As you said; in this case, not much you could have done (without some extra equipment, at least). In cases such as these, there are several options:
1) Work the shot a bit more. Take several shots from several angles, positions, zooms, focus points - see if looking at it in another way will improve it at all.
2) See how much you can fix in post. Not ideal, but editing isn't by any means bad. Just, as a general rule, try to set up your shot as you want it beforehand.
3) Work with your camera's settings to try to get your desired shot a bit more easily.
4) Do some macro photography of it if doesn't work as a larger subject! For example, I bet a closeup of a couple of those leaves together would look pretty sweet.
5) Move on to another shot. Sometimes, it's best to not wear yourself out shooting something that shouldn't be shot. If it just doesn't work, whether it be due to lighting, the background, or whatever, sometimes you can't make it work. Of course, don't give up too easily, but know your limits. And just move on! There's plenty of stuff to take photos of. :)
Hope this helps some!
