The Garden Appreciation Society Week 19 -- Challenge yourself and link up!

I realized a funny thing while taking pictures of this week's Garden Appreciation Society bouquet: I enjoy the bouquets that are harder to come by more than the ones that I made when the garden was in full flush. There's something about the challenge that makes me appreciate that bouquet even more. Or maybe it's just that it forces me to get creative.

In any case, I managed to come up with a relatively simple bouquet that is not only striking but somehow extremely seasonally appropriate. That dark purple, almost black kale definitely says Halloween to me.

The funny thing is that I don't even like the color purple. I actually kind of detest it. But I think this bouquet comes together all in the texture. The large flowers of the Monkshood is such a nice contrast to the frilly kale. I haven't had a lot of luck getting the kale to last long in bouquets, but even if it's only perky for two days, this bouquet is well worth it, especially since there's not enjoying the outdoors these days with it getting dark about half an hour after I get home in the evening.

I know you probably don't have a ton of flowers growing in your garden right now if you're in a northern part of the country, but I challenge you to come up with something to appreciate your garden in a new way this week. I'd love to see what you come up with.

* I feel compelled to edit this post to add a small disclaimer. My mom just told me that Monkshood is incredibly toxic, which is news to me. My dogs don't really go around eating plants but my cat loves to attack bouquets in the house, so I'm probably going to put it somewhere where Desdemona can't reach it when I get home tonight just to be on the safe side. There are a ton of plants out there that are toxic in varying degrees, but this one sounds like a biggie.

And if you'd like to take a little walk down memory lane, here are the previous weeks of The Garden Appreciation Society.

• Week 1
• Week 2
• Week 3
• Week 4
• Week 5
• Week 6
• Week 7
• Week 8
• Week 9
• Week 10
• Week 11
• Week 12
• Week 13
• Week 14
• Week 15
• Week 16
• Week 17
• Week 18

The Garden Appreciation Society Week 18 -- Link 'em up before they freeze!

Look what's back! It's The Garden Appreciation Society, which went on a bit of a hiatus while I stepped out of town for a little bit and then got my life sorted when I came back.

The garden is waning so we need to appreciate it all that much more now, while we can. The idea for The Garden Appreciation Society actually came to me about a year ago, when I made a mad dash around the garden to cut all the flowers left before it froze. I loved that little bit of the garden in the house so much that I thought, "Why don't I do this more often?" It made me appreciate all my hard work in the garden so much more.

This week I snipped most of what's left of the dahlias. I didn't do great with them this year. I ordered a lot and they sat for a bit and then I was a little late planting them and many of them didn't even sprout. Not sure what happened there. But dahlias are lovely flowers and I intend to keep growing them, even though they require a bit more work since the tubers have to be dug and stored for winter and then replanted next year.

Lately I have a particular affinity for the ball varieties. They look like a flower that a  3-year-old would draw, but I love examining them up close. And they are so dense. The red one is pretty amazing.

I'd like to add lots more dahlias next year, and I think some smaller ball types would be so cute. I'll have to be on the lookout for them.

If you've been participating in The Garden Appreciation Society that's great! If you've taken a bit of a break, now's the time to get back in. Your flowers won't do you any good dying in your garden now. Bring them in and enjoy them! And show us how you're enjoying them.

Link up below.



And don't miss previous weeks. It's a pretty interesting way to see the summer at a glance.

• Week 1
• Week 2
• Week 3
• Week 4
• Week 5
• Week 6
• Week 7
• Week 8
• Week 9
• Week 10
• Week 11
• Week 12
• Week 13
• Week 14
• Week 15
• Week 16
• Week 17

The Garden Appreciation Society Week 17 -- I know you have flowers ... link up!

The Garden Appreciation Society seems to be getting later and later each week. And last week I really screwed it up when I set the dates wrong on the link tool. Sorry about that.

I have a good excuse for having this week's on Friday, though. There won't be a Garden Appreciation Society link-up next week (for the first time in 17 weeks, if you can believe that) because I'm going to be out of town. The mister and I are off on a little trip that's half work and half fun (a bit of a 10th anniversary celebration) and the work part is bound to be pretty fun too. More on that when I return, but I'm sure I'll be posting lots of pictures on Instagram and a few on Facebook, so follow me there if you're curious.

This is the part where I mention that if you are some kind of creepy Internet stalker you should know that my house will be occupied by both humans and very large dogs while we're gone.

