Flowers

  Good afternoon dear Friends ~ It is a few minutes after 4 p.m. EST in s.e. FL. The skies are dark to the south, and thunder is rumbling in the distance.  Monday morning we had heavy rains with flooding in some areas getting over 5 inches of rain, then in the middle of the night we had a slow moving thunderstorm with torrential rains which brought more rain.  I prayed and read for awhile, waiting for the storm to pass over, finally it did and all was quiet again. My heart goes out to all who have lost family, loved ones, homes and businesses with these tornadoes that ripped through their area. The pictures and videos are heart breaking. May God be with these people as they go about rebuilding their lives, and continuing on, even with heartbreak. Rough times are ahead, especially with the grief and the missing of loved ones. It is devastation like we are seeing from these storms that make me appreciate so much, even with my own loss, as, I haven’t lost everything.         I am thankful for our little haven. *** Below are some of the flowers from the last couple of days. Spiderwort, with Borderer in the background. Spiderwort is so ‘easy’ to grow.  Some consider it a weed and a nuisance. Not me. This is Thryallis.  A wonderful shrub that gets pretty large.  I saw it at the botanical gardens and their specimen is huge. The flowers sweetly scent the air. Mine is in a pot right now. Whirling butterflies. Here is the morning glory bush cutting in the early morning in the scullery window. It’s barely light outside. I like how the light from the overhead light is shining down on the blooms. (By the way, nice roots formed on this so I planted it in a pot today.) Here it is a few hours later with the bright outdoor light behind. This is more the true color. This is the wonderfully scented unknown lavender rose I bought recently. Here it is on the left, with the McCartney rose on the right. This little sweetie is ‘Kathleen’ one of my very favorites and bought many, many years ago. She has a delicate sweet scent. Here is ‘Borderer’. An early morning view in the scullery.  This is what I come out to when I make coffee in the mornings, sometimes it’s darker out and sometimes lighter, depending on when I wake up.  This part of our kitchen is a dream come true and I love it. We took out a wall between the kitchen and the utility room and renamed that new space the ‘scullery’, definition~ a place where dishes are washed and food is stored. As an aside, DH worked in the Navy scullery when he was in boot camp in 1969, washing dishes.  He also voluntarily washed dishes in our scullery too. I wash dishes looking out into the ‘secret garden’, pure delight.  Thank you dear husband for your skills in making this dream become a reality, and in all the other dreams we built around here. I enjoyed being your ‘helper’ all through our years together and this project was one of my very favorites. It made our cottage seem so much bigger. Look at the sweet reflection in the window.   is Forever FlowerLady Thy mercy, O LORD, is in the heavens; and thy faithfulness reacheth unto the clouds. Psa_36:5

Is your office looking a little drab and colorless?  One way of making your office a little brighter and a little more alive is to get a few green plants.  These plants will look great, and they may even make your office feel a little cooler and more soothing, too. While we often think of (Read More...)

It, Sambucus canadensis ‘Aurea’ is more functional than ornamental here, used to provide shade for seating in a prime garden viewing spot. It is not really a tree, but rather more of a large shrub, with judicious pruning required to keep the pathway clear underneath. But that’s okay. I like to prune. The foliage was […]

