Our prairie garden is flush with native species and an abundance of prairie grasses, while the perennials in the front islands bravely attempt to establish their permanence amid a colony of advancing ferns.
Then, there are the aggressive appetites of the wandering herd of white tailed deer. What’s a gal to do?
Well . . .
. . . I have been experimenting with composing prairie inspired floral arrangements, cutting armfuls of grasses out back and small snips of what the deer don’t eat from the front.
Oat grass, Big Bluestem, Monarda, Indigo, Joe Pye weed, and a curtsy to Queen Anne’s Lace, which was frolicking too close to the road for me to resist just a few of her lacy caps.
These flowers, both tamed and wild, pose quite fashionably in vases, jars, and other containers that are scattered around the house. A few arrangements have even made it to friends’ homes and a graduation party.
Part of my daily routine is to wander, clippers in hand, from garden bed to garden bed, observing what is blooming and what is spent, what the deer might have munched on and what I might cut and bring inside.
Sometimes, just a few buds pinched back from overflowing pots are all that is needed to bring the garden indoors. Have you ever used parsley or basil in a vase? Snipping a few stems not only helps the plant regenerate, but, it brings fragrance into the kitchen and is a quick herb to pinch for extra flavors in a simmering pot or summer salad.
I love the abundance of summer.
Here are a few more flowers from our garden, and a bouquet I picked up from a vegetable stand where I buy locally harvested sweet corn. The owners are growing flowers and herbs in raised plots behind the barn and selling them from the stand as well.
Do you keep floral arrangements outside on your patio, porch or deck? Do you pick from your garden, a favorite floral shop, or grocery store? Do you have favorite flowers for bouquets?
Your prairie garden sounds exquisite…a beautiful way to enjoy natural surroundings. There is an abundance of purple clover and Queen Anne’s Lace where I live. It seems to be everywhere and the clover smells so good! Enjoy your garden and your flowers!
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You must also have an abundance of bees with all that purple clover – honey and pollination! Wonderful! I adore Queen Anne’s Lace and it seems to be quite prolific this year. Just a few clippings held up quite nicely in the vase. Thank you so much for stopping by and for taking the time to comment.
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What beautiful arrangements, Penny! You are definitely an artist. My favorite flowers are gerbera daisies and sunflowers. I’ve never seen a mixture of both, but would love to see that.
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Thank you, L. Marie. I am learning – and enjoying the process, never thinking I would one day be making arrangements for fun using prairie grasses. Isn’t life grand? I have a gerbera daisy in a pot on the deck, but, it isn’t flowering, much to my dismay. It is very leafy, so, I’m not giving up and I think it would be quite lovely to see a mix of gerbera a and sunflowers. How sunny and happy that mixture would be.
Looks like more rain today. What storms we had yesterday here.
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Lovely bouquets, Penny. I think grasses are beautiful mixed with other flowers. I often put cuttings of my herbs in creamer pitchers in varying sizes, on my kitchen counter. They are lovely, smell delicious and I tend to use them more when they are so handy. I intend on cutting my basil back quite a bit today in order to make pesto, I think like me it is suffering in this humidity! Have a wonderful day!
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Thank you.
What a lovely idea to use cream pitchers for herb cuttings! I just used some of the basil pictured for tonight’s dinner and must admit, seeing it on the counter was all I needed. I’m sure your pesto will be twice as good coming from your own cuttings.
Have you ever grown borage? It has the loveliest of flowers.
The humidity has abated this evening, with a soft breeze and cooler temperatures. I will send some your way.
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I love your flower arrangements , they are gorgeous. Your prairie gardens are beautiful . I can see you wandering through your garden with your clippers having fun. Enjoy!
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I think I am becoming a caricature of myself. 🙂 I was out early this morning, snipping away, when I suddenly realized I was being watched – by a doe resting nearby. Thank you, Gerlinde.
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Your arrangements are the best of what a prairie garden should be. What is the origin of the white milk glass vase? It is lovely.
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You are kind to say so, Marilyn, and I truly appreciate it. Thank you.
