Monday, July 20, 2015

Monday Vase: the Cottage Look

monday vase meme, small sunny garden
Today's vase is more of a rustic affair than usual, being composed mostly of greenery from shrubs.  Pomegranate and two other very drought-tolerant types - Leucophyllum frutescens and Convolvulus cneorum - combine to make a mostly leafy arrangement.  Some stems of Perovskia and a flower from the Leucophyllum, which is blooming nicely just now, add a purply note.
monday vase meme, small sunny garden, amy myers ceramics
I've always felt that my white glaze over stoneware made for a rustic effect, and this chunky pot seemed just right for the material today.

Pomegranate foliage is plentiful; in fact, I really should do a complete pruning overhaul of what has become an overgrown shrub rather than a tree.  So I had no compunction adding a few of its stems to the vase.  Likewise with the Convolvulus, which is acting more like an octopus than a shrub.  This, despite the fact it is still in its original nursery pot awaiting decent planting conditions!  (For those of you who remember, this the "Clarence" of an earlier post.  Coming along nicely.)

I love the Convolvulus foliage.  Its soft, hairy leaves are distinctly silver, elongated, gently rounded to the tip.  White flowers are said to come in spring and summer, but Clarence has not bloomed so far.  If the growth habit is good, I think I would be willing to grow this one for the foliage alone.
monday vase meme, small sunny garden
Leucophyllum (variety unknown, but I think I can safely say this is L. frutescens, probably "Compacta") is a happy choice for a hot climate.  It is blooming merrily away, but most of the flowers are fairly deep inside, so only one ended up in the vase.  It also has softly rounded foliage, greener than the Convolvulus, and without the soft hairs.  It is being used as an accent at the top corner of the south bed, and after a slow start it is growing rapidly.  It supplied the trumpet flower in the top photograph.

The Perovskia, despite my complaints in my last post, is blooming fairly well and supplied a cluster of its little filagree flowers to the mix.  It is seen here next to a Leucophyllum branch.
monday vase meme, small sunny garden
The blue flowers to the front, the silver foliage to the back...
monday vase meme, small sunny garden
Happily linking to the Monday Vase meme with Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.

Happy Monday!
monday vase meme, small sunny garden
Weather Diary: Fair; High: 100 F (38 C)/Low: 82 F (28 C)
We had a significant amount of rain last Saturday, and the humidity is still high while temperatures are down.  This is great for the plants though I can't say it's much more comfortable to me!  But the garden is looking fresher.

8 comments:

  1. Another of your gorgeous pots, Amy - love the shape of this one and the glaze too. I didn't recognise any of the contents today (oh, perhaps the perovskia although I haven't grown it) - your tactile convolvulus leaves are nothing like the annual convolvulus and the thuggish bindweed we get in the UK and I can't imagine pomegranates could be grown here. It shows how effective foliage is in a vase though, particularly offset by the white glaze - lovely! Thanks for sharing

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    1. Thank you, Cathy - so glad you like this! I enjoyed bringing this pot out and using it :)
      I noticed myself that I had a more exotic mix in this 'simple' arrangement than in many I've done. I think the shrubs - since durability is a priority - show the character of the climate even more than the perennials. So two of these are Mediterranean and one, the Leucophyllum, is a native of west Texas... All this to make a 'cottagey' look ;-)

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  2. I love this pot too and it is indeed ideal for a rustic arrangement. The soft and silvery Convolvulus foliage is lovely in this display and I would also be tempted to grow it for the foliage alone - I can never find enough foliage to add to my arrangements, hence have not joined in with this meme for a while ....

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    1. Thanks so much, Ann! I'm very pleased that the shrubs are getting just large enough to spare me a little foliage. Some I still don't want to cut into, but it's easier to find foliage now than it was four months ago... So glad you enjoyed the pot too :)

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  3. Amy the greenery is wonderful in this white pottery...and then the subtle purples just make it so serene like a cottage garden.

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    1. Thanks a lot, Donna! The different components fell into place for this one. I agree - the touch of purple gave it that cottage feel :)

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  4. Your glazed white pot is wonderful, Amy. My silver Convolvulus blooms only sporadically and it still isn't vigorous after 1 year in my garden - I'm not sure what it wants that it's not getting. (We'll have to see if our recent rain has an effect.)

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    1. Hopefully it will be happy with all the rain, Kris! I would certainly expect it to thrive in your garden, given that it's native to the Mediterranean coast. Mine is too new to know; it wilted daily when I first brought it home, but it's begun to grow in all directions (except up!) under the shade of our patio roof.

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