As I mentioned in a
recent post, it has seemed a little surprising to have sunflowers blooming in April. And now chrysanthemums!
At any rate, there was no question what the contents of today's vase would be. I didn't want to miss the opportunity to feature these two together in a vase. In springtime.
This chrysanthemum was an unnamed box store purchase last autumn when it was in full bloom. After resting through winter, it is now putting out a new burst of flowers. I expected to treat it as an annual, which it may yet be once summer takes hold. But in the meantime, it is looking lush and setting quite a few buds. I'm not pinching them; I'd rather let it get through a cycle of bloom at its own speed before the weather turns irreversibly hot.
Individual flowers are a bit ragged, as well they may be, given the near-gale force winds we have been having. Not to complain, they have blown cooler air back into the region!
The sunflowers are from a packet of "Cutting Gold" seeds. They are thriving despite a recent aphid attack. So far I am able to control the aphids by hosing the plants down. It probably doesn't help to have a healthy ant colony nearby!
But, in fact, the sunflowers seem to be supporting a good deal of small garden life. I had to remove a miniscule bee and a large spider from kitchen sink to garden after bringing the first sunflower in. For the second, there was the wasp I slid onto the blades of my pruning shears and transferred to another sunflower. I think everything was holding on hard to any shelter from the winds. But there are limits as to what one wants indoors. I preferred to just have flowers!
Chrysanthemums and sunflowers combined with Artemisia "Powis Castle"...
...whose silver foliage filled out the bouquet. I used my handthrown stoneware vase with narrow neck and textured shoulder for today's flowers.
So although I'm not sure what the usual bloom times of these flowers may be here, I'm enjoying a little burst of near-autumn in April.
To see what other gardeners are finding to put in vases on this last Monday in April, do check Cathy's post at
Rambling in the Garden.
Weather Diary: Fair and breezy; High: 79 F (26 C)/Low: 66 F (19 C)
The peach colored sunflower is so pretty, and matches well with the Chrysanthemums, Amy. The thrown vase is great, I would have trouble throwing such a long narrow neck.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Hannah! I really enjoyed pairing the sunflowers and chrysanthemums. Throwing long necks is a challenge, isn't it?! With my stoneware clay it's partly just a question of keeping the top section of clay fresh and dry enough during throwing... difficult as it's a robust clay that requires quite a few pulls to thin the walls!
DeleteWow...autumn in the springtime. The desert does magical things!
ReplyDeleteCrazy place, the desert... and definitely magical!
Deletea real autumn feel to your spring vase! I love the rather rustic nature of it.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Ann - I did too... ;-)
DeleteIsn't it strange to have such a combination in April - definitely a good idea to showcase them together whilst you have the chance! I have a number of sunflower seedlings potted on but they are not quite ready to be planted out although I am already looking forward to seeing them in flower! In the meantime, thanks for sharing yours!
ReplyDeleteThis was one result of your meme, Cathy :) Last year I so enjoyed seeing other gardeners' vases with sunflowers that I was anxious to try them myself. I'm wishing now that I'd gotten more sunflower seeds and done some succession sowing... that will have to be for next year! Everything is still so experimental here: learning which flowers will grow and when they bloom (!) so I only try one thing at a time... Looking forward to seeing yours, no doubt more in season!
DeleteThat combination is so unexpected - but effective! I thought the blooms here were a bit off this year but you have us beat!
ReplyDeleteSunflowers were described by one author as one of the few good summer-blooming annuals in this region...?! I can only hope they will last that long. I would blame it all on my crazy sowing time if your self-sown seedling hadn't done the same ;-) Definitely I wanted to seize the opportunity to pair these two!
DeleteSome April sunshine, thank you.
ReplyDeleteGlad you enjoyed it - should work well for a grey day... ;-)
DeleteYour weather must be mixed up too to produce a sunflower in April! It may be out of sync with the seasons, but it is nonethelss beautiful!
ReplyDeleteI'm so enjoying them at present, Cathy! And maybe they'll be healthier now than they would in the heat of summer, though I was counting on them to supply a bit bright colour later. The best laid plans... ;-)
DeleteI really love this arrangement and those sunflowers are just beautiful! Of course the vase is stunning too and it all goes together so well! Well done.
ReplyDelete- Kate xx
So glad you enjoyed this, Kate - it was such a fun one to do! The sunflowers allowed me to work a good deal larger in scale (and use the larger vase!), which was nice. Thanks so much :)
Delete