The milk glass vase was a nifty find in a secondhand shop years ago. I paid a pittance for it and use it all the time, especially when the violets are in bloom. I must remember to take a picture of them – just for you.
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I used to pick wildflowers when we lived at the Lake, but now city dwellers, I buy my bouquets from the Farm Markets and Saturday Market downtown. Really love that you add herbs.
Wandering from garden to garden with clippers in hand sounds very British to me somehow — i seem to have always read about the lady of the manor strolling delicately about clipping roses for the dinner table (after her faithful and under-compensated gardener did all the hard work of course.) You are the miracle woman who can fill both roles perfectly!!
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I enjoy the bouquets I buy at markets, Sallie, especially when my own gardens are in between blossoming. I’ve been known to put a bunch of parsley in a pretty vase as a last minute bouquet. It’s fun – and fragrantly useful. Check some of those bouquets you buy. They just might have an herb in them. 🙂
Thank you. 🙂 I would love to be in one of those British gardens with my secateurs in hand, clipping roses – and I’d have a big gathering basket and probably still have my pajamas on. Thank you, Sallie. My under compensated gardener is truly Tom who digs and hauls and makes my wacky ideas come to life.
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I admire your ingenuity Penny as you work around the inroads from the deer. Your arrangements are full of life. I like to use rosemary with a flower arrangement, for its fragrance (like your herbs) but also for its flowers. I enjoy seeing your summer colour to brighten our southern hemisphere monochrome end of winter.
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Thank you, Juliet. Rosemary is such a wonderful herb with flowers – and rosemary signifies remembrance. We have had a very rainy July here, but, mostly a good summer and today is brilliant, warm, sunny . . . and you are turning the corner on winter.
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i never really thought about adding parsley or basil to arrangements, Penny, but what a good idea! Your arrangements are beautiful, my friend. I can picture you walking around your welcoming garden with your clippers in hand. It does appear that you have enough plant growth and flowers for both deer and your indoor bouquets, so you’ve obviously planned very well. I don’t have a very fruitful cutting garden, although I’m hoping to change that, but I frequently bring a bouquet home from Trader Joes to brighten at least the kitchen! You’ve made some delightful creations. They just lift spirits, don’t they?
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Herbs work in “a pinch” (okay, it’s late and I’m getting giddy) – but, do try herbs sometime.
We are somehow managing to get along, the deer and I, most of the time. Two fawn have taken to afternoon naps in the front. 🙂 The prairie grasses make for a different sort of bouquet, but, I’m having fun with them, Debra, and grasses really fill containers in. Dill is fun and Rosemary.
I love the bouquets from Trader Joe’s. They are always fresh, full, and inexpensive. I got several bunches of Ranuculas (sp?) for a arrangement this spring from them. They are wonderful in bouquets, though the are fussy to work with. Whatever the flower, you are so right – the lift the spirits. Thank you, Debra.
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What fun to bring beautiful bouquets from your prairie indoors, Penny! I can just picture you wandering through the garden with your trusty clippers. 🙂 love your idea to add prairie grasses to your arrangements. I’m sure they add a lovely bit of movement, too. This summer, I have been adding bits of Rosemary to my little bouquets. I just can’t resist having my favorite herb nearby!
I must admit that some mornings I head out early with my clippers just to pick one bouquet. But, of course, I always fill more vases, crocks, mason jars,… We always have at least two bouquets on the front porch, one in the kitchen, dining room, and even in the bathroom. Black-Eyed Susans are starring in our bouquets this week! Thanks for another wonderful post, dear Penny! ♡
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The grasses do add a bit of movement, Dawn, and I love the shadows. Isn’t it wonderful having herbs nearby in a bouquet – and Rosemary is so, so fragrant.
I can imagine you wandering about with clippers in hand and with bouquets on your front porch. I think that crocks and mason jars are among the best receptacles for flowers, especially this time of year. The Black-Eyed Susans and sunny cousins are looking quite good this year. I just came in a bit ago from cutting some of the daisies back. They were looking rather raggedy and I’m hoping for a second flush.
PS – love, love, love bouquets in the bathroom. 🙂
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