Today’s GPOD comes from Cherry Ong.
Here are some handmade evergreen wreaths and other holiday florals. I wanted to make something different so I used square wreath forms. The goodies are part home-grown and part store-bought. I wish I had an acreage garden where I could grow more goodies, but that’s the way the cookie crumbles.
I use the leftovers to make floral arrangements. I find that they last if they are situated in cooler areas of the home. I also try to use some interesting containers like an old IKEA lantern with floral foam to support these goodies with surprisingly pleasing results. These wreaths and florals make great holiday gifts.
For the easiest holiday arrangements, my go-to combo is pinecones and reindeer moss. Pinecones come in so many interesting shapes and sizes and can be easily collected during the summer months. I hope you all get a chance to spread Christmas cheer through your gardens.
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Comments
Cherry, your arrangements are stunning. I wish I had the patience ( and the ability) to do that. I especially love the 4th and 5th photos. You have great talent. Thanks sharing your pictures. Maybe next season, you could send an arrangement to everyone on GPOD?
Thanks Kevin and Happy New Year! I sure wish I could make and send some winter arrangements to you all. That's after I visit and enjoy your garden. Dream on!
Hello there Cherry - Great to see your classy and innovative wreaths and floral arrangements today. Lovely use of local plant material. You are such a talented horticulturalist! Cheers from Oz
PS. BONUS time - featuring the genus, Hakea, in which there are nearly 150 species in the family Proteaceae. There is considerable variability in the flower shape (globose to cylindrical) and colour, seed pods (woody - and would be great in wreaths, Cherry), and plant size (shrub to small tree). Hakeas have spirally arranged leaves, and are drought tolerant. Hope they is some interest in these plants.
Frank, thanks for giving us such a great Christmas present with such beautiful flowers. I just have to get to Australia. The plants are amazing.
Just let me know when you are coming down under and we would be delighted to show you and Kathy around etc., Kev.
Trust me, Frank. We will take you up on that offer. It will be after we retire (2-3 more years). Australia is on our bucket list.
Gorgeous, Frank! Thanks for sharing. It is enjoyable to see these interesting flowers and Yes! They would look fabulous in arrangements!
Frank, those colors are so spring like- they are a tease! We have another 10-12 weeks of winter here. Thanks for sharing!
Crikey Rhonda, I would go stir crazy with another 10-12 weeks of your winter. Stay warm and sane, 'Darlin'.
I have never been sane, darlin’!
Now let's not go crazy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Once again, Australia flora to die for. Thanks for sharing such pretty flowers.
I often think of the children's book writer, Dr. Seuss when I see some of these flowers you share, Frank.They really do stir the imagination.
Haha, Michaele, just watched this with my grands. Great story and you have a point about Frank’s crazy, awesome flowers.
Otherworldly as always Frank... love 'em!
Perfect description!
Strangely beautiful! Thanks for sharing and happy new year Frank!
Such cool flowers, Frank! Those loops look like someone made them with a crochet hook or knitting needles! Do they all unfurl as the flower matures? And the blue sky behind in the last image -- I haven't seen that for about a week, but the sun was sparkling on a smooth expanse of snow up the mountain at the time and that has its own special beauty. Thanks for sharing your springtime and early summer with us!
Hi Lorraine - Interesting comment about the knitting needles - the round flowers are also called pincushions. In this pic. you can see how the loops unfold. Cheers, Frank
They do look like pin cushions, Frank. It's interesting how the flowers come right out of the woody stems. The English botanists must have been hopping with excitement when they first landed in Australia!
Yes I imagine Sir Joseph Banks couldn't believe his eyes when Captain Cook's party landed in Australia in 1770, Lorraine. He took plenty of plant material back to the UK and it took ages for botanists to work out our flora.
Whoa! Love Hakea - those flowers are stunning. They remind me of Protea flowers from South Africa. It would be a dream to be able to grow those, let alone make winter arrangements out of them. Are the flowers scented? How long do they last?
Cherry - Hakeas are in the same family as species of Protea, Leucadendron and Leucospermum (ie South African natives; the flowers of Leucospermum cordifolium are also called pin cushions). No scent. Seed pods last forever - so would be great in your arrangements.
These are stunning, Frank. Each better than the last. I recently saw photos of Hakea victoria and was astounded when I searched for images of those tough and colorful leaves. Amazing!
Hey Tim - I'm not familiar with H. victoria so I had to look it up as well. Yes the leaves are different - different from what I'm used to with hakeas.
Love your arrangements, Cherry! First time I have seen a square wreath. Fun! Great use of material; you are so gifted!
Thanks Margaret. Happy New Year to you and your family! We are that much closer to Spring - yehey!
These are beautiful. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you.
Cherry, you are so talented!
Thank you and happy new year!
