I spoke on Saturday about the abundance of growth in the garden, and the emergence of blooms on the green spikes of ‘Tête-à-Tête’ seems, to me that is, to herald the build-up to spring. Plenty of sunshine in recent days, albeit accompanied by a chilly north wind, has served to highlight the joys of snowdrops, hellebores, pulmonaria, prunus, viburnum and now narcissi, accentuating the pleasures of daily rambles. The garden never stops, but it is now gathering pace and won’t even think about slowing down until the autumn.
Today’s vase demonstrates the freshness of blooms at this time of year, with stems of ‘Tête-à-Tête’ joined by greenish-yellow catkins on twisted hazel Corylus avellana ‘Contorta’ and a stout flowering stem of Hellebore argutifolius with its apple-green flowers. A short-lived but avid self-seeder, this often flowers before Christmas and pops up throughout the garden where I generally leave it to its own devices as it is not at all objectionable. The vase itself was bought as a hyacinth vase, which it may or may not have been designed for, its greenness supporting the freshness of the contents – and the prop is a miniature ‘slinky’, the perfect but not overused accompaniment to a seasonal vase like this!
Gardens in some parts of the world may not yet be stirring, but if you are able to join us on IAVOM by finding material in your garden to pop into a vase or jam jar then please do so by leaving the usual links to and from this post.
Rambling in the Garden 
The elements are beautiful, and so artistically arranged Cathy. It has a Japanese feel to it. You may have a spring but I am going conkers! https://noellemace.blogspot.com/2023/02/in-vase-on-monday-am-i-conckers.html
Thanks Noelle – and as you soon as you sugggested ‘Japanese’ I could visualise it. Look forward to seeing your conkers – I have a wooden bowl of them in fron of me now… 😉
Gorgeous vase, Cathy, I’m delighted to say that all of these are in full swing here as too. Hope all is well with you and the golfer. At long last a contribution from me: https://personaleden.wordpress.com/2023/02/27/in-a-vase-on-a-monday-among-the-fairies/ Have a good week!
Thank you Annette, and it’s good to hear spring is on its way for you too 👍 You have been away with the fairies…?
Yes, sometimes I join them for a ride on the wind 😉
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I just really love this vase Cathy. The catkins are dramatic and a beautiful color. They tie everything together. Thanks for hosting our vases. Have a happy week. https://pbmgarden.blog/2023/02/27/in-a-vase-on-monday-hellebores-with-shades-of-blue/
Thanks Susie – I am pleased to hear how much you like it. The catkins canme as a surprise, as I am sure the last time I picked twigs from the Corylus there was no sign of them!
Wonderful tassels and spring greens this Monday. I love the hazels and daffs. I always ended up with rotten bulbs with the hyacinth vases, I think yours has been put to a better use. Spring forward! Thank you for hosting. https://theshrubqueen.com/2023/02/27/in-a-vase-on-monday-snap/
Ha, yes I too have never had much success with hyacinths in vases – so I have several hyacinth vases that are just pretty in their own right 😉
I particularly like the color of that one. There must be a trick to keep enough water at the roots without soaking the bulb and lots of water changes? My neighbor forces hyacinths but uses soil and pots and chills the bulbs.
Yes, mine in pots are forced, but we can buy them ready prepared and I keep them in the dark until the shoots are a few inches high and the flowers are just beginning to emerge, then move them to the light. Judging the right time to move them is always a bit hit and miss if you have more than one in a pot
What a stunning arrangement. One of your best.
Aw, thank you Christine – I could say it was just ‘plonked’, but in fact I did spend a few minutes truying to distribute the narcissi evenly around the helleborean inbetween the curly bits of the corylus…😉
Oh I do like this colour combination.
Thanks Rosie – to me, this colour combination always shouts ‘spring’
No stirring here as we were just buried under snow and ice and more not he way tonight and tomorrow. But I was filled with a sense of wonder and spring as I witnessed your beautiful spring vase. I can’t wait until I see the snow finally gone.
With store bought flowers I am able to join in:
Yes, the US has seems to have had some extreme weather, although I remember from other years how much snow you typically have and how long it lasts
Yes we generally have loads of snow, but my it has been less but with the addition of ice. I prefer just the snow myself. I can walk in snow.
Yes, ice can be such an unknown quantity. WE have had two realtively cold spells but not really any snow this winter, so far, that is!
Oh your vase flows so harmoniously Cathy and what an appealing colour combination too. All in all a stunning effect. I have not grown that hellebore variety before – it sounds rather tempting 😂 My vase if you can call it that is here : https://greentapestry.blogspot.com/2023/02/iavom-when-is-vase-not-vase.html
Aw thanks Anna 😊 I am amazed you have not come across this hellebore before and will look out for any energent seedlings and make sure you have one to add to your garden. They seem very tolerant of location as they pop up in the woodland too as well as the borders
I love the catkins, which look great paired with the cheerful Narcissus and the green hellebore flowers. I could have used some green flowers myself yesterday but had to settle for an overly bright yellow. Mother Nature is playing tricks on us and sent a very cold weather system our way via Alaska last week and more is on the way so spring’s advance is on a temporary hold: https://krispgarden.blogspot.com/2023/02/in-vase-on-monday-winter-weather.html
The cold weather must be a real shock to your system, Kris!! I love green flowers, and this is such a useful hellebore as the stems seem to last well in a vase, unlike the hybrids
It’s an exciting time of year for us gardeners. Your vase is lovely.
Oh indeed it is – but I have a lot of outstanding jobs from the weeks of frozen ground we had, and will be pleased when they are out of the way. I have been emptying the 2021 compost heap today, so that is progress!
This is rather architectural, very Ikebana.
The corylus always seems to add a hint of ‘Japanese’ to a vase or posy – it’s such a useful thing to have
I have a twisted or contorted hazel tree, but the catkins are very, very small.
That’s intriguing, I wonder why?
Oh, those are pretty catkins. I do not know why, but the small catkins of the native hazel at work make the landscape look like it is in a cooler climate. I sort identify them with the Pacific Northwest. However, I sort of identify a slinky with palm trees in Palm Springs.
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So very pretty and a lovely taste of what is yet to come here. But it can’t be long now! I love those twisted hazels and will definitely reserve a space for one in the near future. We had to remove one in our old garden when we first moved there as it had grown into a patio and was shading the whole area. Such a shame but there was no other solution at the time! My vase today is also spring-like, despite more snow! (And we have got that icy north wind too.)
A shame you had to lose yours – ours is down the side of the house where it is already shady and it is in a kind of raised planter, built to accommodate it, which I suppose keeps it a reasonable size
Such a lovely and elegant tribute to spring, Cathy! The catkins add the perfect touch to Tete-a-Tete and the hellebore.
Well, I have been entirely absent from IaVoM for a very long time, but the garden has managed to get on with the new year meantime, so I finally have a vase to share. A new favorite fragrant flower is one of the stars… https://smallsunnygarden.substack.com/p/scents-of-spring
How lovely to hear from you again – and perhaps it is telepathy but I was just thinking f you on Monday and wondering how things were… 😉