Category Archives: flower arrangements

In a Vase on Monday – Flames, Pie and Lady Di

The sun finally reappeared over the weekend. I spent Saturday and Sunday morning in the garden, drinking in solar energy and clearing out wanton vegetation and debris. There has been a lot of wind and rain this winter that has left behind soggy branches, leaves and overgrown weedy degenerates. I managed to find some jewels amongst the wanton and weedy in the garden and put together a vase.

The Flame is ‘White Flame’ Salvia, the Pie is Pie Crust Croton and Lady Di is the cultivar of the Heliconia in the vase. The vase is an olive oil jar inherited from my mother. She was a drizzler.

More on the plants:

Red and yellow flowers are “Lady Di” Heliconias (Heliconia psittacorum); white spikes are “White Flame” Salvia; variegated leaves (note the rolled edges) are Pie Crust Croton (Codieum variegatum); Asparagus fern adds the greenery. I have been using a lot of Pie Crust Croton lately as it is overgrown and needs pruning!

At the base of the arrangement is a pair of aptly named Coral Plants (Jatropha multifida). A weird and interesting novelty plant that grows in a narrow place in my front garden.

Here’s hoping everyone sees sunshine this week! To see what other gardeners are up to and view more vases visit Cathy’s blog.

In a Vase on Monday – Prayer for Sun

The past few weeks have been so un-Floridalike and dreary I went in search of a “spring wildflower bouquet” to cheer things up. Fortunately, with the dreary comes the precipitation and that brings salvia, lots of salvia. The Tropical Red Salvia is having a banner year, so I have flowers in almost all possible colors – just missing the neon orange version, though I rarely see that color. The backdrop for the vase is a Prayer Plant, as in, praying for blue skies and sunshine!

The vase is a repurposed olive oil bottle. One of those upgraded olive oils for drizzling that I usually forget about until it goes rancid and it turns up as a vase on Monday. I have four different salvias in the vase – White Flame and Mystic Spires in blue and white, along the white and coral versions of Tropical Red Salvia (Salvia coccinea); a few Bidens alba white daisies for a wildflower touch. The foliage is a twist of Mammy Croton and Asian Sword Ferns. The Prayer Plant is a Pink Star, that has seemingly lost its pink. A neighbor gave me this plant last Christmas and I am still amazed I haven’t killed it – just made it silver.

That is all from overcast South Florida. I will be wishing on a Pink Star for a reprieve in the clouds and hope everyone is staying warm and enjoying winter garden introspection.

To find more vases, go to Cathy’s page at ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com

In a Vase on Monday – Bromo-Seltzer

If there was ever a cure for winter garden blahs, it’s finding a few bromeliads in bloom. Bromo-Seltzer was actually widely considered a hangover cure and was sold in the US until the mid 70s, when it was determined to be poisonous (sort of). I have this feeling my father took it and then moved over to Alka-Seltzer.

It has been grey, overcast and rainy for most of the past week. We have had to wear pants (gasp!), long sleeves and the occasional sweatshirt. The true native Floridians have broken out down jackets (it’s 65F). I finally got out in the garden to do some pruning this morning and stumbled over these beauties. The rain has given many plants a growth spurt and they are growing when they usually don’t, requiring more pruning.

The cast of the cure:

Some call these the tulips of South Florida. They usually bloom a bit later, similar to early tulips. These seem more like fruity drumstick candy for Barbie to me. They are Quesnelia testudo bromeliads, the foliage has such sharp tips I would be hesitant to plant any more.

Purple flowers are Portea ‘Candy’ bromeliads; the foliage behind them is Aechmea blanchetiana, showing winter coloration (foliage is usually chartreuse). Green foliage is from Asparagus Fern (Asparagus aethiopicus). This is considered invasive here and I find them once in a blue moon. The vase was a gift from my brother. It is heavy enough to hold these weighty flowers.

Hoping for blue skies and fair weather.

Thanks to Cathy for hosting this weekly meme. Visit her at http://ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com for links to vases from other gardeners around the world.

In a Vase on Monday – Cheers to 2024

I decided some fireworks from the garden and a quote were necessary to celebrate this first Monday of 2024. Having read dozens of quotes, I chose the one that made me laugh. I like Irish blessings and this is my favorite. My temple bells from last week have reappeared to assist ringing in the New Year.

“As you slide down the banister of life, may the splinters never point the wrong way”

I feel like I ran over a few splinters last year, so hopefully this will ease any future damage.

The oversized wine glass assisting the toast was a gift from a dear friend – the back side says ‘Girlfriends are Forever’.

