There is a strange thing that happens when you live near a beach – you don’t go very often after a while and there are a lot of shells around the house and in the garden.
Perhaps your beachcombing capacity reaches critical mass when your environs are full. Hmm. This is something to ponder. I had no trouble finding a few seashells to go with the Shell Ginger flower for my Monday vase. There are many more shells in the garden, however, when I look around I imagine lining the shell walkways with goddess stones (above circular disk) Then I imagine how many it would take!
Here’s a closer view
This vase has a whirling dervish vibe. The winding Fern is Asparagus Fern, this particular type of Fern used to be grown for floral arrangements around here. It escaped and is now considered an invasive plant. It is oddly thorny, so I like to get rid of it before it gets out of hand. A win win situation as I also like to use it in flower arrangements. The pink flower is a Shell Ginger (Alpinia zerumbet). White flowers are Begonia nelumbiifolia, Lotusleaf Begonia. A pink champagne bottle is a leftover from a visiting friend.
That’s all from my South Florida garden this Monday..hoping the clouds turn into rain! Visit Cathy at RamblingintheGarden to see the garden tour.
The Shrub Queen 
What an architectural treat ad triumph! I love everything about this, all the spiraling, including how the leaf from the ginger bends down, and then curls around its own stem, it seems. How did that happen??!!?? Beaches here on Lake Ontario are either very sandy or very stony…I have a lot of stones around the house and garden…
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Thanks, Chris. I bent the leaf around and tucked it in. It is soft foliage.I love Stony beaches, just not to walk on!
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Asparagus fern is actually an asparagus, but not really a fern. That is just its common name. Did you mention in the distant past that the variegated shell ginger does not bloom?
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This is a tropical ornamental Fern Asparagus setaceus. I think it is poisonous. Yes, the varigated shell ginger rarely flowers.
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The variegated shell ginger is the only one I have. I am unimpressed with it. I should look for the non variegated type while in Southern California.
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The varigated is a nice foliage accent, common summer annual in the Southeast. The green one is not well known, it really has to be sited in the right place and when happy is four feet tall and flowers three times a year. I rarely see these and bought one from a botanical garden years ago.
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Well, if it is rare there, it may not be available at all in Southern California.
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No idea?
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I did not go to the beach at Galveston too often, but I always had to gather shells. I put the ones I wasn’t going to keep in the garden. Are they helpful to plants when they break down? I’m anxious to go down to the “shore”, as we call it here, and see what I can find.
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The shells don’t really break down unless you crush them. I think they add calcium to the soil. Did you tell me you are going to Penn?
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Not sure what you are asking. The University, or the state? Anyway, I don’t think Penn has much of a landscaped campus. Swarthmore College is supposed to have a beautiful botanical garden on its campus. And of course, Penn State, my college, has an agricultural school and has recently added a botanical garden. I used to sneak into the green houses when I went there.
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Penn Medical?
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Just went there for my mammogram.
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yes, they have a trial I am interested in.
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Ohhh. We found it hard to get in. Apply soon.
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well, that is probably a good sign..
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I hope you can get good results. They are highly rated, which is why we wanted to be in their survivor program.
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Actually I have been clear about six months, they are doing a study of bone marrow and if it holds residual disease. I am not sure if I qualify but am looking into it.
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Glad to hear you are clear. I hope you qualify. Does your doctor help you get in?
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I highly doubt it! The Harvard continuum likes their own trials. I am going to call and see what they say.
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Good luck!!!
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Some lovely beach finds, Amelia, and how cleverly you have enhanced the shell ginger – you have such an artistic eye and we have probably never had a pick and plonk from you! 😉Fingers crossed for your rain!
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Thanks, Cathy we did get a little rain! I am a believer in plonking.
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But yours never look as if they have been plonked!!
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LOL, I have a secret trimming formula. I’m really a dedicated plonker.
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😀
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Love the winding/curling flow to this one, and the props match the vibe. The beach is such a relaxing place to me, if I lived there I’d drag you along for walks! 😀
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Thanks, Eliza. I need to be dragged!
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It’s all about the negative ions, a boon for your health. 🙂
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I really need to get over there!!
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Yes! 👍🏼 Read this article, esp. 3.3 and 3.4 here: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6213340/
It’ll have you dancing in the rain! 😉
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LOL! I never mind being out in the rain! thanks, I read it.
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Art in a Vase….perfect!
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Thank you, Noelle.
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A VERY artistic arrangement!
https://krispgarden.blogspot.com/2026/04/in-vase-on-monday-missing-in-action.html
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Thank you, Kris.
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Amazing! 👏👏
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Thank you!
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That is a wonderful arrangement Amelia. So elaborate yet with just a few elements. I think the bottle makes it ‘sparkle’! 😁👍 I wish I lived nearer the sea – I would walk there every day! Sometimes we imagine the wind in the trees behind our house is the sea crashing on the beach…. we in fact would have to drive for about 8 hours to get to a bit of coastline.
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Thanks,Cathy..a pink metallic bottle is worth saving!!
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Oh my goodness–every time you prepare an arrangement, you outdo yourself! I mean everything about this creation is wonderful–the structure, the colors, the vase, the plants. Thanks for sharing the beauty!
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Thank you, Beth for your wonderful comment. I was in the design business for a long, long time and warn people I have a lot of creative energy..it pops up.
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I’m catching up with posts! I’m echoing Beth’s comments. Everything about this arrangement is stunning. You have amazing creative energy 🙂
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