Picking out fresh cut flowers for any social occasion

Even in allergy season, many kinfolk cannot resist the opportunity to dip their nose even when they know that they will redden their eyes or stimulate a sneezing fit. As you give the fresh flowers, however, there are a few thoughts that you may want to put behind them. These are small thoughts but thoughts that will make the effort that much more special.

Find the right florist

Giving fresh cut flowers in person is always the best way to go. Sending by internet is ok too but in person is better. If you are giving personally, however, spend a few extra minutes and stop by a few shops to scope out what they have got. Fresh cut flowers in America all come from the same place, South America. Around your region, they also come from the same place, the local flower consortium. This is where your local flower person will usually be several times per week at 4am. Different flower shops have different styles so their flower selecting may be a bit different. You are looking for the selection of flowers that matches the person or event you will be giving them to. Here’s the tip; go to the shop that has designers in the back and their flowers in a refrigerated case. What you want to do is pick out the individual flowers that you would like to give and have the designers put them together. If you have a design idea or two ask the designer to do it for you. This works great and you probably have a flower shop you’ll use regularly.

Buying bulk flowers

There is nothing that says you cannot go to the flower consortium at 4am yourself. If you need a bunch of flowers go for it. Look for what you like but remember that these guys do like to sell and they sell larger amounts so have an idea of what you really need plaus a bit extra. Remember to pick up some greens and spray like baby’s breath or some berries or whatever is there that you like.

Design it yourself

Fresh cut flowers can be on the expensive side. If you are having an event and need a few displays try and do them yourself. It isn’t as hard as you would think if you follow a few quick tips. The container is important. With a wide mouth container, make sure you have something to keep the flowers in place at the bottom. Marbles or a piece of Styrofoam will do. The container matters but can be something unique to the event. It doesn’t need to be fancy but it does need to be nice. Before you start lay out the flowers you’ve bought: greens, spray, flowers 1,2,3. As each piece goes in cut it to the desired height you want it to be, but remember that if somebody else takes it home they may cut a little off the end to to keep them fresh so leave a little for them. Put each piece in short to tall as you like and be sure to be simple enough so that you can do each exactly the same. Also remember that tall is not always better so make sure you have parameters under control. If they’re for a table display, people generally like to see the people on the other side of the table.

Buy with a friend

If you are going to buy a simple flower bouquet you can probably get away with whatever a decent florist comes up with, but if you are generally a klutz when it comes to colors and designs do yourself a favor and buy with a friend that has at least some idea of color and taste. The colors that fresh cut flowers provide are very vibrant and can easily clash. If you’re picking the ones you like and you pick wrong you can easily look the fool.

Where did the window boxes go

I just happen to love window boxes and miss seeing them in the more modern neighborhoods these days. My neighbors who lived across the street from us had just painted their older rather plain, small house a medium gray with white trim. Clean, but boring I thought. With two large windows on each side of the front door, I had visions of painting the front door red and adding 2 red window boxes beneath those windows. Talk about adding some impact!

Window boxes can take a plain nondescript house and give it the look of a charming country cottage in no time. Window boxes are also particularly wonderful when you are limited for planting space in a small yard. You can fill them with low growing and trailing flowers, vines or even herbs. You may be hard put to find ready-made window boxes at your local garden store these days, but they are still available online.

If you want to make your own window boxes, cedar or redwood would be the wood of choice. If you can't find some kind of a plastic or metal liner to fit, I would further protect the wood by lining the boxes with plain old tarpaper before adding the planting mix. You can then mount them to the window frames with the proper sized brackets. Your neighborhood hardware store can guide you in the right direction.

Make sure you drill some holes in he bottom of the window boxes for good drainage and water daily during the summer months. Once every few weeks are so, add some fertilizer for container plants, then sit back and enjoy beautiful blooms from both the outside and inside of the house.

Some good flower choices for window boxes would be geraniums, marigolds, trillium, alyssum, and any other low growing flowers that love the sun. For the shady side of the house, try fuchsias or the beautiful non-stop begonias. Some useful herb choices would include chives, rosemary, parsley and thyme. If you like fresh mint, don't plant any other herb in that particular window box as the mint will take over all other plants.

Why rose gardening is so addictive

For many of us, the act of gardening brings us closer to nature by getting us outdoors and allowing us the opportunity to tend and grow objects that in the absence of our assistance would not be able to survive, let alone thrive. There is a special connection between the growers of roses and their plants, however, which seems to go even beyond the basic instincts of the traditional gardener.

The first reason that roses can be such an addictive plant is the roots it has in our culture in the form of myth and symbolism. The same reason we are addicted to rose gardening is the same reason we are willing to pay a ridiculous amount for a single flower or bunch on Valentine’s Day - nothing in our society communicates more than the rose. This cultural phenomenon has been a part of western heritage for longer than anyone can trace. The rose was considered a flower of romance in ancient China, where it was first developed, and was used throughout the Roman Empire. British history is full of roses in every context - the theater where Shakespeare’s plays were put on was known as the rose, and some of the most distinguishing events in British history occurred during the long “War of the Roses”. Roses were not actually introduced to Europe in the cultivated style until the late 1700s, when they arrived from China.

Perhaps some of the addiction we have in cultivating roses stems in part from the same areas that our ancient forebears found so appealing. Many roses have a very distinctive scent, and the shape of the rose is certainly unique enough in itself to warrant extensive cultivation and appeal. Roses can also be found in many different colors and varieties, and there is symbolism attached to every colour that roses can be found in - red, of course, symbolizes love, but did you know that pink roses carry a message of gratitude, while yellow represent joy?

Roses also represent a singular species which can manifest itself in a variety of styles, and therefore a rose gardener really needs only to focus on rose types to bring all the variety to the appearance of her lawn and garden that could be wished for. Roses can be planted in the miniature style, as bushes, and as climbers. As has been noted above, roses are also available in several different colors which will add to the overall diversity in appearance of your garden. Roses are also available in petals of many different sizes to further add diversity to your landscaping. Species roses grow hips that are colorful and last well into the winter, and can add a further sprinkle of uniqueness to your landscaping by attracting birds throughout the winter months.

Lastly, roses require as little or as much attention as the gardener wants to put in. Pruned bushes look ideal, but roses are also beautiful when allowed to grow freely. Roses also tend to be very hardy and resistant to diseases. The soil composition needs not have too many considerations, and the ground cover is totally up to the gardener.

Growing roses can be an addicting experience because of their history, their beauty, their variety, and their maintenance. Once a person dedicates their garden space to the cultivation of roses, the possibilities are limitless.