Hello you gals! I just lurk-ed and thought I'd better stop and say how nice the flowers/gardens/arrangements are! I might put in my two cents when the time is right!
Good thread!
Sue
Flowers from yard to vase
Oops, another blonde lapse. Told you I don't know what I am doing. Now I guess I am forced to go cut them and do something splendid since I put them all on the wrong thread! I'll see what can be done about this!
Do you think the dahlias would dry nicely? Perhaps I will try a couple.
Dianne, I think we called them something like devils something or other but the name escapes me at the moment.
Oh, I went to my 2002 journal and found a photo, we call it Lucifer!
Thanks Dianne, the 'handle' just came about by accident, but I thought it added a bit more interest so kept it!
Hi Sue, yes we love this thread, it's nice to 'arrange' in a vase what is available from the garden/yard!
Looking forward to seeing your vases and flowers of course!
Candee, I imagine the Dahlia would dry nicely, but I haven't tried.
Lucifer is a variety of crocosmia! It's a much fuller flower than the one I have in the garden. I think that I may have lucifer at the lottie.
Looking forward to seeing what you put all your flowers in, no oasis here. LoL!
Warning ... the picture is a bit fuzzy, ok Candee!
Thanks for the warning Terri, I would have thought I was already tipsy! LOL
And after racking my brain and doing research you tell me they are two different species - go figure?
Here is a plant that I rarely see anywhere - Francoa ramosa. I got it from a friend over 10 years ago. It has very SLOWLY spread. I have about 5-6 plants now, in two spots. Mostly shady with a little sun. Sorry the picture is a little fuzzy. It is not a plant that shouts out "look at me" but it does entices you to come closer and take a look. Leaves form a rosette at the bottom, with flower stalks about 2-3 feet tall.
here's a closeup of the flower
And in a vase. I did not want to cut the leaves from the plant, so I took some leaves from the japanese anenome instead.
Dianne it looks great in the vase alone, one of those that does not stand out but looks great alone.
Is anyone else having trouble with the threads today, or is it my computer? Several times I've posted and it has gone! or won't load.
Dianne,They are lovely delicate flowers simply and elegantly arranged! like the way you curved the leaves around the neck of the bottle.
Thanks for the close up, it's a very pretty flower. The bottle is a great idea.
I hope you all are happy, I had to get the wheelbarrow to carry these humongous petals and make an arrangement. Kinda oriental I think but believe I used the yellow dahlia, while hibiscus, orange and pink lilies, just as planned LOL!
Agree Terri, and Dianne it is a great display and probably a good year! What is that vase of presentation?
You would not believe what I used for the base of this arrangement, but I do thank my mother. Never thought I would have a use for this pewter but I was wrong.
I'm happy! especially when there are lovely arrangements to look at.
Better late than never, and well worth the wait. It does look oriental, with the twigs and the size of the flowers, your hibiscus must be some giant flower, it's enormous! Nicely planned LoL!
What is the base? or shouldn't I ask.....
Sorry you had to collect them with a wheelbarrow, you deseve a drink!
Nice flowers again gals! I pruned the federation Daisy this arvy!
In the garden
In the vase
Oh Sue they are very cherry, nice job of pruning, I need you to come prune over here please.
Terri the base is first an antique pewter candy dish with the glass insert removed. Then inside that is an old pewter ashtray. The astray has the cigarette holders coming out the side in two spots that just hold it to the edge of the candy dish. The cigarette holder also has a slot on the side that would have been used to hold a pack of cigarettes. So now imagine that and here is how I made it work. A tiny frog in the candy dish as there was just enough space not covered by the "floating" ashtray. Into that frog I inserted the pink lily. The huge hibiscus is just floating in the water in the ashtray. The slot that is raised on the side of the ashtray was just the right size for a piece of oasis and into that is stuck the orange lily and dahlia. The corkscrew is stuck in another tiny frog that is also down inside the candy dish!
Brilliant I tell you LOL! Took me the entire day to think of how I could present these!
Candee - glad you took the time to do the arrangement. Very ingenious. That is the largest hibiscus I have ever seen. I took the simple way out - the bottle that I used above as a vase is a bottle of Chivas that a guest gave us a quite few years ago. Don't remember how the 21-year-old scotch tasted like, but I knew that I wanted that bottle (I think it is ceramic) for a vase. I love that shade of blue.
Sue - I have never heard of Federation Daisy before, but after seeing your pictures, that is something that I would definitely consider growing for cut flowers. How long does the blooms last? These are the exchanges that I was hoping for when I started this thread. To get exposed to new possibilities. My ultimate goal is to have plants flowering throughout the year so that I can have at least 52 arrangements - or at least the option of having 52 arrangements since sometimes I get lazy and don't cut anything even if there are flowers available.
Nice flowers and vase Sue! They daisy looks a bit like the Bellis daisy we get here.
Candee, great effort and brilliant thinking! I was wondering how you would get the heavy stems to stand up!
Dianne, I don't have blooms all 52wks, but. it sounds like a great idea, think I'll start working on it for this winter!
I never did find the name for the Federation daisy, as thats what name they're marketed under here. I googled it once, but couldn't find anything connected. Its the last month of winter here, but I am in a milder climate (5-25 degrees celcius, or 40-80 degrees farenheit) and they have flowered on and off all the last 12 months. I have to cut the flowers to keep the bush compact, or it goes leggy, with foliage at the ends and woody stems below. So I let it flush in flower, and as they start to fade, cut it all back (saving the flowers for the vase) and it comes back pretty much right away, and even gives me another, sparser flush of blooms. I cut sprigs all year for other arrangements, and that also keeps the bush in shape.
I don't quite understand the zones yet, are you in California Soilsandup? What are your min/max temps in winter?
