Here is the Spring part. I put this vase together and thought ‘wow, that really looks like a fresh spring arrangement’. The bright pink flowers with baby Boston fern fronds and some bits of cream Begonias and foliage spoke to me of new beginnings in the garden.
The pink flowers are a new beginning. They are from a Coral Vine (Antigon leptopus) on a nearby fence. This vine is native to Mexico and considered invasive in South Florida, the owners of the fence are snowbirds, winter visitors from the frozen north, and come to Florida for the winter. This vine is unapologetically immolated annually and I have never seen another one around. To the owner’s delight, I cut it back for the flowers. It started to flower just about the time the owners went back north, to my delight.
The rest of the arrangement is comprised of – in white and chartreuse, the flowers and seeds of the Sweet Begonia (Begonia odorata ‘Alba’). The foliage is my ever present Boston Fern, the new spring growth, some culinary Fennel and the variegated is from Hawaiian Snow Bush (Breynia nivosa)
And now the renovations part. Last week I had Orchid Tree branches in this vase and they lasted precisely 50 hours. The flowers wilted despite my best efforts. The buds looked promising so I plucked the offending flowers and left the budded branches to hopefully reflower. After a couple of days I figured out this was not happening. The foliage was in such good shape I cut some Heliconias with long stems and added them to the vase, here is the result.
I like this arrangement as well, it seems like the tropical version. Below is last week’s arrangement. Hopefully this one lasts longer.
The Shrub Queen 
Your pinkish spring bouquet is so lush. Fun to see what our arrangements look like a week later. It is rare to have one last that long.
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Very true, we will see how it works out!
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Lovely. I especially like the frond’s shadow.
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Thank you, that was a bit of a lighting situation that worked out.
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Both arrangements are nice. I like the strong architectural elements of the tropical one. Hope it last well for you.
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Thank you, fingers crossed, the Heliconias usually hang around for a while and palm fronds will just dry in a vase.
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It is always fascinating to hear about see blooms that I have never heard of so your arrangements are always a pleasure to see. Mind you, I am still puzzling over the ‘snow birds’ as I am unsure if you are referring to people or actual birds…which is it?
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Snow birds is American slang for people who fly south for the winter. Where I live the average temperature all winter is in the 70’s (Fahrenheit) Many people from Canada and the Northern US come to Florida for the winter and are called Snowbirds. They usually leave after Easter.
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I thought you probably meant people but I had never heard the term ‘snow bird’ before – thanks for enlightening me 🙂
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I think it is peculiar to Florida and Arizona.
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Nice arrangement! Our coral vines bloom in the fall and seem to die back in the winter. Do your bloom all year?
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Thank you, I think they are evergreen here. One year it was left but usually that particular one gets cut down every year.
The year it was left I seem to recall the flowers slowing down in winter,
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The foliage in all our vases are the stars for me, especially the architectural leaves in the tropical arrangement.
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I think it is the strong lines formed by the palm and bromeliads that leads to the arrangement feeling architectural?
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Absolutely loved this and especially the coral vine…such a beauty!
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Thank you
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I love the coral vine – how lucky that you and your neighbors arranged a suitable way to handle its invasive qualities. Your photo capturing the plants’ shadows was clever too! Thanks for the update on the Bauhinia branches – it appears that your experience was very similar to mine, meaning that cutting longer branches don’t make for longer vase-life. Oh well!
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I agree, I have rarely seen a Coral Vine. I think the Bauhinias are for dinner party arrangements only, had high hopes for buds alas, they shriveled.
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Pink and white are so gorgeous in spring, how great to be able to make use of an invasive plant, the Coral vine is really pretty. I like the wispy fennel foliage with it too. The Heliconia makes such a elegant vase with the palm fan, Amelia.
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That’s a beaut! and those pink spring flowers are lovely.
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Thank you, the fence will soon be covered.
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I love coral vine, how amazing to think of such a lovely thing as being invasive. Such a pretty, fresh arrangement. I love the palm and helicona too, very elegant.
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Liz, thank you, it is good to hear from you. I think the locals overreact to invasives. That is the only Coral Vine for miles around and it doesn’t consistently get pruned.
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Such a shame the Orchid Tree flowers didn’t last. The new version looks lovely too though, and the first vase is very appealing and quite dramatic with that long fern leaf and the silhouette on the wall behind it.
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