Hydrangeas are definitely a shrub which does well given the weather we usually have with a good down pour every few days. Since until 12 o'clock today when we had a five minute shower, there has been no rain and wall to wall blistering hot sun, for several weeks.
One of the shrubs in the garden getting the odd bucket of water has been a hydrangea. Three stems of a pink unnamed hydrangea were all the better for having a soak up to their blooms in a bucket of water. These make the central part of this arrangement.
Two other plants that are coping well with no watering are the Origanums, and these ones were cut from Origanum 'Emma Stanley'. The arching stems from Pseudodictamnus acetabulosus, and a third additional element are the stems from Hylotelephium erythrostictum 'Frosty Morn' left over from a previous arrangement.
I mentioned in my SOS post a couple of weeks ago that I ought to take a few cuttings of Origanum 'Emma Stanley' and to bring on fresh growth I have cut off all the old stems, so in addition to this vase and a vase full which are being dried. It is the new growth when growing vigorously that I shall use for cuttings, and also hopefully there will be a good later season show of blooms in the gravel garden, The long curving stems of Pseudodictamnus also make very good drying material.
Very pretty. The hydrangeas are a beautiful surprise given your dry conditions. I hope it rains. Is the oregano culinary? A Amelia.
ReplyDeleteHello Amelia, usually we are not dry and a nickname for the county is Soggy Somerset, which this year it is not. No, this is a decorative oregano.
DeleteHere's to hoping more rain and slightly cooler temps come your way. I know how Hydrangeas, in particular, need lots of water during a dry spell. Your arrangement is beautiful, though. :)
ReplyDeleteI really like this Noelle, and those arching stems of Pseudodictamnus are particularly attractive. I realised too late that it would be a good idea to save the Golfer's bathwater for watering things - a bit of a faff, but worth doing and I should have done it weeks ago
ReplyDeleteIt certainly is not practical to save shower water! Let us hope this year's dry spells are coming to an end.
DeleteMy brain momentarily stopped functioning after reading your first sentence saying that you usually get downpours of rain every few days at this time of year. That's something I can't even conceive of as we're generally dry from early May though at least October. But yes, we have irrigation to help us through - even if it doesn't do as good a job as rain. I'm glad you could keep your hydrangea blooming with bucket support. Your arrangement with the oreganos is lovely.
ReplyDeleteIn a same vein I cannot imagine no rain from May to October. We are about to be put on drought measures which means the end to any use of a hose or irrigation system if we had one, but because of the pots, my husband had put in a little systems for the larger pots, and I am not sure if that will have to be turned off!
DeleteThose hydrangeas look remarkably fresh considering how dry it has been and are no doubt a lot happier indoors in a vase of cool water! The Pseudodictamnus is striking, and the oregano really pretty too. Such a lovely arrangement Noelle!
ReplyDeleteThank you and most the elements will be dried, so another vase with recycled material will appear in a few weeks.
DeleteThat's a beautiful arrangement Noelle. The hydrangeas have obviously responded well to the special treatment you have been giving them. Such perfect companions too. Maybe you have had some rain since you posted 🤔 Here it's rained quite steadily for most of the day much to my relief 😂
ReplyDeleteHow fortunate for you Anna, we had about 4 minutes of very light rain during the day yesterday and a light sprinkling overnight just enough to wet the leaves, but nothing to penetrate the soil sadly.
DeleteI do hope you get some nourishing rainfall soon. The hydrangea is a lovely pink and the Origanum 'Emma Stanley' picks up the color nicely. Such interesting companion plants.
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