As the temps continue to drop my perennials and shrubs fall deeper and deeper into the rich shades of autumn. The colors and textures may change but they are still beautiful and provide plenty of inspiration for floral arranging!
Today I'm sharing a fun recipe for making a quick and easy seasonal arrangement that is suitable for a basket, bucket, vase ( CHICKEN COOP ) or even a fresh fall garden wedding bouquet.
I've been needing to freshen the container that hangs on our hen house for a while now.
The flowers in the container below have been hanging on the chicken coop all summer long. They have become quite faded, plus the bright yellow and blue hues don't represent the rich earthy tones we love a bout fall! So I tossed them out and got busy cutting some faded autumn blooms from my garden.
It's fun to walk around the garden this time of year and look up close at the plants as they begin the final descend into dormancy. It allows one chance to give thanks for the bounty the garden has provided and the nurturing and teaching it has offered throughout the flourishing months of spring and summer. The fall garden is still a living, giving thing of beauty!
I cut a small branch off of my Oak Leaf Hydrangea which is just beginning to take on deeper shades of pink, red and burgundy. I built my arrangement around this branch.
Next I cut a large Hydrangea blossom off of my Bridal White shrub.
The edges of the petals look as if they've been dipped in lavender. To think that they were still a brilliant white with hints of lime green just a few weeks ago.
I also gathered some nine bark for the rich almost chocolate brownish red color, another variety of hydrangea with petals that have already faded to a vintage sepia tone, and some autumn sedum joy for its plum tones and large, nubby flower head.
I tucked in a few ornamental grass plumes just for fun!
Here's what it looked like when I brought it over to my potting bench. As I walked the garden I looked for variations in the leaves, blower heads and textures of the over all plant selecting some for the most color variation and others for the least. Does that make sense? If not, just walk around and cut some of your faded flowers. Hold them in your hand until you like what you see and feel you have enough to fill your vessels. There, that's the easy way to creating a natural fall bouquet!
It's not rocket science, it's playing with flowers... Easy!
I
can just imagine all of these colors wrapped in burlap then tied with a
brilliant gold or brown satin ribbon as a fall wedding bouquet.
You'll want to add some water to your vase before you add the cuttings. The water will keep your foliage fresher longer. Put the vase in your container ( with water ) and start to add your cuttings.
I put the largest branch in first, then the large hydrangea blossom. I free-styled it from there!
Here's what it looked like when I brought it over to my potting table. I can just imagine all of these colors wrapped in burlap then tied with a brilliant gold or brown satin ribbon as a fall wedding bouquet. I hear herbs, grasses and garden foliage are trending" for wedding flowers in 2015!
Since no one is getting married here, I hung the container back on the hen house... The cottage hens were so happy! I even heard them talking about wedding dresses and venues as I walked away... Those silly girls!
.jpg)
