The snow we had over the weekend has melted, but more is due later today… just in time for the start of Advent and the Christmas Markets. I always think Advent is celebrated so nicely here in Bavaria with the markets and with people putting up lights in their gardens and hanging wreaths on their doors. Advent wreaths for the table, with four candles – one for each Sunday in Advent – are also really popular and are on sale everywhere.
The garden season is winding down, with the last tasks completed just before the snow arrived; mulching tender plants, putting garden equipment away, and tucking my pots up tight against the barn wall in case of snow ‘avalanches’ falling from the roof. So, although it was bright and sunny yesterday, I opted for a vase that would reflect the fact that the garden is now resting.
I have been adding to this vase since the spring, and it has been waiting for its moment of glory on In a Vase on Monday. 😃
The fluffy round seedheads are Pulsatilla, gathered late spring. It was a gamble whether they would remain intact, and some did in fact disintegrate, but I must have picked and dried these specimens at just the right time. I love the tall, dark and rather dramatic Siberian Iris seedheads.. There are still a few standing in the garden. And I managed to save some poppy seedheads too – they often get bent in the wind or burnt by the sun, but these were picked fairly early and hung upside down in the cellar for a few months.
On the right is some Calamagrostis and Pennisetum. I find that the grasses last better if picked just as they are starting to ‘flower’. On the left is a golden sprig of Stipa gigantea. (Have they changed that name?) The dried pink flowers in the photo above are Helichrysum’Silvery Rose’.
And tucked into the vase on the right you can see some little white flowers which I dried successfully for the first time this year; Anaphalis triplinervis ‘Silberregen’ (Silver Rain). Again, these are best picked early if you intend to dry them, just as the tiny flowers are starting to show their golden centre.
Do you dry any flowers or grasses from your garden?
Do visit our hostess, Cathy, at Rambling in the Garden to see her vase today. We had a lovely zoom meeting yesterday with her and some of the other contributors to this Monday meme – I feel very self-conscious on zoom, but really enjoyed seeing your friendly faces again and hearing about your gardening experiences. ❣️A big thank you to Cathy for organizing it, and to Karen for her slideshow. 🤗
Finally, a reminder that my Week of Flowers 2023 will begin on Friday 1st December. Please join me in posting a photo or two each day for a week, to brighten up this dark time of year. Hope to see you then!
Words and Herbs 