So I was surprised when I went for a walk along the clifftops to see a small group of enthusiastic surfers out from the beach waiting for a good wave to catch. There was little wind and an occasional set of good waves did appear.
In the garden two of my favourite plants have come into bloom.
The first is the Cootamundra Wattle Acacia Baileyana * . In the photo above, the sun was shining through the blossom making it glow.
I photographed it again today when I noticed that the rain-soaked branches hung heavily as though weighted by gold.
The second plant is the Japanese Flowering Quince (Chaenomele) that I also used in last week's arrangement. As more branches have blossomed this week I was able to make an arrangement to welcome my niece and her husband when they visited on Friday night.
First I made an arrangement that contrasted the sharp angles of the branches with the smooth form of the spherical ceramic vessel.
I then added a sprig of wattle high in the arrangement, which contrasts with the colour of the quince blossom, but matches the yellow of the quince blossom stamens.
Often wattle blossom does not keep well when picked. It tends to dry quickly, causing the blossom to shrivel. This thin stemmed branch is still doing well after 24 hours. I cut two thicker stems at the same time. One of which I scraped and the other I bashed, but both of them shrivelled. All of the stems were first cut under water and then placed into deep water with a teaspoon of sugar and a little bleach for a few hours before arranging.
The spherical vessel is by Don Jones, an Australian potter who worked in South Australia in the 1970s.
Greetings from Christopher
11th July 2015
* Click on the blue text for further information.
Forgive me for not keeping up with correspondence. I have been enjoying your posts and especially seeing the lovely acacia tree in full bloom. Too bad the flowers don’t last for long. Your garden must be lovely. You have such a variety of interesting materials.
ReplyDelete