In a Vase, on Monday – Purple

Last week I cut white flowers; yesterday, in between some most welcome rain showers, I cut purple (and purple-ish) flowers. Each Monday Cathy at Rambling In The Garden encourages us to share a vase highlighting what is growing in our gardens. In my garden, what’s growing well right now is Echinacea and Agastache, with Zinnias starting to make a strong showing.

Here’s my patch of Agastache ‘Licorice Blue’ – the tallest plants are almost as high as I am this year – and their branches have spread wide enough to overshadow a short row of barberry. Started just last year, they haven’t spread much by seed, thankfully, and neither by runner – they’re just that vigorous. I see myself transplanting most of these next spring to an area where, perhaps, it’s a bit drier and more challenging. I suppose the flowers are more blue (as the name suggests) than purple, but in a certain light they definitely fit in with a vase of purple flowers.

I couldn’t find a perfect spot to photograph this vase, and, running out of time before the next round of rain, I placed it on this teak patio chair:

That’s Echinacea purpurea with one Zinnia stem (most of my Zinnias were mauled by slugs/earwigs/other nasty bugs in the spring – they’re just making a come back now) and a lot of Agastache. I started it from seed last year because I read it was a tremendous pollinator magnet. I don’t know about ‘tremendous,’ but I see the occasional bee on them.

I snipped a few small stems for the Ikebana vase this week – Agastache and Zinnia again, joining one of the few Rosa grandiflora ‘Crimson Bouquet’ blooms to appear this year. Normally this rose is large and fragrant and glorious from early July til mid October. This year it was attached early and repeatedly by earwigs (I think) and it’s about 1/5th its normal size. Quite the opposite of the Agastache, growing just a few feet away…

I hope everyone has a great week!