The Fourth of July marks the birth of American Independence from Great Britain in 1776. Usually the general public celebrates with loud fireworks and mass picnics in public parks. Many of these events have been cancelled due to Covid concerns. My greyhounds are blissfully happy (with no idea why) about no booming fireworks.
The holiday is on Saturday this week. My vase is celebrating the holiday in patriotic colors reflecting the heat in the garden with red and orange flowers. The vase is from the UK – a teapot in Blue Willow. There is even a Firecracker Plant in the vase (Russelia equisetiformis)
I have been gardening in the mornings, the end of June signals the end of tolerable weather outdoors. July and August are listed as our worst weather months despite Hurricane season peaking September 10. After over 20 inches of rain the first couple of weeks of June, the spigot got turned off and I have plants frying in the heat. Slightly windy and 90 degrees Fahrenheit will burn many plants. Surprisingly, I need to water some very tough Bromeliads later this afternoon ( and check on the irrigation)
Another view:
And closer:
The weeping red flowers are Firecracker Plant (Russelia equisetiformis); red spikes Tropical Red Salvia (Salvia coccinea); red and yellow daisies – Gallardia (Gallardia pulchella); the orange flower, Mexican Bush Honeysuckle (Justicia spicigera); grey foliage is from Licorice Plant (Helichrysum petiolare) – I can’t smell the Licorice…and a leftover Guzmania Bromeliad from last week.
Happy Gardening to all and Happy Fourth to those who celebrate it.
Thank you to Cathy at http://www.ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com for hosting this weekly event. To see more vases follow the link.
The Shrub Queen 
A great 4th of July selection. I can almost copy it with the same flowers. We are the same heat wise and I can only garden for a short time in the morning. My beds will soon turn into jungles.
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20″ of rain in just two weeks – good grief! What is your average annual rainfall then? Our average is just under 30″…! It must be very restricting for you being too hot to garden comfortably for a couple of months…What a sizzling vase you have provided for your celebrations though, very much a reflection of the season ahead, and your blue and white teapot tries its hardest to cool it down a bit!
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I looked it up – 59 inches of rain annually is the average. It is not unusual to get 7 inches with a tropical storm, but that was an unusual amount. We are sizzling along with the vase!!
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Typically 7″ in a storm? My goodness, where does it all go? Or is the ground so parched that much of it is absorbed? Would you get localised flooding?
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7 inches for a tropical storm, in the summer during hurricane season. I spent a few years working with civil engineers so our house is near the highest point in east Florida..localized flooding is common and many streets are designed to flood during big storm events. I do not think this is a good idea and bought on high ground.
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Always interesting to hear about local weather conditions. Our local town is built next to a river flood plain and increasingly developers are pushing to build on it, with flood amelioration touches like electrical sockets higher up the walls…as you say, better not to build on the flood plain in the first place
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Nice one! I like the drape of the Russelia and the Justicia looks like a burst of fireworks – perfect arrangement for the upcoming holiday! Hope yours remains blissfully quiet. 🙂
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Thanks, Eliza. Quiet is good, spending the evening with a terrified dog, not so much.
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It takes me a few to find everything. Mexican bush honeysuckle took me a bit longer this time. I really am not familiar with it.
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The Honeysuckle is not terribly common though Automatic grows it in Houston.
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The only honeysuckles I know are Lonicera, and there are only a few species of it, with bland bloom. I happen to like the fragrance of Hall’s Japanese honeysuckle, but of course, the bloom is not much to look at.
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I grew up with that kind of Honeysuckle..a weed.
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Most who are familiar with it agree. I like it anyway, although I would not recommend it for someone else’s garden, or grow it at work. I will grow a small bit at my home garden, but cut it back very aggressively annually.
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It does smell good, my mother called it Japanese Revenge.
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I really love the weeping Firecracker flowers… a good image of how you must be wilting in that awful heat and hot wind. 😉 Love the fact that you used an English teapot for an Independence Day vase!
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Thanks, we are wilting and so are the plants..I love that teapot.
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I adore that Russelia and it really does create a firework effect. Your arrangement does create a celebratory effect. And the Justicia is fabulous too. Enjoy your holiday.
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Thanks, Liz. I’ll be dreaming of your roses…
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You did a great job of marrying red, white and blue in anticipation of the holiday, Amelia. The holiday didn’t even occur to me when I prepared my vases but then we’ve been listening to a never-ending barrage of fireworks, mostly of the illegal variety, since shortly before Memorial Day so we’re fed up with the holiday already, although it’s not done with us. In the “old days” my husband and I used to host a dessert and drinks gathering to watch the fireworks over the Los Angeles harbor and South Bay as we can literally view dozens of displays, some legal and many not, from our backyard. But of course that’s off the table to begin with…I hope you, your husband and the greyhounds enjoy a quiet 4th. My husband is half-deaf and I think the cat may be as well but unfortunately I’m not. I should’ve purchased ear-plugs.
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I wish I had some ear plugs too Kris. I don’t enjoy fireworks very much. Hopefully my neighbors go elsewhere.
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The Firecracker Plant is a standout in this arrangement. All perfect for the upcoming holiday. Happy 4th.
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Thanks, you, too.
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