In a Vase on Monday: Three Little Maids

…lovin’ the abundance of the garden and the opportunity to cut generously for my Monday vase!

I love solar lighting around my patio area in the summer but sometimes the ones you can purchase aren't very pretty or cost too much for me. I decided to spruce them up with some dollar store vases. These end up costing $2 per light (not including the markers) but look so much better than the dollar lights.

Spirea is among the easiest of shrubs to grow and care for.One of the most popular of flowering wood

For the last few days I have been envisagingthe creation of a vase of red blooms for today, which we duly have, although I am far from satisfied with the end result. Sadly, there weren’t as many of the small decorative Dahlia ‘William Kent’ fully open as I would have liked, and seeing the photographs I regret not cutting the stems shorter, to allow the blooms to hug the rim of the vase more. But at least it is a bountiful vase of red blooms, which was my overall aim, so that’s a positive!

One day I was browsing Pinterest and came across playhouse makeover ideas. After seeing the inspiration I decided I just had to do my own makeover for my daughter’s birthday gift while she is still little. So I immediately browsed second-hand sites and found the perfect plastic playhouse for £25. We got it home, I cleaned it up and painted it and I am so in love with the transformation!

The jewel-like colours of the dahlias were calling me today, but having featured ‘brights’ in recent vases I decided to go for more pastel shades instead. Although I started with cosmos (not as tall as some years, not a bad thing, and certainly bushy and reasonably floriferous, which they weren’t last year), cutting a few stems of each variety, they have largely disappeared amongst the other contents. Having discovered another Double Click variety, I have grown all four this year: DC Cranberries, Snow Puff, Rose Bonbon and Bicolor Rose, the latter being the newest one.

The title of this post is more of an afterthought than anything else, but if you are wondering why I refer to golden arrows when the arrows are anything but golden, all will become clear in due course!

Photinia Fraseri Little Red Robin, I planted the standard form of this delightful plant in Robert and Dawns garden two years ago

The clients that I was at both these mornings only need me for a half day at this time of year. Give it until next month and I’ll be back to full days. But that means I have the afternoons to myself. So after popping along to our local independent garden centre to buy 6 more bags of compost and running a few other errands, I was then home in time for lunch and the entire afternoon was spent in my garden doing all sorts.

Here are the best tips on How to Grow so Many Tomatoes in so Little Space and enjoy a fresh harvest even if you don’t have a garden!

Pink and white in a Victorian cranberry vase

If you love growing blooming plants and want to try something unique, these Water Flowers that Grow in Containers and Vases should be your pick.