Once yesterday’s wet afternoon had subsided, I was able to venture out to cut material for today’s vase, choosing increasingly bountiful blossom from crab apple Malus ‘Evereste’ and Tulip ‘Pink Sound’. The latter were bought largely because of their bargain price for sufficient tulips to fill a few containers, but I have nevertheless enjoyed watching them springing up and growing into shapely heads in a pleasing pink ombre effect. Admiring them from the kitchen windows it occurred to me that pairing them with the similarly shaded crab apple would make a pleasing combination for IAVOM.
I tried several vases before returning to my original and favourite which, with so much to recommend it, inevitably makes itself indispensable. There is something about its solidity, its overall proportions and its neutral colour which makes me return to it over and over again, despite my overly large collection of vases.
We don’t need to hear an actual melody to know that the sounds of spring are very joyous, creating a celebratory song of promise and abundance. The tune played by this teeny music box, ‘You Are My Sunshine’ doesn’t go nearly far enough:
You are my sunshineMy only sunshineYou make me happy When skies are grey
You’ll never know, dearHow much I love youPlease don’t take My sunshine away
What tune is your garden singing today? Why don’t you share a verse of it by plucking material for an IAVOM vase and leaving links to and from this post?
Rambling in the Garden 
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It’s a lovely combination (flowers and vase) and I was quite taken by the third photo – the quality of the light perhaps makes it look like a still life painting more than a photo, especially when viewed full screen from your website, not just this WordPress Reader view . Really beautiful.
My tulips are now blooming in earnest!
Thanks Chris – I write my blog on my laptop and sometims forget that not evryone will view it like I do! And I prefer my latop for other blogs as well, although I do answer some comments from my phone
The frog in my garden is singing this morning, trumpeting rain is on the way, I hope. Sometimes the frog is wrong. My first thought when opening your blog was how wonderful the pink looks in the vase. The tulips are definitely worth growing and the combination is a tribute to spring. Love it. Here is my vase: https://theshrubqueen.com/2023/04/24/in-a-vase-on-monday-pink-pineapple/
They are such a soft shade of pink, aren’t they? WE do get the odd frog or toad in the garden here but I have never heard them singing!
Pretty shades of pink. I sometimes find frogs asleep inside bromeliads.
Oh pink flowers in a vase. I love these pink colors so much especially the tulips. I really must consider sneaking some in just for spring vases. Lots of bird song in my garden keeping me happy too. We are still in the early blooms here with cooler/colder weather for a while longer.
Yes, tulips are brilliant as they last so long in vases, and still look attractive even when the petals shrivel
Lovely pink combination, Cathy. I love apple blossoms!
Appleblossom is such a delightfully soft shade of pink and white, isn’t it?
There was an apple orchard behind my house growing up… fond memories!
An orchard being your house sounds lovely – I remember a cornfield with poppies behind my Grannie’s house when I was a child…
The first ‘seeds’ planted in our gardening minds. 😉
Yes, and my Grannie introduced me to wild flowers too, as we didn’t have a garden at home then
Yes sing to the garden and it will sing for you..Beautiful pink colors.
Indeed, Beverley 👍
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That is such a pretty combination Cathy, and the vase is perfect! Now that I have seen the tune you are humming, I will no doubt be humming it too. 😉 My garden is full of birdsong today, as I was working in a patch next to the woods. My vase also has tulips in it… not as pretty as yours though. Thanks as always!
Most of our birds are year round visitors but they are always chattier once spring comes around , clearly enjoying the warmer temperatures and lighter days as much as the rest of us!
All most pretty in pink Cathy. Crabapple and tulip are a spot on pairing. Did you snap the tulips up in a bulb reduction sale? My malus ‘Red Sentinel’ is out now and the blossom on the wonky apple tree is just fully emerging 😂 My vase this Monday can be found here : https://greentapestry.blogspot.com/2023/04/iavom-host-of-daffodils.html
Some were in J Parkers sale but others were from one of the ‘cheap’ gardening suppliers (Gardening Express, maybe?) that I have bought some established perennials from (including a good size witch hazel to replace one that suffered in the drought). Blossom is only jut emerging on the ordinary apples, which seems a couple of weeks later than the crabs
I had one of those tiny music boxes once – I wonder what happened to it? As usual your arrangement and prop are perfectly coordinated, or perhaps I should say choreographed. I love the tulip and its combination with the crabapple flowers, two plants that would never survive in my climate. Like you, I tend to gravitate to certain vases, although of necessity I broke that habit this week: https://krispgarden.blogspot.com/2023/04/in-vase-on-monday-going-big.html.
As always, thanks for hosting, Cathy.
This one was given to me, but as a ‘trinket’ and not because of the sentiment – but it’s a song I have always liked, and the grandchildren like it!! As always, having a suitable prop is invariably down to chance, assisted by the motley bits and bobs I happen to have!
A sweet and perfect combination summing up ‘Tulip Week’.
Thanks Noelle, is there an actual Tulip Week?
Since most of the tulips are at the best this week, I was summing up my feelings, I guess dependent of the weather it could vary each year. In other words I am not aware of a ‘Tulip Week’, but many were featured in Six on Saturday just past.
Yes, of course, you are right – and perhaps we are sometimes surprised when tulips suddenly go from bud to full bloom in our gardens and pots, as they seem to do. Do you have space for any, Noelle, other than the petite species perhaps?
I have planted a few parrot tulips in pots this year. On the whole I aim for the naturalising types.
They seem to be a better bet for longevity. I do have one variety, dark purple ‘Victoria’s Secret’, that reliably returned, so I added more last year and will add more now I know this second batch has returned too
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You’re right, it’s absolutely beautiful and shouting spring all over. Love the music box too – you always come up with such funny props. 😁 Here’s mine: https://personaleden.wordpress.com/2023/04/24/in-a-vase-on-a-monday-serendipity/ Enjoy the week!
Thanks Annette 😊
I love your pink bouquet! Pink is always my favorite and first choice of colors for flowers and you have given us a beauty today.
Here is my contribution for this week: https://customcomforts.blog/2023/04/24/this-weeks-bouquet-dandelions-and-other-weeds/
Thanks Cindy, it is giving me a lot of pleasure looking at it
The tulips and crabapples form a perfect match with their graduated pink coloration. The name of that tulip gave me pause as I wondered what sound a tulip might have. Spring of course comes with a lovely soundtrack. That music box tunes is a family favorite in our home. Looking forward to seeing the other vases this week. Thanks for hosting. https://pbmgarden.blog/2023/04/24/in-a-vase-on-monday-monochrome-ii/
Glad you like tthe song too, Susie 👍 Personally, I think the a tulip’s song would be more of a march – it’s the length of the stems, I think!!
What a special little music box.
It’s such a simple thing, but can provide such pleasure – reminding me that you don’t need fancy technology for all Life’s entertainment…
I’m not often a fan of ombre effects, but I would absolutely make an exception for those lovely tulips! They and crabapple blossoms really do sing “spring” at the top of their voices. 🙂
Here it begins to be more like summer, and I have a rose–why wait for suspense?–in this week’s vase, which makes it seem a bit of a homecoming in its way:
https://smallsunnygarden.substack.com/p/pink-and-pinks
Sorry I have been late getting to pick up on your comment Amy – gardening has got in the way of blogging (and so it should?)!
So pretty!
Ah, Evereste! It looks so pink. I do not know what color it should be. It seems to me that it should be white, but I see some pictures of it that are even pinker than yours. It is described as blooming with reddish buds that open pink and then fade to white. ‘Prairiefire’ is the only flowering crabapple that I work with, and I happen to be very fond of it, but it will likely be the only one for me.