It was such an honour to be involved with this glorious wedding our beautiful Bride Karen is the daughter of Sharon "Head Honcho & Chief of All" at Samlesbury Hall, the team at Samlesbury are truly wonderful and their passion for this historic and magical hall can't be shown more beautifully than for the lovely Sharon to want to celebrate her daughter's marriage within its walls.~Our beautiful Bride together with her Bridesmaids were getting ready in The Bridal Lodge at Samlesbury Hall when I found her to present the Bridal Bouquets of White Peonies, White Hydrangeas, Sweet Peas and Lily of the ValleyOur Ruby headed off to St Leonard the Less in search of Karen's Bride Groom Tim and his party to pin on their BoutonnieresThe Bride Groom's Boutonniere of fragrant Lily of the Valley, Rolled Rose Petals, Champagne Grass, Akito Rose, Sweet Peas, Hydrangeas and Eucalyptus leavesThe Groom's Men's Boutonnieres of an Akito Rose with Champagne Grass, Eucalyptus and Sweet Peas looked clean, crisp and elegantThe Bride Groom's rather special Boutonniere in all white fitted his lapel perfectlyTim, Karen's uber handsome Bride GroomThe utterly adorable Flower Girl carrying a tiny posy of Sweet Peas, Roses and Baby PeoniesThe utterly fabulous Bride's Mum SharonKaren's gorgeous Bridesmaids were dressed in pearl greyThe beautiful Bridesmaids Bouquets of White Peonies, Sweet Peas, Lily of the Valley and RosesSharon really did take everyone's breath away when she arrived at Church, she was wearing fresh Flowers in her hair a Combination of Peonies and White RanunculasGorgeous!! Huge Congratulations to Karen & TimTim and the adorable Page Boy Finlay were wearing matching BoutonnieresKaren's Luscious Bridal Bouquet of "Bowl of Cream" White Peonies, White Sweet Peas, Lily of the Valley and White Hydrangeas completely sublime!!The celebrations moved on to the wonderful surroundings of Samlesbury Hall, where Angela and her team were ready to welcome the guestsThe tables were dressed with a combination of high and low table designs, for the higher designs we used our classic "Baroque" style candelabras filled with Hydrangeas, Roses, Freesias, Stocks and Dendrobiums and PeoniesOur fabulous Candlestick Topiaries filled with Fluffy White "Snowball" Hydrangeas, David Austin's Patience Rose, Sweet Peas, Stocks, Dendrobiums and white Peonies Along the magnificent Top table where guests would be sitting on both sides of the table we'd arranged a plethora of various vases and vessels each filled with a posy of White Peonies, Roses, Hydrangeas or Sweet Peas or Stocks in between and amongst was an array of votives and indoor oil burnersOn the dining tables "Plumptious" bouquets of white Peonies, Roses, Hydrangeas, Freesia, Sweet Peasand David Austin's finest "Patience" Roses were placed in varying sizes of glass cubes amongst a plethora of candles in rustic glasswareOnce the candles were ignited and and the festoon lights illuminated the Great Hall became utterly magicalThe beautiful Cake looked perfect dressed with fresh HydrangeasHuge thanks to Sharon, Karen & Tim for choosing Flower Design Events to create Bridal Flowers for such a splendiferous DayShare

The Scentless Mock Orange caught me by surprise, I hadn't noticed it was blooming. It's lovely white flowers were draped over the garden gate and waving at me to pay attention. Small bees buzzed around the 4 petaled flowers. It lit up the shady spot behind the patio gate. But, even out of bloom, it has a lot to recommend it. William Cullina says this about them: "In a favorable spot, the whole plant is wreathed in white and it is quite lovely in a loose and delicate way" They were here when we bought this house nearly 28 years ago. They are not the straight species but are most likely Philadelphus inodorus 'Grandiflora'. They are so attractive and so nearly like the species that I believe they are worth sharing. Perhaps, hearing about Scentless Mock-Orange will spark your interest/desire to locate the species for your garden.There are four species of Philladelphus in Tennessee, P. hirsutus, P inodorus, P pubescens var intectus and P pubescens var. pubescens. Although, each are found growing in my home county, I've never seen them in the local woodlands. I suspect that they are rare and possibly endangered in the wild. After studying the photos of the flowers and foliage at the University of Tennessee Herbarium website it is clear that the flowers of 'Grandiflora' are twice the size of the species, but, everything else seems the same.Like the species, my Philadelphus shrubs have a very fine upright shape, arching stems, exfoliating bark and when in bloom, lovely white flowers that have no scent.Scentless Mock-Orange has clusters of small flowers with 60 to 90 stamens in each flower. The 2 - 4" long ovate shaped leaves are simple and opposite and the entire plant can reach a height of 10'. The mature bark is often gray, but can become more of a mahogany color over time. It is more floriferous in full sun, but grows well in part shade with at least four hours of sun. It prefers calcareous or neutral soils (my garden) and can be found in nature from Canada to Florida and east to Missouri, Arkansas and Louisiana. (source) It's a beautiful flowering shrub that's not only easy to grow, but, takes very little maintenance....I never water it. Trust me here, it has survived in the Garden of Benign Neglect for almost 30 years.I love this plant and want it to step out of the shadows of the woodlands and from the corners of old gardens into the spotlight. Even if you haven't the space in your garden for a shrub this large, you can spread the word and encourage native plant enthusiasts to think about adding Scentless Mock-Orange to their gardens. It would be a wonderful shrub for the back of the border or at the edge of the woods. It would be a good basic hedge/screen, a specimen in a large border or in a cottage garden. Lest I forget, it's attractive to native bees, too.xoxogailWelcome to Clay and Limestone's Wildflower Wednesday celebration. WW is about sharing and celebrating wildflowers from all over this great big, beautiful world. Join us on the fourth Wednesday of each month. Remember, it doesn't matter if they are in bloom or not; and, it doesn't matter if we all share the same plants. It's all about celebrating wildflowers. Please leave a comment when you add your url to Mr Linky. Gail Eichelberger is a gardener and therapist in Middle Tennessee. She loves wildflowers and native plants and thoroughly enjoys writing about the ones she grows at Clay and Limestone. She reminds all that the words and images are the property of the author and cannot be used without written permission. Subscribe in a reader