But let's get on with the good stuff. Welcome to Week 17 of The Garden Appreciation Society!

The star of the show this week is that apricot and yellow dahlia (whose name I will have to look up). I just love dahlias but mine didn't do so good this year so I'm savoring the few I have. After starting with the dahlia I threw in come sedum, some kale for the frilly leaves, a couple zinnias, rudbeckia and two other clear yellow dahlias on purple stems.

All in all it's a bit more fall looking that I had intended. Seems like I can't avoid fall even if I try!

Now's the time for you to link up. And I promise I'll set the link tool up right this time!

And don't forget to check out previous weeks:

• Week 1
• Week 2
• Week 3
• Week 4
• Week 5
• Week 6
• Week 7
• Week 8
• Week 9
• Week 10
• Week 11
• Week 12
• Week 13
• Week 14
• Week 15
• Week 16

The Garden Appreciation Society Week 16 -- Link up!

This got late again this week but only because work got totally crazy this week. Really, work? In summer? For the birds, I tell you.

Anyway, welcome to Week 16 of The Garden Appreciation Society. We're in the home stretch folks so hang with it!

There are very few flowers I grow specifically for cutting. In fact, I can't think of any other than zinnias. I sort of wish I had a specific cutting garden, because zinnias tend to get a little rangy and probably aren't the prettiest. All the better to cut them, right?

What amazes me most about zinnias is the variety of colors they come in. I'm particular enamored with the coral and chartreuse ones (that green one is Green Envy, I couldn't tell you the varieties of any of the others).

Now's you're chance. Link up now!

And don't forget to check out previous weeks:

• Week 1
• Week 2
• Week 3
• Week 4
• Week 5
• Week 6
• Week 7
• Week 8
• Week 9
• Week 10
• Week 11
• Week 12
• Week 13
• Week 14
• Week 15

The Garden Appreciation Society Week 15 --Show us your blooms!

Week 15 of The Garden Appreciation Society! Can you believe it? I  What's even more amazing to me is that for 15 straight weeks I have had beautiful fresh flowers in my house. I will miss them so much in the middle of winter. But let's not think about that, now. We have to savor every single moment of summer while we can.

After last week's riot of color in a tiny bouquet, this week couldn't be much different. It's a much larger bouquet and a little wild too. I think for me this is when the Limelight hydrangeas are prettiest. They still have a lot of chartreuse in them, which I think is a stunning color in a flower. I added in several spikes of Russian sage, which has completely flopped over and needs to be cut back anyway. The little blue flowers are dropping all over the table, but I forgive them because I think they are pretty.

So pretty, in fact, that I couldn't resist a bunch of close-ups.

Speaking of enjoying summer, I get the feeling that you are all enjoying it quite a bit because you're not doing a very good job of appreciating your gardens in new ways. Come on, gang, make this week the week and link up!

There were three lovely bouquets last week and it's amazing to me how different they all are. A good reminder that all of our gardens at at different stages. Libby's hydrangeas are already at the end of their season and have taken on that gorgeous dusty pink color. Susie has some gorgeous hydrangeas just starting to bloom. But I think my favorite from last week comes from Kate at Heir and Space whose bouquet is a good reminder that sometimes simple is best. She always puts her bouquets on a piece of furniture that she's done an amazing restoration or reinvention on and I love how the rudbeckia on the table (in a perfect aqua jar) look like they were just plucked from the bed right next them. Great job, Kate!

Photo by Kate at Heir and Space

Now it's time to link up! I know you all have a garden full of blooms so let's see them!

And don't forget to check out previous weeks:

• Week 1
• Week 2
• Week 3
• Week 4
• Week 5
• Week 6
• Week 7
• Week 8
• Week 9
• Week 10
• Week 11
• Week 12
• Week 13
• Week 14

The Garden Appreciation Society Week 14 -- Link up now, gang!

Hey kids, guess what time it is? Time for this week's Garden Appreciation Society! (cue cheering)

I really love this week's bouquet and not just because it features one of my favorite flowers: nasturtiums. I won't blab on about them because you're probably thinking, "Cripes, does this girl talk about anything other than hydrangeas and nasturtiums?"

I love it because it was so incredibly easy. It literally took me 8 minutes to pick, arrange and photograph this bouquet. I just snipped off the stems with my fingernails, stuck them in a drinking glass (I love the aqua glass with the orange blossoms) and called it a day. It's hard to get that much cheer in your house that easily.