Cherry, you are the master! It has been so windy here, some of my arrangements have partially blown away. I’m glad, after seeing yours, that Steve didn’t post mine. Lol.
Looks like we will have to get a petition going to ensure your creations are displayed on GPOD, Rhonda!
I second that.
Thank you Rhonda. I'd love to see your arrangements. It was quite the pleasant surprise this morning that Steve posted my photos. I thought GPOD has been revamped with an all new designer format. Thank you Steve!
Ps- those juniper? berries are to die for. Do you have snow in BC?
Yes, they are juniper berries and I totally love them. Wonderful fragrance indoors and outdoors. We had a white Christmas this year - everything was dusted with snow - but not enough to scare off your holiday guests from coming to dinner.
Your creative efforts never disappoint, Cherry, and are truly a delight. You always seem to have a fresh take on a conventional idea. I adore the combo of the aged urns, moss, and pinecones...just 3 elements but they form a vignette that has captivating complexity. You really are a treasure!
Awwww, thanks Michaele. Wishing you and Darwin a peaceful, prosperous and healthy New Year!
Cherry, you are a great floral arranger. All your arrangements are beautiful; love the square wreaths. Once all the new plants in my landscape get to be higher than my knees, I will have to try my hand at using my own plant material for wreaths and arrangements - using yours as starting patterns. Thanks for sharing your handiwork. Have a good weekend fellow GPODers; stay safe.
Thank you Sonya. I'm glad to hear you are waiting for your landscape plants to grow. Most of my evergreens and conifers are grown in containers so they take forever to grow. I'm so envious of some of the YouTube bloggers and Plant Nurseries that show videos of taking cuttings from the gardens for their evergreen wreaths and arrangements. It's gonna be great when they're ready and I look forward to seeing your creations.
What art and eye you have! I'll echo everyone. I thought the square wreath was my favorite until I spotted the juniper! And pinecones rule! Thank you so much for sharing! Your photos lift the spirit today.
Thank you and Happy New Year! Your kind comments have also made my day.
You've got a good eye for composition and such great creativity. Everything looks great and I agree, pine cones are the best. We have pine cones strewn about the house and I love having them in the garden. They last for a long time and open and close depending on moisture. Best wishes for the coming new year!
Thank you and best wishes to you too my friend! What kind of pinecones do you have in or around your property? I have a bin full of different pinecones that I've collected over the years, and as of this holiday season, the medium and small ones are running low with all the evergreen gifting. I guess it's time for me to go out to forage and replenish next summer. It would be a good excuse to go hiking/biking again. Works for me!
I definitely need more time and energy in my days. We used to have a huge white pine that provided marvelous pine cones for mulch, as well as gorgeous pine needle mulch. Now I have to scrounge cones elsewhere. A friend in Raleigh brought me a lovely bag full, but I have no idea what kind they are. We have some treasures too; three very large pine cones from a hybrid tree of some sort, given to us by an employee at the Bloedel Preserve, along with some tiny redwood pine cones given for contrast. Love them. They're actually on our dining table right now.
Good morning Cherry... This may have been the best year ever for your winter floral creations, each and every one is splendid! You definitely lucked out when you were on the hunt for interesting material, you found some really cool 'stuff'! I can almost catch the dreamy scent of the lush juniper berries and the eucalyptus buds are a wonderful addition. All are eye-catching and fun.
Have an excellent weekend everyone... see you in 2018!
Always touched and tickled by your comments Sheila. Wishing you, Jim, and the rest of the clan the best that 2018 has to offer! Hope to see you soon.
Same back at you Cherry. Big hugs coming your way! xo
Good morning Ms. Org, I believe all of your creations are tasteful & unique. Work like yours is hard to do. .I joined a garden club last year & tried my hand at this . The ladies asked me to go for pizza & I think they edited my creations while I was gone. This year they asked me if I would mind being the chopper ( a subtle zinger don't you think) Keeping 15 ladies supplied with greens that day was hard work but fun.
Thank you for your terrific post this morning & good luck to all next year, Joe
Thank you Joe. Sounds like I could use your help in making arrangements as well. You don't know how important it is to have the right materials on hand and that is the most time consuming in the process of making holiday wreaths and florals. Please be assured that you have helped the season more beautiful and heartwarming.
Good morning , 2 days before the wreath making we went around the neighborhood gathering greens & that was a lot of fun also. The wreath sales are the main source of income for the club . The ladies are talented & creative & I don't mind that they have found a way to work around the quality control issues my "creations" present.
Happy New Year to you & good luck, Joe
Good for you, Joe. The men in our garden club never show up for wreath making. We could use a guy like you. Happy New Year!
Good morning Linda, As an added bonus I come with a pickup truck. That may have been the ticket into this all ladies club ( just kidding). My daughters convinced me I should join a club & I could not have picked a nicer group of people than the Catonsville Garden Club.