I don’t know what the sticker price is on your average Tuesday night wine—or whether it’s different from your Saturday night bottle. (Someone recently chided me for the assumption that those would be different: “When I want a good bottle of wine, I want a good bottle of wine, Tuesday or no.”) But I can’t help but get excited about bottles that come in under $15 (a price range almost all of us nightly drinkers need) but taste like they cost more. A lineup I tried recently made me a believer again in the fact that it can be done. From a trio of irreverent, talented winemakers—Joel Gott, Charles Smith, and Charles Bieler—who have collaborated both on wines and in a recent unorthodox wine tour that involved raucous parties in bowling alleys and ping pong halls, these all have an suggested retail price of $12 (which means that you’ll probably find them for less). My hunch is that pulling off interesting wine at that price requires caring about wine at that price, plus the resources of higher-end winemaking to subsidize the process; all three of these vintners turn out much more expensive bottles as well. Charles Smith 2012 Kung Fu Girl Riesling (Columbia Valley). A gorgeous mashup of Washington apples, citrus, and jasmine, with lightening acidity to balance its touch of sweetness. Joel Gott 2012 Sauvignon Blanc (California). An aromatic wrap of tropicals and tart stonefruit softens crisp lemon-lime edged with green herbs. Charles & Charles 2012 Rosé (Columbia Valley). A lively, dry pink, with bright, cinnamon-spiced red fruit—cherry and watermelon. Bieler Père et Fils 2012 Rosé (Coteaux d’Aix en Provence). A drier rosé than the double Charles, as you’d expect from France; a wet stone character underpins puckery lemon and red berry fruit.

It’s a nervous moment when you walk into the Show Ground to find out what medal you have won. The day before (Monday) is an exhausting day with judging starting at 8.00 so we have to be in very early to make sure that everything is spotless. Then there are endless TV crews and journalists trying to get onto the gardens – there are times when we are more like bouncers than gardeners.  At 3.30 the Show Ground is cleared and the Royal walkaround starts. This year I was taking round Prince Andrew and Princess Beatrice who were charming. It was a real rugger scrum when we got to Prince Harry’s garden. There must have been over 100 journalists and camera crews wanting to film Prince Harry and the rest of the Royal Family. After that there was the Gala night followed by dinner -exhausting. So you can imagine that I struggled a bit to get out of bed this morning. I was doing fine though until I found out that I had a puncture. Not a good day to have a flat tyre.  I finally got to the Show and found that both gardens got Gold which is excellent. The RHS have given out 10 Golds this year which, in my opinion, is far too many and I’m sure that there will be some debate about it. But for now, we can relax with our pot of Gold. The Australian garden got Best in Show. One day someone can explain that decision to me but for now, I will just enjoy our gold rush.

There was quite a scrabble at Chelsea yesterday as we unveiled the Mark Quinn sculpture that he has generously donated to the RHS’s campaign for School gardening. It is incredibly kind of him and the money will go to a really fantastic cause. We were asked to create the garden in which the sculpture would sit.  We were only asked a few weeks ago so it’s been quite a struggle to get it all designed and built. We also installed lighting – it looks spectacular at night.

