I used to dread the words ‘Wintry Mix’ on the weather reports. It meant freezing rain mixed with other frozen precipitation. A cold and damp experience usually followed by slippery, frozen walkways. I am liking the Florida version of Wintry Mix from my garden much better than the weather kind.
The colors seem like a mad mix, purple, coral, charteuse, pink, white and blue with a bit of vegetably burgundy and gold metallic berries for good measure. The vase is a Dansk candle holder from the 1970’s that long ago lost its partner.
The centerpiece in the arrangement is a Lilac Emperor Zinnia, the other purple flowers are Tampa Verbena (Glandularia tampensis); peach flowers are from Tropical Red Salvia (Salvia coccinea); small white flowers are from White Plumbago (Plumbago scandens); white daisy flowers are Spanish Needles (Bidens alba) a cheerful, rampant, annoying wildflower.
Flowers in the background are Blueberry Flax (Dianella), the foliage is from Alabama Sunset Coleus (pink and chartruese) and some sort of Red Mustard (the burgundy leaf). Gold berries are painted fruit from the Gumbo Limbo (Bursera simaruba) tree. There was a bigger surprise than gold fruit under the tree earlier in the week.
Glancing out my window I spied – to my surprise, a White Heron stalking something under the Gumbo Limbo tree. I watched as he or she marched over and plucked a small snake off a branch and flew away!
The Shrub Queen 
I love your title. Unfortunately, we can still get wintery mix here. It’s really cool to have a snake eater in your front yard.
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Thank you, wintry mix must shut Houston down. I think the Heron ate a baby Black Racer, good snake. Thought of you -the rabbits found my lettuce and demolished it.
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Sorry about your lettuce. I have a 3 foot tall planter I use now. I’m working on a post of my lettuce harvest.
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Also, I never kill a snake…just chase the Copperheads away.
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Is that really a tree name? Gumbo Limbo sounds like a dance. You pulling our leg Queen?
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Gumbo Limbo is real and a native tree,we are at the northern end of its range. The other common name is Tourist Tree because the bark is reddish and peels like sunburned -uh= tourists.
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This wintery mix is much nicer than the kind we can get up here. What a nice combination. How exciting to see such a beautiful white bird in your garden.
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Thanks,Peter. Herons are rare visitors. I see them from time to time.
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Yes, that’s a preferable ‘wintry mix’ in anyone’s books, I think, and a lovely vase for mid December. I had to smile at the ‘cheerful, rampant, annoying wildflower’ as the statement says such a lot and the bidens does make a very useful contribution to the vase. The ‘vase’ must have been designed for a very chunky candle and it looks very similar to something I have which I bought as a hyacinth glass, altough perhaps it really was a candle holder too.
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It does look like a Hyacinth vase and is difficult to find a candle that fits! The Bidens drive me crazy.
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😁
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I like your version of wintry mix better than the one we had last night– lashing rain, snow and sleet. At least it is above freezing now, melting away the remnants.
I like that giant lawn ornament you had there, free pest control, too!
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Your “wintry mix” and mine appear similar, at least in terms of color. (I can’t grow zinnias this time of year.) After a decent start, rain is on hold again here but there’s still room to believe that El Nino may come through yet. Great photo of the heron! That’s not a bird we see often here.
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Kris going to see your colors..The Herons are around but usually in the water (1/4 mile away)
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When I see the last photo, I remembered the spring here with lot of flowers, birds and squirrels. You have a beautiful garden and I like your version of wintry mix. Maybe it’ll be more beautiful with some blue roses. Just a thought I had. Have a wonderful Christmas.
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Thank you, the next plant over from the Heron is a Blue Plumbago, no roses here.
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That zinnia sure makes a statement. As does that heron!
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Yes, I think they like each other.
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Gorgeous flowers but they don’t look very wintery. Fabulous jewel colours.
I thought the white heron was a garden ornament for a minute. Gumbo Limbo tree? Really? Or did you make that up? It sounds like something Edward Lear would have come up with.
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Just looked up Edward Lear, probably not him. We are on the northern edge of the Gumbo Limbo hardiness – I expect someone in the Caribbean named it. I need to do a post about this tree, a great super tolerant native shade tree (used in drugstore parking lots!)
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I thought the pink flower was cosmos at first. It doesn’t look so wintry really, well – to me anyway! The berries do suggest winter though. What a nice surprise to see the heron!
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Can’t grow Zinnias in summer here. Cosmos I have yet to figure out.Things seem to produce berries normally here. Happy Holidays!
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