The floral fireworks:

The orange flower front and center is a ‘Choconiana’ Heliconia (Heliconia psittacorum); ephemeral pink grasses at back are Muhly Grass (Muhlenbergia capallaris); purple fuzzies are from Red Velvet Aerva (Aerva sanguinolenta); yellow daisies are Beach Sunflowers (Helianthus debilis); white daisies are Bidens alba.

Orange tubular flowers are Firebush (Hamelia patens); red flowers are ‘Maui Red’ Ixora. There are a few ‘White Flame’ and ‘Mystic Spires’ Salvia lurking in the glass.

Thanks to Cathy for hosting IAVOM for all these years. Follow the link to visit Cathy’s blog and view more vases. http://ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com

It’s surprising how many flowers can be stuffed into a wine glass.

Cheers to 2024!!

In a Vase on Monday – Christmas Bells

A little vase from my garden to celebrate Christmas. Here’s to bells ringing in a peaceful holiday season and much gardening success!

The bells are a strong holiday memory for me. As a child, the bells were always at my eye level hung from a wreath of cedar branches and Burfordii holly berries created by my mother. I was fascinated by them as Indian temple bells were not a common sight in the Deep South in the 1960s. My father brought the bells back from India, where he was stationed during World War II.

A closer view:

The red flowers are from the China Hat shrub (Holmskioldia sanguinea) – another native of India; white flowers are White Flame Salvia; a few stems of Boston Fern (Nephrolepis exaltata) complete the vase.

Thanks to Cathy for hosting this Christmas day. Follow the link to visit her blog and see more vases ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com

Merry Christmas to all!!

In a Vase on Monday – Catching the Christmas Bus

Last week we caught up on our holiday tasks. Cards were mailed – Happy Holidays cards in case they did not make it in time for Christmas. Holiday baking is almost complete, treats for Fiona the greyhound, Christmas nuts and cheese cookies for snacks have been baked and my husband smoked two kinds of pork. A wreath was made and hung on the front door, a Christmas tree found and decorated – the one remaining holiday tradition has now been attended to…the bus.

This is the seventh appearance of the IAVOM holiday shortbread bus. A client of my husband’s brought a tin of shortbread from the UK, we ate every cookie and then it was filled with flowers for the holidays. Again and again.

This years bus details:

Varigated foliage is from ‘Java White’ Copperleaf (Acalypha wilkesiana); grey “rose” is Graptosedum succulent; red berries are from the evil invasive, Brazilian Pepper (Schinus terebinthifilia); small bell shaped flowers are Firecracker Plant (Russelia equisetum); red flowers are Nodding Hibiscus (Malvaviscus arboreum).

White spikes are Tropical Red Salvia (Salvia coccinea); white banded foliage is from ‘Bossa Nova’ Bromeliad (Neoregelia ‘Bossa Nova’)

Whew! I am ready to relax, have a snack and enjoy some peace on earth and good will towards men. I hope the world finds both.

Happy Holidays to all and thank you to Cathy at http://ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com for hosting this weekly meme. Follow the link to see more vases.

In a Vase on Monday – Chasing Christmas

Suddenly it is about two weeks until Christmas. How did that happen? Cards have not been sent and I probably have missed the opportunity to buy a live Christmas tree. Sigh. Well, I will check and see if I can get a crunchy, nearly free tree this week. I am still indulging my distaste for fake plants, Christmas trees included. Tree lots are set up in baking South Florida parking lots in December that are not conducive to live plants of any kind. I am seriously considering making a bromeliad cutting Christmas tree.

I have managed to unearth a bit of holiday cheer in the form of a Christmas gift I received long ago from my mother. The holiday chocolate pot. She gave me this the year my husband and I moved to the suburbs of Atlanta. Seemingly (from her perspective) I was going to morph into a 1950s housewife and invite the neighbor ladies in for holiday hot chocolate and cookies (there are matching mugs). This is the first time the chocolate pot has ever been used. I think my mother would have approved its use as a vase.

The plant palette:

Red flowers draping over the side are Nodding Hibiscus (Malvaviscus arboreus); berries are from the native Firebush (Igiveupon properbotanicalname) – these are beginning stage berries, they eventually form juicy black fruit the birds love.

Chartreuse foliage is from Golden Dewdrop (Duranta repens); white spikes are ‘White Flame’ Salvia; red and yellow flowers are ‘Lady Di’ Heliconias (Heliconia psittacorum); foliage is from ‘Mammey’ Croton (Codieum varigatum).

Thanks to Cathy at http://ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com for hosting this weekly garden meme. Follow the link to see more vases.

Happy Holidays from South Florida.

