In a vase on Monday: fresh as a daisy

This week's feature flower, with its towering canes of exploding white daisy flowers, is the standout plant in my garden at this time of year. Easily reaching 4 metres (13 feet) tall, Mexican tree daisy Montanoa bipinnatifida is loved by bees and passers-by, several of whom have snuck up our driveway to snap a photo with their phones in recent days.

Mexican tree daisy triffid

The blooms are so fresh and pure

Wrestling with a rose in our driveway
 
I recall picking a large vase full of of these flowers to take in to my Mother in hospital a few years ago. Disappointingly, they completely flopped during the car journey, even though I had placed them into water immediately after cutting. For this reason, I decided to display the blooms floating in a bowl - this way I could avoid wilting stems and enjoy the flowers close up.

Simple and sweet

With my hand for scale

A bowl full of happiness

Head over to Cathy's blog, Rambling in the Garden to see this week's vase-worthy creations from bloggers around the world.

Comments

  1. ChrisMay 30, 2022 at 3:23 AM

    That is such a great idea! Looks fabulous, and the plant itself --- OMG!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. HorticatMay 30, 2022 at 1:10 PM

      Thanks Chris, it’s a head-turning plant, that’s for sure!

      Delete
  2. AnonymousMay 30, 2022 at 8:58 AM

    A a head turning display... daisies up in a tree instead of the familiar, in-the-ground clumps (or small shrubs). The blooms floating in the sky-blue bowl is fabulous.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. AnonymousMay 30, 2022 at 8:58 AM

      chavli

      Delete
    2. AnonymousMay 30, 2022 at 1:13 PM

      Thanks Chavli, I remember stopping to admire this plant in another garden years ago, not knowing what it was, but knowing I had to grow one!

      Delete
  3. Kris PetersonMay 30, 2022 at 8:59 AM

    Very beautiful, Horticat! I'm surprised you don't have just neighbors but also the local newspaper stopping by to snap photos of that daisy tree. It's clear I planted the wrong type of tree daisy here. My Olearia albida has been a bust thus far. It's only just over a foot tall after a couple of years in the ground and there's been no sign of flowering whatsoever. I think I need to look for your Montanoa bipinnatifida ;)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. HorticatMay 30, 2022 at 1:21 PM

      Thanks Kris, I just googled Olearia albida, having never heard of it. You grow some really interesting plants in your garden. Montanoa likes a bit of extra water - it enjoys that spot as it gets the runoff from our carport downpipe.

      Delete
  4. CathyMay 30, 2022 at 9:20 AM

    What an astonishing plant, and the simplicity of the flowerheads floating in the bowl is so appealing - thanks for sharing it

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. HorticatMay 30, 2022 at 1:23 PM

      Thanks Cathy, and thank you for hosting. It’s fun to see the diversity in all the various bunches. I do enjoy taking part and seeing what others have created.

      Delete
  5. AnonymousMay 30, 2022 at 1:16 PM

    Wow! that is some daisy. have you seen Bolivian Sunflowers? Weird they don't last cut, though they look great in the blue bowl. the shrub queen

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. HorticatMay 30, 2022 at 1:28 PM

      Thanks Shrub Queen, I hadn’t heard of Bolivian sunflower before - just googled it - very similar, isn’t it? Will keep an eye out for it.

      Delete
  6. DonnaMay 30, 2022 at 7:06 PM

    I have never seen a daisy tree or even known of their existence....what a beautiful tree and flower. Love how you floated them.

    ReplyDelete
  7. HorticatMay 30, 2022 at 9:42 PM

    Thanks Donna, they sure are something in full bloom.

    ReplyDelete
  8. CathyJune 2, 2022 at 3:17 AM

    The shrub is really gorgeous, and I love the way you have displayed those flowers. Absolutely wonderful!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

In a vase on Monday: blue, silver and red (and lime and burgundy)

Image
Still more rain this week (will it ever be summer?) which has meant that the cooler season blooms such as Nigella damascena and larkspur Consolida ambigua 'Imperial Mix' continue to bloom happily (when we get a heatwave, the nigella in particular, tends to go straight to seed). I made two bunches this week, both to give away to friends. The first features flowers and foliage from my own garden: This bunch featured: catmint Nepeta 'Walker's Blue', larkspur Consolida ambigua 'Imperial Mix', love-in-a-mist Nigella damascena, Rosa 'Camp David' , apple mint Mentha suaveolens , liquorice plant Helichrysum petiolare , lamb's ear Stachys byzantina and statice Limonium sinuatum My arrangement briefly looked good sitting on our red kitchen table until it was given away a couple of hours later. The bowl of fruit on the right are loquats Eriobotrya japonica , one of my favourite fruits, given to me by a friend. I've never seen them for sale in a
Read more

In a vase on Monday: bright delight

Image
Just a quick one from me today, as we are madly packing for a trip away. I love how these nasturtiums self seed and pop up all over the place. I recall planting about a dozen seeds about 10 years ago - they have done their own thing every year ever since. The mug is Polish pottery, collected on a backpacking trip around Eastern Europe in the early 2000s. We are off to enjoy Ikara-Flinders Ranges National Park , located several hours' drive north of Adelaide in a semi-arid region with amazing geological features and diverse flora and fauna. The area has experienced significant rain recently, which means this usually dry country will be green and potentially full of wildflowers. I hope to have some photos to share.  Thanks to Cathy for hosting the weekly In a Vase on Monday meme. To see what's blooming in the gardens of other gardeners around the world, check out her blog, Rambling in the Garden . Perhaps you have a vase of your own you would like to share?
Read more

In a vase on Monday... just in time

Image
I haven't participated in IAVOM for ages - I've been busy preparing things for the arrival of our first baby, due any day now. But I've still been creating bunches - mostly for friends. Being able to create an interesting, generous home grown bunch to give away gives me a lot of pleasure. Sometimes I even remember to make one for myself! Though I haven't posted for a while, I've still enjoyed seeing the beauty and diversity displayed in the bunches of other IAVOM contributors, even if I haven't had the time to leave a comment.  This is a sort of mega-post, showing all of the bunches I've created over the past several months, as well as a few other assorted garden niceties. I don't have time to list the names of everything just now, but happy to provide IDs of anything if requested. 8 Dec 2022 - A slow start to summer 17 Dec 2022 - First dahlia Dahlia 'Hillier Tanunda' 20 Dec 2022 - Jungle kitty So cute - couldn't resist taking his photo! 9 J
Read more