IVOM: Faded glory

My husband is a guy who appreciates patina. Rust or dust, it's all beautiful to him. As a result, he often keeps the bouquets that I put in his bathroom in place indefinitely. And this is what you get.

I discovered these almost petrified Toad lilies (Tricyrtis sp.) weeks after I put them in this vase. I had gathered quite a few stems just before a frost and most of the flowers never opened indoors. 

Everything turned silvery brown with leaves and flower buds remaining in place.

Before I relegated everything to the compost bin, I moved the vase to the fireplace mantle in front of my collage with an equally brown sheen for a few more days. 

As I was also dismantling my big bowl of foliage, Mark grabbed one of the Bergenia leaves that was fading in no uncertain terms. He gave it pride of place in our Japanese bamboo wall container right by our dinner table. 

We've been watching the black eat up more and more of the green center of the leaf. Any day now it too, will join the compost.

But with cold and snow here, I doubt I am going to find anything in my garden to showcase next Monday. Visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden, our hostess for this long-running and much-loved meme to see what other gardeners have put in a vase today.

Comments

[Peter/Outlaw]

Even in this state, these are beautiful. If Mark likes dust, he'd be right at home at my house. We've started naming the dust bunnies and we now consider them pets.

[Linda Brazill]

My policy is that I will dust for guests but not for friends!

[Cathy]

What a useful partner to have to enjoy the patina of dust and rust - I just don't notice, and fortunately The Golfer doesn't either! IAVOM has introduced me to how plant material of all types of decay and it has been an interesting learning process - your bergenia leaf is a great example!

[Linda Brazill]

Between Piet Oudolf and the head of the university's Allen Centennial Garden, I am learning to love brown and dying plants.

[Loree / danger garden]

Both wonderful examples of how many throw out fading flowers and foliage too soon.

[Kris P]

Decay can be beautiful! I found a skeletonized leaf on my back slope that I thought was pretty enough to keep but somehow lost it in the midst of tidying up that section of the garden.

[Lisa at Greenbow]

I can see that you like these fading colors. My Japanese Maples are holding on to some of those leaves. It looks like I had a paper bag tearing contest and all the remains are hung on the trees. Happy IAVOM.

[Donna@GardensEyeView]

Oh he is a wabi sabi person who loves the imperfections...I do too and these are wonderful.