In a Vase on Monday: Slowly But Surely

Very slowly the days are growing longer. Five more minutes of daylight in the last five days alone! Have you noticed any difference where you are yet? Some sunshine and a fine dusting of snow have brightened things up here too, but clear skies mean cold temperatures, and the garden is frozen solid. So my vase this week is made entirely from dried material.

In 2025 I made it one of my goals to dry some materials from the garden for dried flower arrangements. I cut all sorts of things, experimenting with shrubs, perennials, annuals and grasses… even weeds! I hung the materials from some cheap plastic shelves in a relatively cool and dim room, and the results have exceeded my expectations. However, my first attempt at arranging some of them made me realize how delicate they are!

The dark red leaves at the base are, I think, Physocarpus. They are. ery crumbly. I will have to label things in the future as some of my materials look so different to when I cut them in the summer.

The perennial Briza and Allium seedheads retained their shape and colour beautifully.

Purple statice is the focal point..

… but the vase also has some wild grasses, poppy seedheads, Queen Ann’s Lace, and an Echinacea seedhead.

I really like the Echinacea, and will definitely dry more of those this year. And the wild grasses and the fluffy Melica ciliata seedheads are lovely too, but very fragile.

I also used my newest vase – a miniature glass encased in an ornate pewter stand – which was a gift from my Mum at Christmas, matching my pewter snail perfectly.

Some colourful dried everlasting flowers that I grew last summer fit nicely in it.

They are called Helipterum roseum, and I hope to grow these again this year as they last so well and are such pretty little flowers.

The intensity of the colour is quite remarkable, and I think I like these even better than strawflowers.

(My little snail serves as the prop today… slowly but surely the light will return!)

If you have never really dried flowers before I can absolutely recommend trying it – the joy and pleasure of finding colour to display in my home in the middle of winter is such a boost! I used a couple of books for inspiration, which I will share soon.

I will also be sharing more of my dried flowers in the next few weeks, until the garden comes to life again.

Many thanks to Cathy at Rambling in the Garden for hosting this meme.

Have a wonderful week!