Today saw the start of the lengthy Box hedge-trimming operation in the Walled Garden at Wimpole and I was warned that, unless I wanted truncated and squared off border plants, I had to do something about the overhanging flowers in my borders. So I’ve temporarily propped back the exuberant desirables like stipa tenuissima, pennisetum villosa and agapantus, but pruned back the gaura, ammi, sage and salvia nemerosa. Looking down at the bunched stems of gaura in my hand I couldn’t bear to compost them, so I decided to bring some home to form the basis of a Monday vase. That means that I’m joining in with Cathy’s (at Rambling in the Garden) ever expanding ‘In a Vase on Monday’ meme using logical hedge trimmings (mostly)!
Ammi major and Salvia nemerosa saved from the indignity of an electric hedge trim
It’s not all rescued trimmings though. I’ve added further purple spikes to the salvia prunings using buddleia and teucrium hircanicum from the garden at home.
Purple spike of teucrium hircanicum
I’ve also had to tidy a lovely grass, pennisetum thunbergii, at our front door (so that the postie can get through to the letterbox) and those stems have added some punch to the arrangement. I think that the pennisetum’s dusky pink tones exaggerate the carmine in the gaura and the tiny red eye in the buddleia flowers.
I’ve picked some Penstemon ‘Garnet’ to echo the red in the gaura too. Meanwhile, the ammi major provides a nice central cloud from which all the spikes emerge.
Don’t forget to click across to Cathy’s post to see what everyone else has gathered for their vases today.
Frogend dweller's Blog 
That’s great recycling, Allison – I think we are all btter about using prunings in our vases instead of the compost heap these days. Is that pennisetum hardy? I need to add more grasses to my borders but it’s great to see existing ones beginning to establish. Thanks for sharing
Cathy, the pennisetum is theoretically ‘Frost hardy’ and may need winter protection. I am growing it against a wall and it has come through 3 winters, but it has not been tested by those really.
Yes, so still a bit of a risk…
Your vase looks like an explosion of colorful fireworks…fabulous and fun!
Thank you! I like the idea of fireworks.
I am pleased you didn’t compost them.
😉 Me too! The gaura lasted ages.
Very pretty. My ammi is still green but hopefully it will make an appearance in a few weeks.
Bet your ammi is going by now. My A. major is setting seed pretty quickly now, but the A. visnaga is taking the floor.
My A. visnaga is still at bud stage….
I agree, the Wimpole trimmings were far too good to be discarded, nicely augmented too.
Thanks Kate. I have to be a bit careful about looking like I am cutting flowers from the borders, ‘cos I have banned the House flower team from touching them!
A fabulous mixture of trimmings! I love Pennisetum, but only the boring little ones will get through our winters. The Ammi is a nice touch.
I have been lucky with various P. villosums and this thunbergii for the last few years. I always save seed and get some going the next year just in case though.
Beautiful arrangement!
Thanks