Delphinium
Published January 21, 2011 | 
Delphinium is a favorite flower of mine. It comes in white, light blue and dark blue, purple and sometimes peach. It is one of the true blue flowers nature provides for us. There are several varieties, but the main varieties available include Bella Donna, Pacific Hybrid and Elatum. The stems generally are between three and five feet tall. Now, they are typically available year round, but May through October is the main season for these flowers.
When you buy delphinium, look for one or two flowers per stem to be fully opened with the rest in bud stage. Look for signs of petal drop….this is NOT good and if you see petal drop don’t buy them, they will never hold up for you if the petals are already dropping!!! Also look for bruising, mold or discolored foliage. All signs to walk away and find a new supply! Delphinium are bunched differently and you can find 5, 7, 10, 20 stem bunches….so be sure to ask whoever you are buying them from so you know how many bunches you will need to buy.
As with ALL flowers, remove any foliage that will fall below the water line. Give the stems a fresh cut and dip in a hydrating solution and then place in a clean bucket of water with flower nutrients. These flowers really benefit from being refrigerated, with 33 to 35 degrees the optimal temperature.
Delphinium will last four to twelve days depending upon hybrid and variety, care, environmental conditions and stage of maturity at the time.
Lisianthus
Published January 18, 2011 | 
Lisianthus (pronouned lis-ee-AN-thus) is available year round, but most abundant from June to December. It comes in a variety of colors including white, cream, lavender, purple and pink. Some of my favorites are the bi-colored which come in the white with pink edges like shown in this picture to the left and the white with lavender or purple edges.
There is a single variety – fewer petals and resembles a tulip and doubles which have bigger petal counts and often are mistaken by the consumer as a garden rose.
Lisianthus have great looking buds that add a fabulous texture to any bouquet or arrangement.
The purple lisianthus is one of the best purple flowers available, in my opinion. 
These are particularly long lasting flowers- expect 7-14 days of enjoyment, depending upon how you are maintaining them. A bloom will last about 7 days with the larger buds opening into blooms, but often a little lighter shade than the main flowers.
Published January 14, 2011 | 
For the last several weeks I’ve been sharing with you the lovely arrangements I was able to create while in Hawaii. And in several of those arrangements I included the lovely Ginger flower. It is considered one of the most
beautiful flowers in the world and flourishes in the tropical environment of Hawaii. Did you know that ginger is the flower used to create the lovely and fragrant Hawaiian leis? It is also used to fill out tropical flower gardens
There are literally thousands of species of Ginger flowers in a wide variety of colors and shapes. The Ginger Flower is considered a sign of strength, but is often used as an alternative to a bouquet of roses. The firey red blooms are often used to express the strength of love and passion.
In addition to being a lovely tropical flower, the Ginger is also prized for it’s medicinal and culinary uses. And the aromatic oils of many species are used in the preparation of perfumes.
Winter Blooms
Published January 29, 2010 | Hi There,
I was recently asked what flowers are available in the Winter months that brides like to use. I have compiled a list for your review.
Roses
Roses are a bridal favorite and available all year. However, at this time of year, both red and white roses will start to go up in price leading up to Valentine’s Day! There is a logical reason for this…besides supply and demand!
It takes about 45 days from the time a rose is cut from a bush until there is another rose ready to be cut. So that means that growers have to cut back their roses at the end of December in order for there to be enough supply for Valentine’s Day.
When the growers cut back all the bushes, it creates a temporary “lack of supply” which raises the prices. As for the actual Valentine’s Day roses, growers are trying to make up for the “lack of supply” and taking advantage of the supply and demand phenomenon. Typical rose prices from a retail florist will vary between $3-$8.00 per stem. The average is $5.00 per stem. During the two weeks before Valentine’s Day and up to Valentine’s Day, the cost of a typical rose will climb to double or triple that cost. The cost does not necessarily reflect “design” time or cost.
TIP TOE THROUGH THE TULIPS
Other flowers available for winter weddings include tulips, alstromeria, anemone, antherium, bouvardia, some cymbidium orchids, dendrobium orchids, carnations, some lisianthus, freesia, gerbera daisies, hyacinths, iris, lilies, calla lilies and ranunculus.
Some of these flowers are less expensive to purchase, however, require more design finesse and thus raise the completed bouquet cost.
For example, tulips (as long as they are not French tulips) are relatively inexpensive flowers. However, tulips are an unusual flower in that they continue to grow even after they have been cut from the bulb. They also continually stretch and bend towards light or sun. So to use them effectively in a bouquet, they have to be wired and taped…which is a big labor cost. Otherwise, you cannot know for sure what your tulips will do when taken out of the cooler and presented to the bride.
MIX IT UP
The least expensive and most reliable flowers for winter bouquets are carnations, mums and alstromeria. However, most brides do not adore these flowers.
I have used carnations as a base for a hand tied bouquet and used more expensive/prestigious flowers as the flowers you really see above the carnations. It’s a great way to get a nice look without the added cost of an entire bouquet made of expensive flowers.
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