In a Vase on Monday – Palm Fruit Pie

I was joking about the pie and then it occurred to me that there probably is such a thing as palm fruit pie. It would involve dates and I have mixed feelings about dates – although, apple and date pie sounds promising.

Further explanation seems necessary. The red fruit in this vase is from the Adonidia Palm. The foliage is from a Pie Crust Croton. While these palm fruits are edible, to the best of my knowledge, the only creature that would enjoy a pie from this fruit is below:

Meet the Iguana, an invasive reptile that lurks in gardens throughout South Florida. Some think they are cute, I am not so sure. I am sure that they eat palm fruit, I have seen them enjoying it while basking in the palm tree. This is not the one that appears in my garden, he or she is chartreuse green with purple markings.

Back to the vase contents:

The yellow flowers are Esperanza, Yellow Elder or Yellow Bells, botanically Tecoma stans. These are subject to a native plant dilemma. They were once considered native to Florida and now are not as it seems a sea captain brought them to Key West a few hundred years ago from the Caribbean. These are amazingly hardy in my garden and reportedly invasive, although I see no evidence of that.

The rest of the plant palette: red fruit, Adonidia Palm (Veitchia merrillii); tubular red flowers, Firecracker Plant (Russelia equisetifolium); varigated foliage, Piecrust Croton (Codiaeum variegatum); a few sprigs of native Boston Fern (Nephrolepis exaltata) grace the back. The vase is an old florist container.

That’s all from my garden this Monday. Thanks to Cathy at http://ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com for hosting. Follow the link to see more vases. I’ll be thinking about pie!

In a Vase on Monday – November Candy

November in South Florida brings some sweet and unusual treats to the garden. When living further north I doubt I could have dreamed of finding something like this in flower this time of year. Actually, I am not sure I could have dreamed up the flower at all!

The purple flowers in the vase are ‘Candy’ Portea Bromeliads. I’m thinking they resemble Good & Plenty licorice candies, just not quite the right color. This is a good one to cut as for unknown reasons it flowers on the backside of the plant and can barely be seen. A pair of loppers accessorized with a suit of armor is a good ensemble for cutting these as the foliage is very sharp. The older I get, the less appreciation for thorns I have.

After some puzzling and tromping through the slightly storm ravaged garden (we had 50 mph wind gusts and I had not realized the volume of branches down, a task for another day) Here are the components of the vase:

Fan shaped foliage in the back is a trimmed frond of Cabbage Palm (Palmetto sabal); pink flowers are courtesy of the storm, Rain Lilies (Zephyranthes spp.); purple flowers are ‘Candy’ Portea Bromeliads; foliage is from Asparagus Fern (Asparagus sprengeri).

Dark purple foliage is Purple Queen (Setcreasea pallida) – I have a feeling some botanists changed this name, but am getting over it. The grey roses are Graptosedum succulents.

That’s all from my garden this week. I will be planting tomatoes and herbs I started from seed this week and starting seed for a few new varieties of cut flowers. And picking up branches.

Thanks to Cathy for hosting. Please follow the link to visit her blog and see more vases: http://ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com

In a Vase on Monday – Anniversary Challenge

In celebration of the tenth anniversary of IAVOM, a challenge was issued by Cathy – to use a wacky container as a vase. Of course, I looked in my closet and came up with a pair of cowboy boots. I tried a pointe ballet slipper first, but was unable to overcome the shape of the shoe. It is a bit of a balancing act to persuade flowers (I use the term loosely here) to stay in a cowboy boot. The structural arrangements involve a rock, packing tissue and a plastic cup of water – and a bit of a lean towards the wall as these are probably 30 year old boots and I have a tendency towards overpronating and the boots are slanted from wear. The grey “flowers” are kind of crunchy and shatter on impact, so careful placement and balancing is essential. One hit the floor by Fiona the greyhound, who was quite startled and is consciously avoiding the boot now.

Given the container, I decided on a western themed plant palette, succulents and hot colors.

The grey “flowers” are the succulent Graptosedum and I added a few sprigs of another type of sedum, I am not sure which one. Burgundy foliage is a ‘Fireball’ Neoregelia Bromeliad pup; orange and red flowers are the dried flowers of Aechmea rubens Bromeliad. There are a few sprigs of Muscadine grapevine in the back of the arrangement.

Another view:

My thanks go to Cathy for all these years of hosting In a Vase on Monday. I enjoy starting my week with vases of flowers from all over the world and sharing ideas with other gardeners. It is fascinating to me what others grow in their gardens and why.

Follow this link to visit Cathy and see the wacky 10 Year Anniversary vases..http://ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com