My last post was IaVoM last week!! Last week was hectic but culminated in a wonderful few days on the Amalfi coast. The weather was perfect for our trip and when we returned on Tuesday evening it was to find that the temperatures had dropped significantly; Wednesday the high only reached the low 20’s°C that’s 10° C at least lower than it has been. Today is warm again but I can see that the plants know that cooler weather is coming soon and there was visibly more growth on herbs like basil. I’ll try to write a post soon about which plants have come through this summer and what I’ve learned about how they survive.
But for today here are two of the vases I created yesterday with flowers that were desperate to be picked.
Another green, white and pale yellow vase for the mantle in the sitting room
All the flowers are Zinnias including Z. ‘polar Bear’, Z. Green Envy and a pale yellow from the mixed seed pack
Foliage was provided by Bells of Ireland and some pruned stems of Lonicera
For the sideboard more yellow Zinnias, Sunflowers and Rudbeckia
This jolly vase makes me smile every time I pass it
If you haven’t checked out Cathy at (Rambling in the garden)’s In a vase on Monday post do visit to see what she has created (it certainly made me think of autumn) and some spring flowers from fellow bloggers in the Southern Hemisphere.
The images for the Tuesday view were taken yesterday, Wednesday. Thanks Cathy at Words and Herbs for hosting and encouraging us to study one view every week to note its changes.
Tuesday View
A little more colour from the pick flowers of the Sedums – I need more of these as they are the only flowering plant thriving in the heat.
More of the pink flowers are opening on Sedum ‘Purple Emperor’
and in the background Sedum ‘Matrona’
The cooler days have encouraged a flower on the Cistus
I’m working my way through the posts I’ve missed; my apologies for not always commenting in the last couple of weeks; hopefully things will be back to normal next week.
Have a lovely weekend.
Creating my own garden of the Hesperides 
Your view does look different with the added colour and less bright sunlight. I love my sedums too. I have in fact planted more, but the ones given me from established plants from neighbours seem to do much better than any I have bought since. I saw Matrona in England, in a lush green English border… it didn’t look right somehow. But yours fits in very well with the grasses and silvery foliage.
In rich, moist soil tall Sedums like Matrona tend to need support or they will flop, grown hard in my garden it is unusual so see them fall over.
It’s all looking lovely and especially as the light changes at this time of year. Bells of Ireland-did you sow from seed and if so when?
The Bells of Ireland were sown 22nd of February and germinated in 3 days. I planted them out on 21st April. The plants aren’t very tall; not like the ones I saw Monty Don had grown on Gardeners’ world. I might try sowing some this autumn. I have tried drying some too.
You really did have lots of flowers to pick. I love the Bells of Ireland.
This was just a few of the Zinnias that were ready, there are lots of deep crimsons that I’ll use for the weekend.
All your hard work really paid off.
The noticeable drop in temperature seems to have suited your garden as well as yourself – it has been very humid here the last few days although not especially sunny and the nights have been uncomfortably warm again. Rain by the weekend hopefully! I love both your almost monochromatic vases, but especially the first one with the zinnias – the white vase is perfect for them. Do tell us more about your molucella – I tried it once but I only had tiny plants – and which zinnias you favour
I love all the Zinnias I’ve grown and I may even grow some shorter varieties next year for pots around the terrace. I wouldn’t say the Molucella are a big success; the plants aren’t tall the way I’ve seen them on Gardeners’s world for instance. They also have a weird smell that I’m not sure I like very much; I’ll probably use up the rest of the seed in the packet next year but I won’t buy any more unless they are much taller and more prolific. They were sown 22nd of February and germinated in 3 days. I planted them out on 21st April.
Thnaks for that. Were the zinnas mostly single varieties or did you grow any mixed ones?
I grew Zinnia mixed (Italian seed), Deep mixed SR, elegans ‘Envy’ SR, Polar Bear Chiltern seeds, Giant Purple Prince, Pale Mix. I particularly like Polar Bear, but really I think they are all wonderful.
Thanks for that
Lovely vases, Christina. Your sunny one makes me smile, too. 🙂 Your Tues./Wed. view is looking nice with the silver and burgundy amid the soft grasses. Definitely tough and hardy plants!
They need to be tough Eliza as I don’t irrigate the Large Island unless something is very stressed, this year I’ve had to water the Hibiscus.
I hope the cooler weather takes hold for both of us soon, Christina. Your cutting garden continues to prove its value – both vases are wonderful. I really hope I can do more with the area I’ve allocated to cut flowers next year but I do something to discourage the raccoons if I’ve ever to have much success there.
Bentornata Christina! 🙂
I love the soft autumn colours in your Tuesday views; the dusky pinks of the sedums blend so nicely with the grasses 🙂
Both your lovely vases prove the value of zinnias, which I tend to overlook. How long does the rudbeckia last for you? I find that it might be an option here…
The Rudbeckia needs irrigation, it wouldn’t survive here if it wasn’t in the cut flower beds, and even then it doesn’t grow very tall, maybe the temperatures are just too much for it.
I nope you had a good trip, I love the Amalfi coast. Your zinnia vase is fabulous
We had a wonderful time. We rented a boat and went around Capri, snorkeling about 8 times, the water was so clear.
Whoops, I didn’ t mean to press ‘send’. I wanted to say how good I think sedums look in your gardem with the grasses and the siver foliage.
Happens to me all the time Liz.
Christina me encantan sus Zinnias y sus Campanas de Irlanda. El Sedum está precioso con la luz que ha cambiado. Me alegro que lo hayan pasado bien en sus vacaciones. Saludos de Margarita.
bells of Ireland bring a fresh interesting shape.
Gorgeous Tuesday views! Sedum is a plant I am beginning to love. In the past it did not interest me much, but I really appreciate its ability to survive our heat and to pump out flowers. Yours are lovely. I also love your Bells of Ireland!
I wanted to increase my Sedums this year and I was given a fair number by a friend in the autumn. I had hoped to prepare better sites for them but by the time they appeared this year it was too hot to transplant them. I’ll be interested in the plants that you think have survived best in the heat and sun. Amelia
Sedum are really easy to propagate; I’ll include a link in my next post. as we’ve now had some rain I should write about what’s survived and what failed to come through summer this year.
Sunflowers, Zinnias, and Rudbeckia – summer in a vase!
Working my way back through some older posts also. I like those Bells of Ireland. The sedum look great. Will look for you propagating tips as I could use more also.