The idea for this week’s vase came to me while I was playing around with foliage ideas for last week’s arrangement featuring Autumn Joy Sedum, marigolds, and Cosmos. I tried adding a small branch of dark burgundy coleus to that bouquet, but it wasn’t a good fit.
I was taken, however, with the combination of the coleus with the Cosmos; thus, this week’s vase was born:
Cosmos have a relatively short vase life, so I chose flowers that are not one hundred percent open. Judging from previous experience, these will probably last until Friday. The Coleus, of course, will last all winter; in fact, I plucked some of these branches out of the jarful I set to rooting last night. (Update: The Cosmos in this vase lasted and looked nice for a full week before they started to droop and drop some petals.)
I’m quite fond of how well the Cosmo’s bud matches the Coleus’s foliage:
Regular readers of my “In a Vase” posts must be tired of my Cosmos by now! I promise I will bring you something different next week. 
I decided to play with some chartreuse Coleus as well:
This vase holds stems from two Coleus plants, as well as two stems of Pineapple Sage. I thought it would look nice to have a long sprig of chartreuse Sweet Potato Vine trailing down the side of the vase, but I couldn’t make it work.
Can you guess what the tiny yellow flowers are?
These are blossoms from some lettuce that went to seed in the vegetable garden. I think they add just the right subtle touch of color to the arrangement. They exude a milky liquid when cut, though, that muddles up the water. (Update: the lettuce blossoms lasted only a day. They closed up over night, and no more opened. The little branch of pineapple sage did not last long, either, wilting completely by the third day. The coleus, though, kept beautifully, and the arrangement still looked nice all week.)
Be sure to visit Cathy at Rambling in the Gardento see more lovely arrangements!
My goodness that first vase is really gorgeous with the colors contrasting perfectly. Then the coleus leaves of the second with lettuce flowers…genius.
Well, I don’t know if I’d go so far as genius, but thanks! (blushing)
That plain burgundy coleus is stunning, and a brilliant foil for the cosmos! Did you grow the coleus from seed, or do you just overwinter it from year to year. I did try growing some from seed but had no success whatsoever 😦 I would never have guessed the yellow flowers in the second vase were from a lettuce – and doesn’t this vase look cool and refreshing compared to the warmth and richness of the first? It’s great being able to note these things, how colours change the ambience of a vase – this meme has been such an education! ps love those teeny tiny squashes too 🙂
Cathy, I bought the coleus as a small plant from a nursery this year, but I have already taken cuttings (some of which are in this arrangement) so I’ll have it again next year. I prefer to take cuttings to root in water rather than try to overwinter the whole plant indoors. I’ve grown coleus from seed in the past, but you have to start them pretty early, and you need a lot of patience. Thanks for the nice comments!
I love both of your arrangements. Very nice choice of colors in each. Don’t think I could ever tire of cosmos!
Thanks! The Cosmos do add a happy, fresh touch to arrangements, don’t they?
Very pretty! You really can think outside of the box when it comes to arrangements, Kimberley — I never would have thought of putting coleus in a vase like that. And I like both the dark and light arrangements. Thanks for sharing your good ideas with us! -Beth
Thank you, Beth. I’m pretty certain I’ve seen other people using Coleus in vases, so I can’t claim originality there, but I’m happy to pass on a good idea when I see one!
I do love Cosmos, and will never tire of them, but I think I like the Coleus even more – especially in your second vase! The fresh lemony yellow and greens look great together. I think I’m going to have to try growing Coleus in the future! 🙂
Oh yes, do try Coleus. They would look great in your containers! By the way, I’ve tried to leave comments on your past two or three posts, but they don’t seem to be showing up! Not sure what’s going on–it’s happening on a couple other people’s sites as well. But I’m reading and enjoying your entries!
Thanks Kimberley. I’ll check the spam folder.