Good luck & happy New Year , Joe
Joe... I have sincerely missed you!!! I was just checking my email after a big family day out and about and saw your name. How the heck are you? I have missed your beautiful and thoughtful words. May 2018 bring more smiles to your soul than you could imagine!
Good morning Sheila, Thank you for your concern. I am doing fine but I am glad 2017 is coming to an end. I check out GPOD every morning & ,read all the posts. You folks cover the days topics so well that I have nothing to add. I really enjoy reading the back & forth comments amongst you folks. Several years ago when I found this site I remarked that it's like walking into a neighborhood coffee shop, setting at the counter, & watching a group of friends enjoying each others company. I still get that feeling in the mornings.
Good luck, I hope you have a Happy New Year,& once again tthank you, Joe
Dearest Joe,
You are absolutely right... GPOD is like a comfortable coffee shop filled with friends, some we know and some we don't yet.
I too, am hopeful that 2018 will be a better year for the US and our world.
As a family we have made big adjustments. Jim and I moved with our daughter and her family to Mexico in June so the little ones could see that the world is different and also have the possibility of becoming bilingual. (Our son and his fiance live in Mexico City so that is a huge plus.) It was time to downsize for us and we wanted to be with our grandkids, so we now live just north of Puerto Vallarta for at least another year.
About you having nothing to add to GPOD conversations... you are wrong my friend. I have been with GPOD from close to the beginning and your words sing the songs of most of our hearts! You are a thoughtful and kind man and you make our coffee shop come alive. We all miss you, so when you feel like making a comment, please do!
Your thoughtfulness is a gift to us all.
Well said, Sheila.
Good morning Sheila, Thank you for your kind remarks. I did a Google Earth tour of Puerta Vallarta & it's a beautiful area for your families adventure. Ocean to the west & mountains east . & the town looks clean & bright. It's great to hear you & your family are able to follow thru with your plans & the grand children no doubt will remember the experience forever.
Happy New Year & good luck to you & your family, Joe
Hey Joe - I have missed your comments and quotes as well. I recall that you said that you submitted some pics. and a story to GPOD admin. some time ago. Has it seen the light of day i.e. been posted as a GPOD? If not, it would be great to see them, Joe. Cheers from Oz
Good morning Frank, I did submit some photos in early fall but they were not used. The photos included a new area my friend & I were planning. This area includes divisions from his gardens . I rushed it because time was growing short & my submission pales in comparison to the others that have been submitted since. Therefore I never pursued it. I am going to attempt to send 2 photos of this area that includes his plants as well as mums from another friend. Than you Frank, I hope 2018 is great for you, good luck, Joe
Thanks for the pics., Joe. Nice work. Happy new year to you. Cheers from Oz
Hi Cherry. Your arrangements continue to amaze me. No matter what time of year, you just demonstrate an amazing eye for pleasing designs. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you (I'm blushing). Happy New Year Chris!
Hello Cherry, your creations are the best. Square wreath is a cut above idea. Thanks for sharing! Happy new year!
Thanks Lilian. 新年快乐!
Beautiful work, Cherry! I collect pinecones throughout the year from our Austrian Black Pine to use in Christmas decorations and arrangements. Yours are lovely.
Thanks Lorraine. I'd love to see your pinecone collection. I've never seen Austrian Black Prine and I'm sure I'll learn something from you.
Some beauty and fun all bundled into wonderful arrangements. Very pleasing, Cherry...you definitely got the smarts on putting this garden packages together. Loving those juniper berries. Hope you have a Happy New Year (all of it, I mean - not just one night), as well everyone else in here. Glorious garden days ahead.
Thank you David and wishing you and your family all the best in each and everyday in 2018! I am counting the days until Spring and looking forward to your garden posts especially the Japanese Maples....makes me excited just thinking about it.
Hi, Cherry, Just now getting a chance to look at these, and am so glad I did. I thought, by the time I'd seen the fourth shot, that I knew which one was my favorite (the fourth!) but then I saw the fifth, and then the sixth, and I just kept going and finally decided that I couldn't decide! Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful creativity. I am going out now to try some cuttings to see what I can develop for our new year's table! You have inspired me!
Thank you Cheryl. Have fun in collecting and creating! Every one will be an original and a chance to learn and be creative. It always warms my heart to make the holiday table one of my own.
Hi Cherry. You are certainly creative at wreath making and arrangements. It’s too bad that we’re on opposite sides of the border as I have a property full of great plants that I could share. Happy New Year to you and everyone at Gpod.
Wow Cherry! What a beautiful variety of conifers, berries, broad leaved evergreens and cones you found and put together so artfully!
What a beautiful way to extend the feeling of the holiday season throughout the winter! Really gorgeous and I especially love the one with the juniper berries. Your talent is a real inspiration.
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