Tag Archives: Nature

In a Vase on Monday: Floating (Away)

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After all the rain (and sleet and snow) we have had this winter our garden is saturated and parts of the garden are very squelchy. The trees will hopefully appreciate it although there is standing water all over the place, and we even have a little stream in one spot!

It therefore seems appropriate to show some flowers floating today. Thankfully the flower beds are on high ground and are not in danger of floating away, with well-drained soil helping considerably. 😉

 

But the Hellebores do float so nicely and I managed to find quite a few different ones to display.

Labels have been lost on many, and several apparently different varieties look identical to me, but I am happy to have these unnamed specimens on my table nonetheless. I do know that the yellow one is ‘Yellow Lady’, the others probably include Ice ‘n’ Roses Early Red and Early Rose, Penny’s Pink, Double Ellen, Carlotta and Noa.

This is undoubtedly one of the best ways to see the detail of each individual bloom, and my large footed Ikea trifle dish that I have had for years is ideal for it. (It has never had a trifle in it which I suppose should be remedied one day!)

My current favourite is the lovely double in the centre…

Which type of hellebore do you like best? Single or double? Pink, red or white? Or even yellow?

Many thanks to Cathy at Rambling in the Garden for hosting this lovely meme. Do visit her to admire her beautiful hellebores today too!

And have a wonderful flowery week!

 

In a Vase on Monday: Summer in October

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Well another week of warm, sunny weather has passed and we have been basking in it; soaking up all that vitamin D and happiness the sun brings with it, and watching the garden go on blooming as if there is no winter approaching. Bliss!

October 31st? Yes! 😃

As a result of this mild and sunny month, I have a rather odd mix of flowers to share in my vase today. Odd in a very positive way, I must add.

As you can see above, a large pink cosmos has made a late appearance, possibly the ‘Double Click Cranberries’ which turned out to be single from last year. Then there is a blue Scabiosa, some pink Gypsophila which I thought had died in the summer, some pink Salvia (‘Icing Sugar’) and a blue Geranium…. and is that white flower on the left an anemone?  No, a Hellebore!

In the middle of the the three mini vases you can see a pink aster and my one and only reliable Chrysanthemum ‘Anastasia’. She comes back bigger and better each year, while others barely produce a single flower. I think I might try and take cuttings from her next year.

And on the right, more Geraniums (the pale pink one is ‘Apple Blossom’), a white Japanese Anemone, some purple sage and Aster ‘Ezo Murasaki’.

The temperature was 21°C yesterday (Sunday), but is forecast to slowly drop this week down to 7°C on Saturday. Oh well, it was a wonderful month and the garden needs a rest now, so November can come.

How was your October?

As usual, many thanks to Cathy at Rambling in the Garden, who had the ingenious idea one November to share a vase of things from her garden and has since invited us to do the same every Monday. 😃

Have a great week, and happy gardening!

🍁☀️🍁

 

In a Vase on Monday: Pink Serenade

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Anemone ‘Serenade’ is flowering, so before it gets spoilt by the rain (Ha Ha! Note the sarcasm!) I picked a couple of them for today’s vase.

I decided to stay with the pink theme. Pink vase, pink Scabiosa, pink Cosmos and pink Knapweed.

Along with the Knapweed, the only thing growing in the open ‘grass’ is the Queen Anne’s Lace, so I added some of that and some Calamagrostis, Deschampsia and Stipa.

 

The upturned log I have placed the vase on is cracking and will probably fall apart soon, but it has made the yard look rustic over the past two years. 😃

I am linking in to Cathy at Rambling in the Garden. Cathy invites us to join her in sharing a vase of flowers from in or around our gardens each Monday. So pop over for an idea of what is flowering around the globe. 😃

Have a good week, and if you are waiting for rain I do hope you see some.

☔️😃☔️

In a Vase on Monday: There’s No Smoke Without Fire

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I was busy today, and left it rather late in the day to find something for my Monday vase so that I could join Cathy at Rambling in the Garden. But I was determined to cut some flowers! even though it is hot. And windy. And dry. There have been warnings for forest fires in our region for a couple of weeks now so as I rounded the corner of the house and saw smoke I was somehow not surprised, but also rather afraid. It was only about a kilometre away from us, with a lot of dry woodland between us…

No sooner had I called my Man of Many Talents than we heard sirens in all directions. Nonetheless he got his emergency watering vehicle ready just in case; a trailer with 600 liters of water, a pump and a fireman’s hose, hooked up to his ATV. Thankfully the excitement was soon over, and the smoke subsided. Phew! I don’t need that sort of excitement too often! Only ten days ago a freshly harvested wheat field went up in smoke, a little farther away from us. Local farmers assisted with putting the fire out… they all have their tanks filled with water at the ready.

I still wanted to cut some flowers, but my thoughts had turned from sunshine and shade to fire and smoke! I cut lots of Heliopsis ‘Sommersonne’ as originally intended, but it is accompanied by the remains of the single flower on my young Smoke Bush (Cotinus coggygria) and some Euphorbias, which are the only plants that seem entirely happy in the extremely dry Sunshine Bed right now.

The sunflower vase is a summer favourite. 😃

 The wind has died down for now, but it has scorched and frazzled a lot of plants. Still, we had cucumbers, tomatoes, zucchini and garlic from our own garden yesterday, so I mustn’t grumble! 😉

Have a great week and stay cool!

😎🍉🍹