenia jasminoides

Vase
Porcelain Ikebana vase, Georgetown Pottery, Maine. Rectangle Blue Zen (6.75L x 3.75W x 2H inches)

Thanks to Cathy at Rambling In The Garden for hosting and giving us a chance to express our flower arranging passion. Visit her to discover what she and others found this week in their gardens to place In A Vase On Monday.

In A Vase On Monday – Oakleaf And Verbena

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In A Vase On Monday – Oakleaf And Verbena

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

As the garden transitions toward summer Verbena bonariensis orchestrates the views, diverting the gaze away from peonies past their prime, directing attention to newly unfolding scenes in the borders.

Verbena bonariensis (Tall Verbena)

In today’s vase the verbena appears to leap above everything else, demanding attention. The intended focus of today’s arrangement, Hydrangea quercifolia ‘Ruby Slippers,’ needs more time to develop before it can fully command the vase.

Hydrangea quercifolia ‘Ruby Slippers’ (Lil’ Ruby dwarf Oakleaf Hydrangea)

Husker Red penstemon is in the early stages of bloom in many spots around the garden.

Penstemon digitalis ‘Husker Red’ (Beardtongue)

Pink achillea, gaura and a sprig of lavender foliage fill out the design.

Materials

Achillea filipendulina (Fern-leaf Yarrow)
Gaura lindheimeri ‘Passionate Blush’ (Butterfly Gaura)
Hydrangea quercifolia ‘Ruby Slippers’ (Lil’ Ruby dwarf Oakleaf Hydrangea)
Lavandula x intermedia ‘Dutch’ (Dutch Lavender)
Penstemon digitalis ‘Husker Red’ (Beardtongue)
Verbena bonariensis (Tall Verbena)

Vase
Hand painted Fenton Glass Vase – USA

In A Vase On Monday – Oakleaf And Verbena

Wordless Wednesday—Pikes Peak Purple

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Penstemon ‘Pikes Peak Purple’ (Beard-tongue)
Deep purple in the shade

Penstemon ‘Pikes Peak Purple’ (Beard-tongue)

In A Vase On Monday – Peony Pink

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In A Vase on Monday – Peony Pink

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

Today’s vase features a flower advertised by the nursery as Paeonia lactiflora ‘Black Beauty’ (Nightlife Peony). As it lacks the deep rich color burgundy color of the promise, I usually just refer to it as a pink peony.

Lovely in its own right, it stands alone in a crystal bud vase received as a wedding gift (40 years ago this June).

The flower has a slight tinge of brown on one edge, a testament to having survived stormy winds, rains and plunging temperatures the past week.

In A Vase on Monday – Peony Pink

Materials
Paeonia (Peony)
Crystal bud vase

In A Vase on Monday – Peony Pink

Wordless Wednesday—Golden

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Coreopsis

In A Vase On Monday – Fluff and Majesty

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In A Vase On Monday – Fluff And Majesty

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

Today’s vase title comes from a flower description I happened upon by the late garden writer Henry Mitchell.

The fattest and most scrumptious of all flowers, a rare fusion of fluff and majesty, the peony is now coming into bloom.

Paeonia ‘Festiva Maxima’ opened last week and it easily lives up to that characterization. I knew it would find a place of honor in this week’s design.

Paeonia ‘Festiva Maxima’

Another majestic flower, regal and dramatic, is a black-bud-opening-to-dark-purple ruffled iris, a wonderful pass-along from a former neighbor.

Iris germanica (Tall bearded iris) and Paeonia ‘Festiva Maxima’

Less dramatic than the darker iris, the yellow iris is also a pass-along, circa 1976, and was brought from my former garden to this one in 2001. The older irises in my collection are more demure and understated.

Iris germanica (Tall bearded iris)

Baptisia ‘Purple Smoke’ which grows along the Southern side path is having an exceptional year.

Baptisia ‘Purple Smoke’

Its smoky lavender hue is echoed in the speckled portion of the iris falls, just under the beard.

In A Vase On Monday – Fluff And Majesty

Drifts of Verbena bonariensis are starting to accent the borders. In the vase today it adds height and reinforces the color theme.

Verbena bonariensis (Tall Verbena)

The arrangement was designed with the peony facing the front. I like the subtle change to the arrangement brought by rotating the vase slightly so the peony is viewed more to the side.