About my garden

Monday 18 February 2019

A Tribute

This week I had the privilege of making a funeral sheaf for someone I used to work for. 
I'm showing it to you here as all the material was collected from her garden. I gardened for her for about 10 years. I'm not quite sure when I started and then, sadly, she spent the last couple of years in a care home which she found quite frustrating. 
She was a typical gardener - bought plants wherever she went, swapping roots and cuttings with friends and family. 





Despite taking around 20 photographs I don't think any of them do it justice. If you are able to zoom in, you can see in better detail. In real life it was bright, fresh and colourful.

It includes - Some kind of laurel (I think- correct me if I'm wrong), Euonymous - gold and white, Viburnum, Osmanthus, Hellebore, Hazel catkins, Rosemary- of course, Pittosporum, white Heather, Ivy and Chaenomeles. It's quite large - around two and a half feet wide and I was impressed how colourful it was for February. 

I went to look round the garden last week and see what there was to  use and if I need to buy anything to supplement. As you see there was plenty. I cut a few Forsythia branches to see if I could force them to open in time. They started opening the day of the funeral, typically, so I get to enjoy them along with this Chaenomeles. 


Making this was a lovely way to say goodbye and reminded me of the hours in her garden - often spent walking round holding a pot deciding where to plant a new treasure. Decisiveness wasn't a strong point. 

The best thing for me was that the family really appreciated it and thought it a fitting tribute. It was certainly personal and a special thing to do. 

Join Cathy at Rambling in the Garden for In a Vase on Monday. 

13 comments:

  1. Just the sort of tribute that your friend would love.....I agree with you, that is the sort of tribute I would like when I go...often the family are too occupied, and finding an artist like you to make this is the ideal way for a family to arrange a floral tribute. She must have loved her garden and wonderful to have so much variety at this time of the year.

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    1. She did love it and I think would have been amazed at how much there was to use.

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  2. What a perfect tribute to your friend. Wish I could find someone like you to tend and beautify my garden areas for me!

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  3. A beautiful tribute for a gardener. So sorry that another of the garden tribe is gone. What will become of the garden that she and you lovingly tended for so long? Ah, gardens are as ephemeral as life itself.

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    1. I'm afraid the garden will probably be 'developed'. It's quite a large plot - someone might want to buy it but it's unlikely. Some of the plants will go to a good home! Lol

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  4. Oh that is such a fitting tribute, Aliaon, and I am so pleased that you had the opportunity to make that sheaf, and that the family appreciated it too. It highlights that there can always be material available in the garden for a vase, whatever the month. What a shame that the plot is more likely to appeal to a developer - it would be sad for a gardener's garden to bite the dust, but sadly that can often be what happens. Good to see the twigs blossoming for you

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    1. We'll have to wait and see what happens to the plot. I drive past another garden, which I lovingly tended when the owner wasn't able to, and I doubt the new owners have done a thing too it in the past few years.

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  5. I think she would have loved this beautiful wreath - a lovely tribute for a gardener. :)

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  6. I can't think of a better tribute for a person who loved her garden, Alison. Your skill in arrangement brought the ingredients together beautifully too.

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  7. Beautiful Alison< I was privileged to make the floral tribute for the top of the coffin of my MIL< she was a very keen gardener and even though it was just before Christmas I was able to find lots of beautiful evergreens in her garden, I did add a few white purchased flowers but in reality they weren't needed; I also included thick candles so that the coffin seemed alive and the centre of proceedings. I'm sure your friend would have very much appreciated such a personal tribute.

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    1. Candles sound lovely but I doubt we would be allowed to have that here.

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  8. Oh what a special honour to be asked to make such a wreath Alison and how fitting that it was made up with no doubt much loved flowers and foliage from her garden. You've created a most beautiful and unique tribute.

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