Marigold and Mint: August 2009

in bloom for week of August 24

My first batch of apricot dahlias is coming out of the field. Why didn't I grow these last year??? I bought the tubers from a 5th generation Dutch bulb grower and he has taken good care of them. I can't wait for the pink and black varieties to bloom!

This is one of my favorite color combinations -- mustard and orchid zinnias.

Creamy vanilla marigolds are new to Marigold and Mint this year. Aren't they pretty when combined with yellow marigolds?

And finally a few of the heirloom roses. I can't wait for these to be great big rose bushes next year!

Mary rose on the left (planted for my daughter, mother and mother-in-law) and Lexi on the right

Louise Odier

weekend update

I finally figured out that my pansies can work as a cut flower as well as an edible. There are so many kinds of purples in the field -- here are some with a yellow center, along with lambs ear. A very soft arrangement.

My friend Rachael loves sunset colors, so I put these together for her:

What to do about cosmos? Nobody really buys them, but they are so happy and so easy to grow that I can't help myself. And I grew them in my first grown up garden on our roof in Brooklyn and so they remind me of that. But now I have a house and a field full of cosmos. I need a troop of school children to come out and pick and enjoy them!

Isn't there something just right about sunflowers in a yellow pitcher? Here are some valentine suns in my kitchen window.

I'm reading a memoir right now in which the author's mother, as a bride, carried a book of prayers rather than a bouquet down the aisle (even though her betrothed was a florist!). Thank goodness for business that most brides don't make this choice.

I'm going to harvest the weld and indigo this weekend in an attempt to make some dye. Wish me luck!