To offer a fresh perspective, we\u2019ve elevated typical uninvited garden guests to be the stars of exquisite cut-flower displays, inspired by art and bound to change your mind. Photographs \u00c9va N\u00e9meth <\/p>

\u00a9 \u00c9va N\u00e9meth<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\n
I\u2019ve always been drawn to the work of the 18th-century Dutch still life painters, dynamically lit to increase the contrast of light and dark \u2013 a technique known as chiaroscuro. The inspiration for this arrangement came from Jan van Huysum\u2019s painting Flowers in a Vase, and like his painting, it includes wildlife in the form of snails \u2013 a reminder that all life is important along the food chain.<\/p>\n
Arranging weeds with elder, bracken and dog rose: how to achieve the look<\/h2>\n
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\u00a9 \u00c9va N\u00e9meth<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\nThis old metal ornamental vase was perfect for the display with its low, wide curvaceous shape raised on ornate legs. I placed a narrow, elliptical glass vase inside, and added two layers of one-inch gauge chicken wire, secured with pot tape. This helps hold the stems in position, removing the need for floral foam. I then filled both vessels with cool, fresh water. This arrangement includes an array of different species, mostly chosen for their value as food plants for wildlife<\/a>. Big and bold flowerheads contrast with a host of spiky, soft, rough and smooth leaf shapes. The inclusion of very short stems gives the arrangement depth, while curvaceous stems extending beyond the vase give movement and flow.<\/p>\n
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\u00a9 \u00c9va N\u00e9meth<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\nThe flowers and foliage were picked late the previous evening and conditioned in plenty of water overnight. Each stem was recut before placing in the arrangement. Foliage from leafy plantains, elder and bracken was placed first, starting with a couple of low branches of dogwood<\/a> to give further support to the taller stems. Umbelliferous flowers of common hogweed, wild carrot, elder and a group of mauve thistles added mass and the dog rose<\/a> became the focal point. I added uprights in the form of mallow, bramble, poppy seedheads<\/a>, clover and foxglove, complemented by slim flower spikes of plantain, sorrel and quaking grass, and curvy wisps of white bryony and old man\u2019s beard. The colour scheme involved a harmonious blend of pinks, mauves, creams and whites, with a spattering of yellow from the buttercup on one side, balanced on the other by the slightly finer nipplewort.<\/p>\n
Plants used<\/h3>\n
Briza maxima<\/em> \u2013 greater quaking grass<\/p>\n
Briza media<\/em> \u2013 quaking grass<\/p>\n
Bryonia dioica<\/em> \u2013 white bryony<\/p>\n
Chamaenerion angustifolium<\/em> \u2013 willowherb<\/p>\n
Cirsium palustre<\/em> \u2013 marsh thistle<\/p>\n
Clematis vitalba<\/em> \u2013 old man\u2019s beard<\/p>\n
Cornus sanguinea<\/em> \u2013 dogwood<\/p>\n
Daucus carota<\/em> \u2013 wild carrot<\/p>\n
Digitalis purpurea<\/em> \u2013 common foxglove<\/p>\n
Fumaria officinalis<\/em> \u2013 common fumitory<\/p>\n
Heracleum sphondylium<\/em> \u2013 common hogweed<\/p>\n
Lapsana communis<\/em> \u2013 nipplewort<\/p>\n
Malva sylvestris<\/em> \u2013 common mallow<\/p>\n
Melilotus albus<\/em> \u2013 white melilot<\/p>\n
Papaver somniferum<\/em> \u2013 opium poppy seedheads<\/p>\n
Plantago lanceolata<\/em> \u2013 ribwort plantain<\/p>\n
Plantago major<\/em> \u2013 broad-leaved plantain<\/p>\n
P. major<\/em> \u2018Atropurpurea\u2019 \u2013 purple-leaved plantain<\/p>\n
Pteridium aquilinum<\/em> \u2013 bracken<\/p>\n
Ranunculus acris<\/em> \u2013 meadow buttercup<\/p>\n
Rosa canina<\/em> \u2013 dog rose<\/p>\n
Rubus fruticosus<\/em> \u2013 wild bramble<\/p>\n
Rumex acetosa<\/em> \u2013 sorrel<\/p>\n
Rumex obtusifolius<\/em> \u2013 broad-leaved dock<\/p>\n
Sambucus nigra<\/em> \u2013 elder<\/p>\n
Silene dioica<\/em> \u2013 red campion<\/p>\n
Silene latifolia<\/em> subsp. alba<\/em> \u2013 white campion<\/p>\n
Silene vulgaris<\/em> \u2013 bladder campion<\/p>\n
Trifolium pratense<\/em> \u2013 red clover<\/p> <\/body><\/html>\n
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