This week I was attracted to bright red Rose hips next to new leaves glowing red as the sun shone through them, all against the shining dark green of older leaves.
Yesterday I photographed the flowers outside, but the wind was up and the bright sun made the photos too contrasty.
Today I tried again in the porch. It was so dark and rainy that the poppies didn’t really open, staying furled up all day.
I thought it would be interesting to look at the flowers which are left from last week. I don’t know much about which flowers last well in a vase or what I need to do in order to make them last, so this is a good chance to learn.
I trimmed the stems and changed the water a couple times last week and it’s fairly cool in the house at the moment. The Rhubarb was the first to go, it only really looked good for a few days. Some of the daffodils, hellebores, and freesias have a few days left, and the leucodendron, flannel flowers, and linaria are still going strong.
Thanks again to Cathy at Rambling in the Gardening for hosting this meme, ‘In a Vase on Monday’.
Absent Gardener 
I enjoy seeing your spring flowers while my garden is heading for fall. The freesias are such a pretty red, which echoes the bright rose hips. The deep burgundy rose leaves are a good touch with the yellow poppies. Your last week’s arrangement still looks good, hellebores seem to last really well in a vase.
Hi Hannah, thank you for your comments, I’m sorry they went into the Spam section for some reason so I just found them today. I will check it more often from now on.
That’s lovely! Are the poppies Californian poppies? I have grown these (in this creamy colour and red too) for the first time this year and have been really pleased with them. Do yours self seed?
Thank you! They are California poppies and I think this small group has self seeded. I keep buying poppy seed and sprinkling it around but these ones are growing where a similar one was last year so I think so. I love them, especially the cream and the red-orange. They are scarce so far, I think I haven’t found a place they really like yet.
I love how our vases last longer…and this week’s vase is perfect for the beginning of fall. The rose hips mixed with the pale poppies is quite beautiful. I hope to use rose hips soon, but with the cutting bed going strong, I am using those flowers now.
Absolutely lovely! I love the way the rose hips and freesia play off one another and the poppies match the vase. Beautiful!
Thank you! I am enjoying the scent of the Freesias too.
Your vase is a wonderful mix of seasons and colors, Cath! The rose hips and the red Freesia really draw the eye. I’ve never cut California poppies for a vase but will have to try that during our next bloom cycle.
Thanks Kris! So far the California poppies are looking good. I didn’t blanch the stems or anything – it didn’t seem like any sap was coming out.
The bonus of cooler weather is that flowers last longer. My vase from last Monday which I actually curated on the previous Friday, looked good (with frequent changes of water and snipping of the flower ends) until this weekend. The red hips really pop against your blue background, it’s a lovely vase of flowers.
Thanks! Getting your roses to last for over a week is great – I will have to be more frequent on the water changes and trimming I think.
The vase must smell wonderful with the inclusion of Freesias; I love their perfume. I’ve never cut any of my Californian poppies but there are so many in spring perhaps I should try.
I love the scent of Freesias, it carries but is not too heavy. (Nothing is too heavy for me but my partner takes exception to some things like lilies inside)
The poppies seem to have a fairly brief life in the vase, but there is probably something you could do to make that better, and if you have plenty it doesn’t really matter.
Beautiful! I love the combination of red and cream flowers and hips. Californian poppies are favourites of mine, especially the cream ones. The jug is perfect for your arrangement.
Thank you! That jug seems to work well with quite a few things.
That’s a beautiful vase indeed! Love the creamy poppies with the hot reds – just lovely! 🙂
Thank you!