So far, June has been oddly cool. I could cheerfully have tea in the garden. Me being me, I decided to arrange some flowers reflecting the form of the teapot. Design school is a lifelong curse. Where else would these ideas come from?
The teapot is vintage 1950. The year my parents married and one of their wedding gifts. My mother always used it to brew the basis for sweet iced tea, a beverage that is a Southern staple. The tea stained patina on this teapot makes me smile. I remember this teapot as a constant companion to family dinners. I am terrible about not making iced tea, even though I enjoy it.
The closer and more complicated view. While Southern sweet tea is pretty simple water, sugar, tea, and mint and lemon on the side, if you like..there is a lot of stuff in this vase.
The big, pink flower is a ZinMaster zinnia. White flowers are Sweet Begonias (Begonia odorata ‘Alba’). Blue flowers are Plumbago, likely Plumbago auriculata ‘Blue Imperial’, or just darker than usual. Purple flowers are the wonderfully scented Heliotrope. There are a few Mystic Blue Salvia and Juba Bush (Iresine diffusa) above the zinnia and a trimmed palm frond provides a green backdrop. It has a delicious, sweet fragrance from the Heliotrope, Begonias and Juba Bush
Thank you to Cathy at RamblingintheGarden for hosting this weekly meme and bringing gardeners together to see what is blooming where. Follow the link to see more vases.
The Shrub Queen 
So pretty! That pop of pink really is a nice touch. I love iced tea in the summer, but mine is sweetened with honey. I make it in a quart mason jar at breakfast, let it steep and it is ready to drink a few hours later when I’m thirsty for it. 🙂
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A great idea, our local honey is so good. I just saw the root beer Iris and I remember them, too bad they don’t have that scent! For some WP reason I’m not getting a comment box??
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Oh, yikes, WP gremlins at work again! Not sure why, perhaps log out and back in again?? I am getting other’s comments. I wonder if anyone else is having similar problems?
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Seems to be working today? go figure
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You certainly made good use of the teapot. I like your use of the palm frond.
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So pretty. What a beautifully blue plumbago.
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It makes me think of how funny some of those flowers would taste as tea. sorry. Plumbago is so much prettier from someone else’s garden.
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To answer your question: Yes, please! Lovely combination of elements, including the tea pot.
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All of us at IAVOM are benefiting from your Design School curse, as you thrill us week after week with your vases, Amelia! Today, everything works together beautifully and is balanced in both shape and colour. As it often is, the trimmed fern leaf sets the whole vase off perfectly
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Thank you, Cathy. What a wonderful compliment.
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I wish I had your kind of success with Plumbagos, Ame!
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You must be joking. I don’t even know where these things came from!
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I have enjoyed this week’s lovely design, with the clear colours and the story of your parents’ teapot.
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Thank you. Noelle.
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The first thing I thought of when I saw your teapot full of gorgeous flowers was a hat… you know, the sort that ladies used to wear when visiting friends for tea (matched with lacy white gloves of course) in the 1950s! You have done your Mum’s teapot proud Amelia. Love it! (Especially that amazing zinnia!)
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It would be a great hat! That would be a challenge to arrange.
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Now that would be a good challenge for Cathy to give us when her next In a Vase on Monday anniversary comes round! 😂
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