Just a very brief post today to show off my first Gordonia flower.
As you can see, the plant is very young, standing only around one-foot in height. When mature, the tree will be ten to fifteen feet tall, so it has a way to go yet.
You will also notice how soggy the first flower is that my Gordonia has grown – it’s raining – again! We have had so much rain lately that I couldn’t even pick flowers to share yesterday for Cathy’s weekly In a Vase on Monday, which was rather disappointing.
I am, however, thrilled to bits to see my first Gordonia flower! It is also known as “the fried egg plant”, as the flowers always drop right-side-up, giving the appearance of a fried egg. Aren’t they clever little flowers? 💕
During the past week I had often thought there would be no hope of salvaging enough floral matter – or anything worthy of display – to contribute to Cathy at Rambling in the Garden’s In a Vase on Monday this week.
The rain has been constant, every single day, and I have watched my garden from the window during constant battering’s of torrential rain accompanied by strong wind gusts.
Yesterday afternoon, however, there was a break in the rain. I dashed out into the garden to take photos of a couple of plants that didn’t look too bad to share today, thinking today’s contribution would be a post entitled something along the lines of “what could have been”, if only the weather had been kinder.
But low-and-behold, today we have sun! After having 57 ml. of rain yesterday, and around 95% to 100% humidity every day for the past week, today the humidity has dropped down into the fifty-percent range, but the day is warm, reaching 27 degrees Celsius.
I waited until the middle of the day before collecting any flowers to give the petals an opportunity to dry out a bit. I know that isn’t the recommended practice, but after the sodden mess some of the plants were in yesterday, I thought it best to wait. I had noticed yesterday that the lavender and salvias weren’t looking too much the worse for wear after the week that was, so snipped a couple for a vase. They are “old” favourites, and always look pretty in a vase.
As I paused to admire the Aloe “Pink Fairy”, which has just begun to flower – and survived the deluge of rain very well – it occurred to me that they might look pretty with the lavender and salvias. That’s my “new” addition to the vase.
Don’t they look lovely? I don’t think the little buds have fully opened, considering the tiny bell shaped flowers at the lower part of the stem and the closed buds above, so it will be interesting to see if they open now they are indoors.
The last Hydrangea flower on one of my bushes looked too lonely to be left alone, so it had to join the vase as well. Surprisingly, I have two “new” hydrangea buds on this plant, so will keep watching them to see if they fully develop at this time of year.
I remembered when Cathy displayed her vase last week, she noted that daylight savings had just begun in the U.K, so added an old watch as a prop. Here in Australia, we turned back our clocks this weekend just gone and are now on regular Eastern Standard Time time again, so this week, my prop is my Grandfather’s fob watch. He passed away in 1946, in England. In 1951, when my parents emigrated to Australia, Dad brought his father’s watch with him. Now, the watch belongs to me, and although it no longer works it is a possession I treasure as it was once owned by my Grandfather, who I never met.
So in acknowledgement of the end of daylight savings, I am adding my Grandfather’s “old” fob watch.
Thank you for the inspiration to add my “old” fob watch to this week’s vase post, Cathy. And as always, thank you for hosting In a Vase on Monday. ❤
There were times this morning when I thought I may have to forego my contribution to Cathy’s In A Vase On Monday this week. We have had several days of rain, and I know from past experience that with the amount of rain we’ve had, flowers need time to dry out. They look rather droopy and frazzled otherwise.
This is the scene I was met with when I reached the pink Gerberas. With heads laden with raindrops and drooping towards the ground, they otherwise looked okay … ish! I thought I’d pick them all, and see how they faired when taken inside the house and left to dry out for the day.
A very lovely Jude the Obscure rose tempted me; however, with that amount of water on her petals, I know that Jude would not be any happier indoors.
Likewise, Desdemona appears fresh and beautiful now the weather has cooled slightly, but she needs to dry before she can visit a vase indoors.
By later this afternoon, the Gerberas were beginning to dry off. Their petals are not as perfect as I have seen them in the past, but given their appearance this morning, they look much happier now.
Even the back off the Gerbera flowers are rather attractive!
Today, I gained a new appreciation for IAVOM contributors who manage to arrange a single species of flowers in a vase successfully. Who knew how difficult it would be!
When the pink Gerberas flopped to the side of the “vases” I knew I needed more flowers to hold them in place, so dashed outside again to grab a few red flowers.
A great advantage of Gerberas, however, is how photogenic these beauties are, when photographed individually. ❤
So my contribution this week to In a Vase on Monday, albeit late in the day – and using imperfect flowers – was once again an enjoyable challenge! 🙂
We had 15 mm of rain – 0.6 of an inch – yesterday, and so far today we have had double that. The temperature has dropped substantially as well, today reaching only 23 degrees Celsius – or 73 Fahrenheit.
Finally, it feels like autumn is in the air!
The wet garden looked so pretty, so I took my camera out to the front veranda and took a couple of photos, nothing spectacular, just “feel good” photos of my garden soaking up the refreshing rain and cooler weather.
Just the other day, I dead-headed the summer-tired flowers on the Magnolia ‘Little Gem’, leaving just new buds on the shrub. Today, the pure white flowers have opened – shown in the first photo. I was sorry I couldn’t take my camera out into the rain for a closer look! So zooming in on the flowers from the protected veranda gave me a clearer view.
A Jade plant, of sorts.
The second photo is of a plant my mother always called a Jade. I’m not convinced that’s it’s actual name, as I have seen Jade plants that look different to mine, but to me, it will always be Jade.
Salvia and Hydrangea.
This Salvia is looking lovely right now, although it has been, at times, a tad frazzled over summer. The Hydrangea next to it provides some protection from the hot afternoon sun. As for the Hydrangea, I am amazed that it is still covered in so many lush green leaves at this time of year! It is really enjoying the rainy weather.
Gardenia.
The Gardenia is beginning to flower again now, after a quiet summer of dormancy. It’s a shame these flowers do not last for long looking this soft and velvety or I would bring them indoors for a vase.
Chameleon Roses.
Yesterday morning, when choosing flowers for my vase, I didn’t pick any Chameleon Roses as I can see they will drop their petal soon. Today, however, they are still hanging on, possibly due to a new lease on life with the rain. The lilac bud in the top-left of the photo is a new Society Garlic flower.
An opened Finger Lime.
And finally, I promised I would share a photo of a Finger Lime fruit – and here it is. Those tiny caviar-like balls are so full of limey taste; I am surprised there isn’t a Finger Lime tree growing in every garden in Australia!
Who knows if this lovely autumn weather will continue, but for today, I am enjoying every cool minute of it. ❤
In My World 