We love this family, they are such great people to work with, I was so looking forward to presenting Grace with her Bridal Bouquets and I wasn't disappointed she was thankfully thrilled...Grace's Bridal Bouquet was in shades of soft greens and creamy ivoriesThe beautiful Bride and all of her fabulous Bridesmaids and adorable Flower Girls enjoyed the wedding bouquet carrying lessonThe day was showered with blessings from above but St Lawrence's in Longridge still looked majestic surrounded by luscious gardens and our lanternsWe lined the path with candle lit lanterns on hooks and fresh fragrant Rose PetalsThere was a beautiful archway of fresh flowers over the door and two Bay trees and lanterns framing the door romanticallyInside this exquisite Church we'd created a visually warm welcome with these two floor standing Candelabras at the foot of the aislePosies of fresh flowers on alternate Pew ends Magnificent Candlelit Pedestal Designs were on either side of the ceremony spacePosies of Roses, Hydrangeas, Astrantia, Wax Flower and Alchemilla Mollis in glass jars were hanging from the end of alternate pews lining the aisleWe lined up the Boutonnieres on the windowsill ready to be pinned on to the all important Bride Groom, Ushers and special wedding guestsThe Bride Groom's Green Rose with Lily of the Valley, Sweet Peas, Champagne Grass, Ivy and Wax Flower BlossomEach Boutonniere was created individually, each one toning with the green theme but entirely different from the other Boutonnieres, this beautiful Boutonniere included a Ranuncula, Thalaspi, Wax Flower and Viburnum OpulusAn Akito Rose Boutonniere with Green Viburnum Opulus with Thalaspi, Wax Flower and fragrant RosemaryBeautiful Boutonniere of Sweet Peas, Wax Flower, Champagne Grass and RosemaryLovely White & Green Boutonniere featuring two "Snowflake" Rose Buds with Viburnum Opulus, Thalaspi, Rosemary and Wax FlowerUsher's Boutonniere of Fragrant Freesia, Thalaspi, Rosemary, Wax Flower and Champagne GrassAll of these beautiful Boutonnieres were finished off with a pearl pin and complementary RibbonA Wrist Corsage of Snowflake Rose Buds with Green Hypericum and Gypsophilia created for the lovely ShonaOur super cool Bride Groom the lovely AntonThe very best "Meeter & Greeter" Paul handing out the beautiful Order of Service The very glamorous and gorgeous Bride's Mum JeanThe Bride's Mum's epaulette Corsage of Rolled Quicksand Rose Petals with pearl grey Albiflora, Astrantia and fragrant FreesiaThe stunning Bridesmaids were next to arriveEven the Flower Girls were practising the "Perfect Bouquet hold"Grace arrived looking absolutely BreathtakingThe Green & Ivory Wedding Bouquet included "Bowl of Cream" Peonies, David Austin's English Garden Rose "Patience", Sweet Scented Lily of the Valley, Sweet Peas, Viburnum Opulus, Thalaspi, Rosemary, Wax Flower Blossom And RosesHow Gorgeous!!!The Lovely Grace with her super proud DadMassive Congratulations to Anton & Grace from all of the team here at Flower Design EventsStunning Bridesmaid's bouquets in shades of green and ivoryBeautiful Bridesmaid and Flower GirlLovely Couple!!!Beautiful Green Bridesmaid's BouquetsGorgeous BridesmaidsJason was loading up the Church Pedestals to take them to the receptionThe Celebrations moved on to the lovely surroundings of Mitton Hall where the tables were dressed with a combination of high and low table designsCandlesticks and Candelabras were the table designs of choice for the tall optionOur low silver fruit bowls filled with Hydrangeas, Roses, Peonies, Stocks, Dill, Astrantia, Sweet Peas, Viburnum Opulus, Alchemilla Mollis, Thalaspi, Wax Flower Blossom and EucalyptusBeautifully elegant Baroque style candelabras filled with Hydrangeas, David Austin English Garden Roses, Peonies, Sweet Peas, Roses, Astrantia, Alchemilla Mollis, Dill, Ivy Trails and EucalyptusTall elegant Candlestick Topiaries of Hydrangeas, Roses, Viburnum Opulus and lots more floral loveliness besides, around the base small posi

Have you heard that Sunset has a massive love affair with Airstreams? If you couldn’t tell from the May cover, well, we do. And while we imagine a world of endless summers and Airstreams for everyone, the reality is we can’t all have a silvery bullet proudly parked in our driveway. Lucky for us, there’s a new crop of quirky Airstream hotels that have all the romance of the open road, with none of the heavy towing. In the middle of Utah’s rugged wilderness, the Shooting Star Drive-In Resort boasts 8 luxe Airstreams and shows retro movies nightly at the its drive-in theatre. Kate’s Lazy Desert’s six vintage trailers in Joshua Tree, CA are from another world, one where you live in a lava lamp. Credit for the kitschy, psychedelic decor goes to the B52′s “Love Shack” video backdrop artists, who restored all the trailers at Kate’s. Each of the five trailers at the new Santa Barbara Auto Camp comes with 2 beach cruisers for touring town like a local. The Santa Barbara Auto camp is in the heart of town, where reasonably priced rooms are rare. Buckle your seatbelt for a night on the 1947 Tiki Bus at the Shady Dell. Nestled in the Mule Mountains in Bisbee, AZ, the Shady Dell’s been a trailer park since 1927. A fully restored, tiki party on wheels (inside the Tiki Bus at the Shady Dell).