Monday, May 11, 2015

Phlox at the Cemetery

The Phlox is in full bloom at Riverside Cemetery.  It usually blooms for Memorial Day and that is still two weeks away.

There are a few kinds of Phlox this is Phlox subulata.

Phlox subulata

It comes in white, pink and all shades of purple some with darker or lighter colored eyes.

Phlox

It is short and is technically a ground cover.

Gloria and Deans headstone

I have always wondered who was buried or will be buried here amongst all the beautiful spring blooming Phlox subulata. 

I took a walk around and discovered it will be the final resting place of some old friends.  Their son died in 2006 and they(the parents) are still alive and kicking but their headstone is in place.  They lived directly across from us when we lived at the resort…on the pretty side of the lake.  I called it that because it would catch the late evening sunset and in the Fall the trees would glow.  You practically had to be a Mountain Goat to live on that side of the lake the hill is so steep.

The Cemetery looks pretty good, although it has not been mowed yet…they may be planning to make hay there before Memorial Day.

Many of the graves have fresh bouquets of silk flowers already.  I need to purchase some more silk flowers and update some bouquets…we usually pick most of our bouquets up after Memorial Day to make it easier for the mowers.  Silk flowers are easier…we used to take pots of geraniums but they have to be watered often especially if it turns warm.

What kind of flowers do you take to the cemeteries?

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23 comments:

Buttons Thoughts said...

Oh what a perfect flower for this special place. I did not put flowers at my Dad's and now my Mom's but I hung a pair of shed deer antlers on my Dad's headstone eight years ago and they still cling tight to the stone.Flowers are not allowed at their cemetery. Love your photos. Hug B

Anonymous said...

I always love to see phlox blooming in older cemeteries. I remember a grave once that was planted in hundreds of tulips. I use silk flower bouquets at the cemetery. I have discovered that if I spray the silks with clear spray paint, it makes them stand up against the weather better.

linda m said...

My parents always planted geraniums at all the graves. I put out silk flowers as they are easier (just stick them in the ground. And no water is needed. My Dad also gets 2 American flags as he served in WWII.

Patsy said...

Old cemeteries have so much character and I love to rome around in them.
The newer ones are flat with just the year on the stones. It tells you nothing about the person.
And they don't like flowers left on the grave.

DJan said...

Our phlox is everywhere in the High Country, but I don't see it down here at sea level much. I love the pretty flower, and your pictures make me nostalgic for our summer hikes. You are so fortunate to have graves of your ancestors to put flowers on. I don't, as everybody lived elsewhere and were cremated anyway. :-)

Unknown said...

I wish I could do live flowers but my parents are buried too far for me to keep them watered. I do silk flowers instead.

Unknown said...

I detest silk flowers on graves! They blow away, fade, tear and look very tacky!

Linda Kay said...

What a lovely flower to be blooming around the cemetery. Beautiful.

Cynthia said...

What a beautiful, peaceful field of phlox. I hope the mowers wait until they are done blooming. I live hundreds of miles from the graves of my family but I remember going with my grandparents to place bouquets of peonies at each of the graves and listen to the adults reminiscing. I learned wonderful stories and got to know those who were gone before I was born.

Anonymous said...

That phlox is so dreamy!

MTWaggin said...

So glad they haven't mowed so the phlox can bloom and grow! Lovely!

Tired Teacher said...

I take silk flowers to the cemetery. The grounds keepers allow flowers on the grass for two weeks, and after that they must be removed by the families or they will be discarded.

Linda W. said...

That Phlox is lovely! We have lots of it blooming in the higher elevations here in Oregon and Washington.

Shirley said...

I call it Moss Phlox ( I know, I spelled it wrong on my blog...)
We have one of those styrofoam crosses that you can stick flowers into on my mom's grave, we put evergreens in it and a couple of silk gerberas, and freshen it up on the anniversary of her death.
I think it's sad when people don't want funerals or want to be cremated and have their ashes spread; having a spot in a cemetary to visit our passed on loved ones is a profound spiritual experience and praying for the dead is very beneficial to us and to them.

Gail said...

Beautiful. At our cemetery they want no plants to mow around.

We have lost our phlox.

Red said...

...and in the old days our cemeteries were not mowed. There was just native grass and a few wild flowers. It was a peaceful resting place without disturbance from lawnmowers.

Anonymous said...

What a beautiful ground cover! I haven't seen anything like that. What an interesting question, though, about what kind of flowers folks take to cemeteries. I have taken a single rose to the graves of each of my direct ancestors - all the way back to those who left their 'old countries' behind. My dad and my husband get Christmas greens and a Memorial Day flag. I get to my grandparent's graves every few years and when I go, I take seasonal flowers. My daughter gets babies breath, daisies, and a white rose. . .

Henny Penny said...

Mama always called that type of Phlox "thrift". Don't know where that came from. Were you kidding about making hay at the cemetery? My sister puts a silk arrangement on mama's grave a couple of times a year. We both live quite a distance from where she is buried.

L. D. said...

The very first time I ever saw pholox like this was when we moved to the small town of Sidney, Iowa. It was everywhere in peoples gardens. It doesn't stay as a neat plant afterwards but while it is blooming it is so good. I remember seeing the rows of it along sidewalks and stairs.

Karen said...

We have a lot of that phlox blooming in people's gardens here. It looks so lovely cascading down a retaining wall. No cemetaries for me to visit. My dad was cremated, and I prefer to think of him when we visit the ocean and beach, that is where his heart was.

Karen said...

PS He died on his sailboat, and after his death we took it out for a sail and spread some of his ashes on the ocean.

Linda Reeder said...

The creeping phlox is so lovely. For now, that would be all the flowers I would need on my grave.

Jacqi Stevens said...

If that is the kind of phlox that spreads out like a carpet, it can be quite stunning to see from a distance. There is one spot across the Monterey bay where the phlox hangs over some rocks at water's edge--such a dramatic display! I keep meaning to plant some in my yard...one of these days!