Thanks for your compliments. Dianne if you think that hibiscus is huge wait till to see the dinnerplate dahlia I took a photo of yesterday.
You are all very fortunate to be in zones that you can consider arranging all 52 weeks. In another couple months I'll be here admiring them, so keep them coming. Long about September I start digging and storing and the flowers in the stores are just way too expensive here.
Nice chivas bottle Sue, do you run a bed and breakfast? That's a nice gift to receive!
I did a search in the DG database and that federation daisy looks a bit like this one?
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/56228/
There are plenty more, if that isn't it. Could always post it on the ID forum, they ID this stuff very quickly and accurately.
Sue - we have relatively mild winters - highs 50-60 F, lows around 38 F. We get maybe 10 days of freezing temps of around 32 degrees. Once in a while, it will dip down to 22 (-5 celcius). However, in 1991 or 1992, we had an extended period of below freezing temperatures and about 90% of the plants at my house died. The house was fully landscaped when we bought it, and even though I did not like what was there (generic green scrubs) I did not have the heart to dig them out. But, once they died, I was able to plant to my heart's content all the flowering plants that I wanted. I have about 8 weeks where there isn't much blooming, but I am working on that.
Candee - what you found sounds like what Sue has. It does have a long blooming period, and is tolerant of frost so it is a good autumn/winter flowering plant here in my zone too. And the chivas bottle is mines (though Sue can borrow it anytime LoL). I work at the University at Davis, and we often get visitors from other countries visiting our department who generously bear gifts.
Oh, what a great way to meet new people Dianne and to receive gifts like that as well!
I have purple loosetrife and dark pink scabious flowering....
Here's the arrangement.
The double sided vase can be placed somewhere where both sides are viewed!
Inside are hollyhocks.
As you can see, I'm experimenting with my clear vases!
Terri - I was wondering what the pinkish-purplish flowers were in your homemade ice cream concoction at the cafe. Now I know it is purple loose strife. And I have never seen a dark pink scabosia - just the blue ones. Learnt 2 new things today! Clear vases are neat to play around with and your arrangement is lovely.
What a great idea Terri, I always thought my clear vases were boring, but now I might have a go at dressing them up. I love your loosetrife, but the name "scabious" sounds terrible!
That daisy looks exactlylike mine. They come in all different shades of pink and white and purple I think!
I was a bit confused about the Chivas, but it's all good now!
So soilsandup, your climate isn't too different from mine, just a bit cooler. When do you get your rainy season?
Sue
Hi ladies! All I can say is I am sooooo envious of your gardens and arrrangements. Everything is just beautiful in here. Haven't had much time for fun lately, but it's been nice looking at your pictures. Thank you!
Lana
HHHHHeeeeeeeeeellllllllllllllooooooooooooo Karma df. Nice to see you, hope you will have some free time to play sometime this summer!
Thankyou all for the lovely comments! Love seeing everyones ideas, and learning about the best cut flowers.
Sue - our rainy season is in Jan/Feb/Mar - we are classified as having Mediterranean type climate. Dry summer, rain in winter.
Karma - nice of you to join us on this thread.
And, one of my favorite flowers is in bloom now - Amaryllis belladonna - also known as naked lady. I remember this flower from my childhood days as they thrive in many areas because they do not require any summer water.
And here it is in a vase. The sturdy long stem makes it a great cut flower, though over time, the stalks will droop a bit. I did not have good lighting, but using the flash makes the color looked washed out, so I opted for fuzzy.
Hey there terri! Gorgeous soils! I'm a big fan of yours.
And finally, a close up of the bloom. The fragrance is wonderful - not overwhelming or too flowerly, but nice and subtle. I got the bulk of my bulbs from a neighbor across the street who was selling their house. Because these plants lose their leaves in the spring and don't green up until after the blooming period in August (hence the common name - naked lady) and she did not want dead plants in her yard for the open house, she dug them all up and planted "presentable" plants in those spots. She left two huge bags of bulbs in my front doorstep and I have been giving them away freely when I thin out my patches. I have them in shade and sun to spread out the blooming period.
Dianne, those naked ladies are beautiful and so you say scented lightly as well. So nice of your neighbor to need them removed LOl! Worked out great for you and they are pretty in your arrangement.
Karma, great to have you drop in. Now remember all work and no play... you know what they say - I hope, I have forgotten!!!
Terri, like what you have done with the clear vase. I have several and have tried to spice them up but nothing as lovely as yours. I agree with Sue, I have some but just never liked the name scabiosa (sounds like something that needs picking LOL)!
Thanks, Candee.
And Karma, a fan?????? Never had a fan before. LoL. that is so sweet of you to say.
Oh I love this thread, just never know what beautiful flowers will be next LoL!
Another stunning arrangement Dianne, thanks so much! I'm a fan of yours too.
Thanks Candee, I agree, horrible name, makes me ichy thinking about it!
Hi Karma!
Well you got fans now Dianne! I just love seeing everyone's gardens. Each with its own style and unique species.
I have an unusual one as well. Have you ever seen the dracuncula vulgaris that I grow? Not sure if I have posted them before or not? They are of a slightly foul odor, the flies love them, but a gorgeous presentation. Nothing you would want in an arrangement though.
Here is a link to many pics of them in my garden in the Spring if you care to take a peek.
http://hhcreations.com/Dracuncula.htm
Thanks for the greetings. I finally have time to play. Here is a picture of my hydrangeas at the height of the blooming season. I've had a hard time cutting anything as my garden (mostly in containers) is only a year old.
Here they are in a vase at the end of their season. I used mostly "blushing bride" (the ones on the right in the above pic) and a touch of "limelight" hydrangeas. They feel almost papery and look really artificial. . .great for drying!