Last week's Garden Appreciation Society "meeting" was not that well attended. Is it summer vacation? Are the snacks not good enough? If I promise cocktails, would that help?

We did have three great contributions, however, and I particularly liked Susie's from Viva La Hosta (excellent blog name, by the way). I am not a fan of dusty miller, but I think it makes this bouquet. 

Viva La Hosta photo

By the way, you'll notice that the past few weeks I've been featuring some of the entries from the previous week's Garden Appreciation Society. I always link back to your site and give credit for the photo, but if you'd prefer I don't use your photo in this way, just leave me a comment or drop me an email and let me know that.

OK, so now's the time to link up folks. I can't promise cocktails but I can promise that you will love that you did it. So do it, OK?

And don't forget to check out previous weeks:

• Week 1
• Week 2
• Week 3
• Week 4
• Week 5
• Week 6
• Week 7
• Week 8
• Week 9
• Week 10
• Week 11
• Week 12
• Week 13

The Garden Appreciation Society Week 13 -- Link up!

Getting a bit late on The Garden Appreciation Society this week, aren't I? Sorry about that. I had a bouquet all made Tuesday night and then left it outside and and overnight storm pummeled it. 

For me, purple coneflowers (the native ones, not the new fancy cultivars, which have stolen more money out of my pocket than any other plant because they do great for a year and then don't come back) are one of those flowers that are a must in the garden. They are easy and pretty and last forever in a bouquet (a couple of these I pulled out of last week's bouquet). 

So this week's bouquet is mostly purple coneflowers, a couple white ones and a few stems of the pretty clematis that grows by the front door (I forgot to look up its name and it escapes me right now). 

Last week's Garden Appreciation bouquets were so lovely. It's such a good time of year for flowers, isn't it?

I really loved My Flower Journal's zinnia entry. I'm growing these same zinnias, although I planted them late so I hope I get blooms these beautiful.

My Flower Jounal photo

And I LOVE That Bloomin' Garden's dahlias, especially that Mango Sunset on the left.

That Bloomin' Garden photo

OK, folks, now's the time where I cajole, beg, demand and encourage you to get out in your gardens and bring in a few flowers to enjoy in a new way.

Check out previous weeks for some great inspiration.

• Week 1
• Week 2
• Week 3
• Week 4
• Week 5
• Week 6
• Week 7
• Week 8
• Week 9
• Week 10
• Week 11
• Week 12

The Garden Appreciation Society Week 12 -- Link up!

I really can't believe we're already on Week 12 of The Garden Appreciation Society. What do you think? Are you enjoying it? I think I'm a flowers-in-the-house convert because of this. I haven't missed the few flowers that I've brought inside each week from the garden and I love that there are always fresh bouquets inside. Even Mr. Much More Patient is commenting on them. I'm so impressed with the creative arrangements that some of you are coming up with.

For instance, check out this simple and very chic little arrangement that Sue made last week:

Think Global, Garden Local photo

This was a great week for me, flower-wise. The hydrangeas are blooming! You all know how I love a hydrangea. The Limelights are just starting to show some buds, but the Annabelle, Invincibelle Spirit and Incrediballs are all blooming. This is the first year I've had "real" blooms on the Incrediballs and I'm pretty sure I'm totally in love. I was a little skeptical about them in the beginning but now that they've matured a little bit I'm really liking them. Especially after last night's rain, which left all the Annabelle stems laying on the ground but the Incrediballs were still standing proud (although thanks to the deer those don't have nearly the number of flowers of the Annabelle).

So it's no surprise that this week's bouquet prominently features hydrangeas. The white blooms were all snipped from the stems that were flattened to the ground this morning and the two pinks were from my one Invincibelle Spirit plant. They are a little smaller than I would have hoped, but I'm blaming that on a relatively immature plant and hoping that next year they will be larger.

And the first of the echinacea are also blooming so I threw a few purple coneflowers in there for good measure. I also managed to avoid fondling the hydrangeas, but don't expect that to last for long.


And don't miss all the previous weeks of The Garden Appreciation Society!

• Week 1
• Week 2
• Week 3
• Week 4
• Week 5
• Week 6
• Week 7
• Week 8
• Week 9
• Week 10
• Week 11

The Garden Appreciation Society Week 11 -- Link up now!

We're back on track, more or less, for this week's Garden Appreciation Society link-up.

I have to say I'm particularly happy with what I came up with this week because this is something I never would have thought to do if it weren't for this weekly effort to appreciate the garden in a new way.

