In a Vase on Monday: Echinacea Embrace

I am happy to be joining Cathy at Rambling in the Garden again today, with a vase on a Monday. Do visit her site to see her creation this week, along with all the others linking in with their own vases, jars, pots etc.

It is hot here – well it IS July! So I cut my flowers early and plonked them in a vase before dashing around the garden with some secateurs to tame a few things before the sun got too brutal. When I took the first photo of my vase later, I immediately saw it needed a bit of rearranging… it looks like an octopus and a squid in a vase, don’t you think?! 🤣

So I cut a couple of stems a bit shorter…

I still think the Echinacea pallida looks as though it is embracing the other flowers with its long pink tentacles, I mean petals!

And this Echinacea purpurea has curled its ‘arms’ downwards making it look like a sea creature.

In fact, the centres of all these Echinacea do remind me of sea anemones…

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The one above is a new one in a series called ‘Mooodz’… it probably won’t stick around till next year, as the newer hybrids rarely do, but it is looking absolutely gorgeous this summer and has already earned its keep.

And this one below is ‘Green Envy’, possibly my favourite as it has such lovely green tips when it first opens. Reliable too – it must be at least its fourth summer.

There is a white one hiding at the back, but apart from that the others are the simple E. purpurea grown from seed. They are so easy to grow in fact, that I have sown more for next year. The white daisies are Kallimeris incisa ‘Madiva’. Aso an easy plant to grow and useful as a filler in a vase.

Do you grow Echinacea, and if so, do you have a favourite or do you prefer the good old fashioned pink ones?

It is set to reach 30°C again today, which may not sound much to some who have been experiencing much higher temperatures (my sympathy!), but just a tad too warm for me. Maybe air conditioning would be a good idea after all….

Have a great week, and – if it is gardening weather –

Happy Gardening!

 



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