Floating Summer Flowers

Tying in with my post from Saturday, I moved the blooms from the delicate teacups I featured into a clear bowl. I placed them on the gravel pathway for this photo, but they've been sitting on a table on the back porch for a few days and holding their own.

There's something about floating flowers that seems enchanting, no matter the vessel.

So I'm submitting this simple follow-up post for "In a Vase on Monday," hosted by Cathy at Rambling in the Garden. Check out her blog for more vase ideas from around the world. Thanks to Cathy for hosting!

A Vase Full of Warm Colors

It's time for "In a Vase on Monday," the meme hosted by Cathy at Rambling in the Garden. I'd intended to use pink and purple and other cool-colored blooms, but the first-blooming Gladiolas were a warm red. This called for warm companion elements. The photo above shows the selections.

As mentioned, these Glads (Gladiolus grandiflora hybrids) are dramatic. They're the first I've cut for the season. They're healthy, and full, and ready for display.

I used three large Hosta leaves to frame the bouquet.



Next, I added False Sunflowers (Heliopsis helianthoides) as accents throughout the arrangement.



And ivory Asiatic Lillies (Lilium asiatica) added grace and structure.



While most of the Zinnias (Z. elegans) currently blooming in the garden are cool colors, there were a few warm ones, including this large 'State Fair Mix' red bloom: a nice companion to the Gladiolas.

Also, I included some 'Zowie' Yellow Flame Zinnias, full of bright, warm colors.



Finally, graceful 'Invincibelle Lace' Hydrangea (H. arborescens subsp. radiata) blooms added elegance and more structure. 

Tee hee: Notice how tall the Gladiolas are? I'll have to clip the stems every few days as the blooms on the bottom fade.

Thanks to Cathy for hosting In a Vase on Monday! Head on over to her blog to see more vase arrangements from around the blogosphere.

Garden Miscellany in a Vase on Monday

Here we are at the start of July, and the garden is full of choices for vases. Just on a whim, I toured around and grabbed elements that caught my eye. They're not necessarily elements I'd usually pot together, but they seem to work.



The Lily hybrids (Lilium spp.) are beginning to bloom, including this magenta one that serves as an anchor for the arrangement.



The ivory Lilies are great fillers, and oh so healthy.



I added several foliage items. The mixed Calla Lilies (Zantedeschia spp.) are finished blooming for now, but the foliage is great for framing potted arrangements.



I inserted an Ostrich Fern (Matteuccia struthiopteris) branch, but it didn't last long--I guess they aren't the best for cut arrangements. It worked for a few hours.



Also, a pot of Polka Dot Plant (Hypoestes phyllostachya) needed thinning and complimented the Calla Lily foliage, so the cut branches were perfect for the arrangement.



Hosta flowers are budding and beginning to bloom: I think this might just be my favorite stage with this genus.



Drumstick Alliums (A. sphaerocephalon) are dotting the potager garden, and I picked one for a quick focal point in the arrangement. Maybe I'll add a couple more on the sides.



False Sunflowers (Heliopsis helianthoides) add a golden touch and tie in some of the brighter elements.



Purple Coneflowers (Echinacea purpurea), a pollinator favorite, are just starting their months-long display.



And, finally, 'Zowie! Yellow Flame' Zinnias (Z. elegans) carry over the bright gold and reddish highlights from some of the other blooms.

In different light and minus the fern frond...I expect this little composite will last a few days and brighten its little corner.

I'm linking in with Cathy's In a Vase on Monday meme over at Rambling in the Garden. Head on over to see some amazing arrangements.

Simple Summertime Vases

I'm tardy in joining in the "Vase on Monday" meme. July has been crazy, but I've managed to snap a few photos of simple combinations, from the beginning of the month to the end.

I often plop deadheaded snips, and bits and pieces in vases during the growing season, and this month is no different.



My handy kitty litter bucket filled with a couple inches of water in the bottom is a great, cheap tool for gathering the remains of the day. This first group was from the beginning of July. It included unnamed Asiatic lilies (Lilium spp.), Hosta stems, Bugbane (Actea racemosa), Drumstick Alliums (A. sphaerocephalon), and Weigela (W. florida) foliage.



I had a bag of glass gems, so I added them to the bottom of a glass pitcher--for a little visual interest and to help hold the stems in place.



I also added criss-crossed tape at the top of the pitcher for support.



I knew the foliage and flowers would cover the tape.



Next, I plopped deadheaded 'Zowie! Yellow Flame' Zinnias (Zinnia elegans) in a very simple vase with deadheaded Coneflowers (Echinacea purpurea), 'May Night' Salvias (S. sylvestris), a small stem of 'Supertunia Vista Bubblegum'
Petunias (P. hybrid), a little sprig of purple Angelonia (A. hybrid), and more Drumstick Alliums. Some of these flowers had flopped over due to gardener mishaps and the effects of the elements.



Finally, I recently rescued the 'Stargazer' Lilies (Lilium orientalis) before the rabbits could eat them. I clipped off the tops of two very tall stems of Blue Vervain (Verbena hastata) and added Hydrangea foliage for more green. The Hydrangeas were a little droopy, but later recovered.



'Stargazer' is so dreamy and has a very long vase life. Plus, the scent is incredible!



Summertime is a great opportunity to use deadheaded blooms and dribs and drabs of plant material in floral arrangements. Even if you're pressed for time, if you keep it simple, it won't be overwhelming, and it's better than throwing all the lovelies in the compost pile--that can wait until they're spent.



Check out the "In a Vase on Monday" meme over at Rambling in the Garden for smiles and floral arranging inspiration. Thanks to Cathy for hosting!

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.)