Remember the Sunflowers

In the middle of winter, I'll come back to this post.

The Sunflowers in my part of the world were so strikingly beautiful and lush this year ... for several weeks in late August through mid-September. I don't remember this being the case in past years, but maybe I just wasn't as observant then.



Most are faded now, but for several weeks the bright yellows of these giants were favored nectaring stops for monarch butterflies and other pollinators. During several hikes in the area, I came across Maximilian or Prairie Sunflowers (Helianthus maximiliani), with prominent bracts behind the flowers and nearly toothless leaves; the very similar Sawtooth Sunflowers (H. grosseserratus), which have slightly more serrated leaves and a hairless stem; Giant Sunflowers (H. giganteus), with dark brown anther appendages on the flowers, and Jerusalem Artichokes (H. tuberosus), with their broader and more textured leaves.

I've included just a few images here. I went a little overboard: If you want to see more, you can click on any image and browse through, or you can visit my Flickr feed.

I'm linking this post to Gail's Wildflower Wednesday meme over at Clay and Limestone. Thanks for hosting, Gail!

Cheap Tricks and Silly Solutions

When wicked winds bend your stems and critters gnaw new seedlings, do you finish what they started ... clip the tops or trash the plants, and move on?

Wooden skewers, electrical tape, and floral tape.

Or do you break out some cheap tools and see if you can save the plants, the flowers, and the new growth?



Sometimes it's worth applying a little tender loving care, right? And if you're lucky (and there's still enough life flowing through), you'll see this:



And this:



And this:



And this:



(Of course, deadheading an established plant and spent blooms are entirely different matters.)

A September bucket of plenty

The colors of September are vibrant and full of life. I feel blessed at this time of year as I harvest buckets of plenty--flowers from the garden for fresh floral bouquets.

I was on flower duty at church this weekend, which gave me an opportunity to share some of the bounty with others. I collected Hosta flowers and foliage, Zinnias, Cosmos, Black-Eyed Susans, Coleus flowers and foliage, Hydrangea foliage, and Sedums.

But I still needed a statement bloom with a little more drama.



Voila! I noticed Sunflowers at my local grocer: At $5 per five-pack, I couldn't resist!

We're fortunate at our church to have a workroom in the back for decorations and floral arranging. It's not the best staging environment for photography, but it's certainly bright enough to show you how everything came together.



First, I picked a large vase for the center statement bouquet, and two smaller complimentary vases.



The flowers from my garden came together in two accent bouquets. Simple, but colorful and graceful.



I thought it would be fun and whimsical to combine the sun-loving, drought-tolerant Sunflowers with a large branch of moisture-craving Hydrangea foliage. But something was still missing...



Fortunately, fellow floral arrangers had saved some dried accent elements in the workroom. I added some to the Sunflower bouquet, which gave it a fuller, transitional, summer-to-fall kind of look.

Again, very simple, but it worked for this purpose. Frankly, the flowers--in all their beauty--do most of the work for me. All it takes is a little imagination.

Arranging flowers and other garden elements is one of my favorite things to do during the fall. I'm linking this post to three memes: In a Vase on Monday, Seasonal Celebrations, and Dear Friend and Gardener. Check out these great memes for September garden inspiration!

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Coming soon: The Garden Lessons Learned and Seasonal Celebrations wrap-ups. Donna and I would be pleased to have you join us! Please share a post, or your thoughts, about lessons from the past season and how you enjoy celebrating the next season. Many people cover both in the same post. To join in, click here to leave a comment with a link to your post. We'll share the wrap-ups at the equinox. Cheers!