SUMMER ARRANGEMENTS WITH COLOR - Use a variety of flowers for impact

Early summer blooms from the garden make this July 12th arrangement colorful and happy. Gladiola, lilies, zinnias, delphinium and daisies in various colors of yellow, pink, blue, and white are in the bouquet, which will last more than a week. Gladiolas will bloom in the garden late spring through fall because of early planting, and planting at 2-week intervals from early spring into early summer. Delphinium is the same. By cutting down to the basal leaves after the first bloom, it will bloom again. I can get three bloom cycles from the delphinium in a season. Zinnias will bloom until a killing frost in fall. The more you cut, the more they bloom. The vase is a new one--a friend gave it to me for helping with the wedding reception of her daughter. I love it! It holds about 11 quarts of water, and is very heavy to carry, so I only fill it up not quite half way. As always, use a floral preservative and make a second cut of the stems under water for longer vase life.

GLADIOLA, ROSES and ZINNIAS in SUMMER ARRANGEMENTS

This week's arrangement of summer blooms: The HYBRID TEA ROSES are lovely this time of year, as well as the GLADIOLA  and STATE FAIR ZINNIAS, which will continue their blooms until frost. The more zinnias you cut, the more that will bloom, so I like to use as many as possible through the summer months.  The gladiola still have one more bloom cycle of my spring plantings to bloom, which, after planting them in 2-week intervals, end up blooming all summer long.  These bright, cheery colors always lift my spirits.