greentapestry : October 2017

Monday 16 October 2017

In A Vase On Monday ~ 'Last Of The Summer Wine'


Yesterday was a such balmy gentle day marked with some decent spells of sunshine. If you weren't aware of where we are up to on the calendar pages you may well have thought it was a summer day. I enjoyed pottering about in the garden for a good part of the day and picked my flowers for 'In A Vase On Monday', knowing that it would be payback time weather wise today. This morning's leaden sky has given way to blue skies, but it is getting windier by the moment as the remnants ex-hurricane Ophelia nears. We also had a most spooky red sun pierce through the leaden grey sky this morning. Apparently the colour is due to the winds dragging in both dust from the Sahara and debris from forest fires in Spain and Portugal. Here as readers from the U.K. will know today marks the anniversary of the Great Storm of 1987which fortunately didn't do much damage in the north of England but had absolutely devastating effects in the south. My sister has memories of probably the most frightening night of her life at home with just her son to keep her company. He was a mere ten days old at the time. Anyway the Great Storm is another story so for now back to this week's floral gatherings.

In my vase (rescued from Mum's kitchen cupboard) are :
  • 'Blush Noisette' roses. This is a climbing rose which I purchased as a bare -root plant in 2009. I had seen it flower in a rose garden the year before but still could not envisage the parcel of twigs that arrived in the post ever morphing into such beauty. I'm pleased to report that they did. The main flush of flowers is in the summer but it does repeat. At the moment there are quite a few stems bearing still to open buds. Their fate will obviously depend on the weather over the next few weeks.  
  • Some sprigs of mentha suaveolens or apple mint, which like the rose is subtly but oh so deliciously scented. It's a hardy perennial which disappears underground in the winter. It makes for a good container plant either on its own or with friends.
  • Some cosmos bippinatus 'Pysche White' flowers. I saw this cosmos in flower on one of the stands at the Malvern Autum Show last year and made a note of its name then. The flowers are beautiful but are really not suited for cutting as the stems are on the short side. If I grow it next year it will be just to look at and for the bees who really enjoy this plant. 
  • The blue is scutellaria incana also known as skullcap which is a late flowering perennial. It does self seed a bit but not to a nuisance extent. It also seems to be in flower for quite some time. I must make a note of its flowering period next year.
Well I'm off to see what  delights our hostess Cathy from 'Rambling In The Garden' is featuring in her vase today. Do have a look if you haven't already.

Monday 9 October 2017

In A Vase On Monday ~ Latecomer


A lightening snip and plonk for 'In A Vase On Monday' as I'm catching up with all sorts after a week's holiday. For some reason dahlia 'Bacardi' has only just come into flower and was a most welcome surprise when we returned home late yesterday afternoon. A note has been made to get the tuber planted in the ground next year rather than leave it in a pot. It has probably not had as much room as it would have liked so not surprisingly has been sulking. There are also a few sprigs of plecanthrus argentatus flowers in the milk bottle vase. This late flowering tender perennial came to me by way of one of my allotment neighbours last year. Unlike the dahlia it makes an excellent container plant and also has most attractive silvery foliage.

Thanks as always to Cathy over at 'Rambling In The Garden' for hosting. I'm looking forward to seeing what is residing in other vases this week.