In a Vase: Three Times Three

This week we are celebrating the third anniversary of the "In a Vase on Monday" theme with Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.  

For the occasion she set a theme of "three".   I decided to combine three sets of three flowers, based on color and, more loosely, type.  Earlier I had ambitions of creating three separate vases, but I decided that was a bit beyond my energy level as I'm still getting over the flu.  So today's arrangement is a threefold celebration, but in one vase.

First of all, there are the three different colors of lantana, which are all in bloom right now.

There is the common orange and yellow type, which was already here when we moved in.  It has formed large mounds beneath the two palm trees at the back of the patio.

There is the white lantana, planted last spring in the White and Silver Garden.  It has also spread rapidly and vigorously.  

And there is the darker variety, "Denver Red", from the East Border.  It was a slower starter, but is now blooming and growing fairly well and will probably spread as tenaciously as the other two soon.  From a distance it is not so easily distinguished from the basic orange and yellow, but the hue of the outer flowers is a little redder.

All three can be spotted in this view of the vase.

Next there is a threesome of red to orange trumpet flowers.  I had plenty to choose from as I have emphasized hummingbird plants in the garden, and red trumpets are usually favorites with the little creatures.  For this vase I picked Justicia californica, just coming into bloom...

...Russelia equisetiformis "Big Red"...

...and Cuphea ignea "Vermillionaire", which is blooming well since I thinned some of the overgrown plants nearby.  It is proving another excellent choice for the hummingbirds.

Here they are all together.

The last set of three consists of yellow or orange composites.  

The wonderful Berlandiera lyrata is still sending out blooms, as it did throughout the spring and summer.

There are flowers from Chrysactinia mexicana, which is putting on a fine show for autumn.  Despite being generally described as a spring-blooming plant, it is covered in its tiny yellow daisies now.

And there are orange zinnias, courtesy of my sister's container garden on the patio.

I have used my handbuilt earthenware vase, a simple container to hold all nine different types or colors of flowers!

Congratulations to Cathy on three years of her lovely meme, which has encouraged so many of us to bring flowers indoors from the garden!  I, for one, was always terribly reluctant to cut flowers, but it has proven such a pleasure and a natural extension of the garden into the house!

Weather Diary: Fair; High: 85 F (29 C)/Low: 58 F (14 C); Humidity: 23%-70%