In a Vase on Monday: October Sun in May?

It has been a nerve-wracking week, with a couple of frosts and some very cold winds. Why nerve-wracking? Well, with our sunny April and some very warm days in late April/early May I had been tempted to sow some vegetables and flowers and put my tomato plants out onto the patio. My potted Geraniums (Pelargoniums) had also all been allotted spots around the yard. When will I learn?! Our ‘Ice Saints’ are around this time and it is not unusual for us to get late frosts now.

Anyway, the flower beds seem oblivious to the jumps in temperature and the irises have begun to open. This gorgeous golden Iris ‘October Sun’ (hence the title!) was the first and now that there is a large clump of them in full bloom I decided to pick one.

To accompany it, a sunshiny yellow Tulip (perhaps the last), a pale yellow Geum and some fresh green Alchemilla foliage to add to the glow.

Then I added some blue skies: the lovely Geranium ‘Sabani Blue’….

…Iris illyrica, and a Camassia. And a few whispy white clouds represented by some Iberis flowers. 😁

Other materials used were Epimedium foliage, a peony leaf, chive flowers and Pulsatilla seedheads. Everything was neatly packed into this intriguing vase, which is so very useful for holding stems in place.

The forecast looks much better this morning and I feel it is safe to put all my tender plants back outside again. And my cucumbers and squash are begging to be planted out too. You know where I will be today…😉

For more vases and some weekly inspiration, pop over to Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.

Happy Gardening!



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