Many of the container plantings seem to have gone from perfection to a bit lanky in just the last week. It's no biggie, you just have to do a little pruning and wait a couple weeks and they'll be beautiful again. I try to avoid lopping everything off at once because they really do look pathetic during that time. I also try to hit them with a good dose of fertilizer to get them going again.

Anyway, I usually wait until the flowers are a bit more spent before I go pruning, but the Superbena Violet Ice doesn't seem to want to stop blooming. So I decided to prune a few for this week's bouquet. I combined it with another new plant in the garden this year: Tickseed Coreopsis 'Moonbeam', which has lovely soft yellow flowers.

I wouldn't have thought to look to my containers for a bouquet, but I'm so happy with how this one turned out. I think the Coreopsis would look equally nice with a gorgeous blue hydrangea bloom, if I were lucky enough to have such a thing in my yard.

Since we're really in the heart of summer (and isn't it just lovely? I just love summer so much that the back-to-school stuff in stores makes me profoundly sad) you all are coming up with some amazing bouquets! I love them all.

Link up a picture of how you are appreciating your garden in the form of a bouquet now.

And don't miss the amazing bouquets from previous weeks.

• Week 1
• Week 2
• Week 3
• Week 4
• Week 5
• Week 6
• Week 7
• Week 8
• Week 9
• Week 10

Better late than never: The Garden Appreciation Society Week 10

Don't worry, I have beat myself appropriately many times with a wet noodle as punishment for taking off without so much as leaving a single post in the can. I have to say, I admire bloggers who are organized enough to have a bunch of posts all lined up before they go on vacation. I'm just happy if I can remember to pack my toothbrush.

Anyway, I was off on my annual sailboat race to Mackinac Island and usually I come back with a bunch of pictures of the beautiful gardens there. Unfortunately, this year the race was really slow so I had time for one dinner, one much-needed sleep, a little bit of boat cleaning and a quick stop in a fudge shop before I was whisked back to reality way too soon.

So that's why this week's Garden Appreciation Society post is late, but I hope you'll still join in.

After last week's pretty but unimaginative bouquet of roses (they didn't last very well either), I tried to get a bit more creative but I'm pretty sure I just ended up with a hot mess.

The poppies have exploded all over the place (note to self, cut off those seed pods NOW before they take over the world), the drumstick alliums are peeking, some of the hydrangeas are working up some flowers (if I can get them before the damn deer nip them off) and clematis 'Etoile Violet' has gone absolutely crazy with the additional sun it's getting since we cut down the birch tree. I also threw in some hosta flowers which I never would have thought to do but someone did it to great effect a few weeks ago in their Garden Appreciation Society bouquet and I loved it. I also threw in some campanula that I have tried unsuccessfully to rid my garden of just because it's such a thug, but they are still pretty and a clipping from a spirea.

The whole thing is a bit messy for my tastes, but I like that it's a pretty good sampling of what's blooming right now. I think I'm entering another phase of mostly green garden though. The early stuff has bloomed and I seem to have a bit of a lag before anything else picks up and starts blooming. The purple coneflowers should show their faces soon and a few daylilies have started popping.

Now's your turn ... link up your fabulous flowers!

As usual, don't miss out on past weeks.

• Week 1
• Week 2
• Week 3
• Week 4
• Week 5
• Week 6
• Week 7
• Week 8
• Week 9

The Garden Appreciation Society -- Week 9 -- Link up!

This week's Garden Appreciation Society bouquet is a first for me on two counts. For one, it is the first time I've ever had enough roses to make a bouquet from my own garden. And secondly, it is the first time I've endured serious pain to make a bouquet. Holy smokes these roses are thorny!

These Oso Easy roses (I think they are 'Peachy Cream') would be perfect in a wild mixed bouquet, although it would have to be a short one because they do no have long stems. Unfortunately, I'm on my way out the door for a bit of a sailing jaunt and I didn't have time to do more than cut a few, bleed profusely and jam them in a vase.

As I mentioned yesterday in the garden tour, these roses don't have a lot of fragrance but what fragrance they do have really comes through inside. One more reason to appreciate your garden in a new way!

You guys continue to blow me away with what you are cutting out of your gardens. Thank you so much for sharing your creations.

Don't forget to link up this week and please don't miss the stunning bouquets from last week's Garden Appreciation Society.

And don't miss out on past weeks.

• Week 1
• Week 2
• Week 3
• Week 4
• Week 5
• Week 6
• Week 7
• Week 8