What’s In A Name?

25 October, 2011 Reply

Shakespeare’s famous line is so true. A rose by any other name would still be a rose. Yet, somehow some names are really descriptive. For instance, my favorite flower of this season has to be the strawflowers. If you’ve never seen them, they may conjure up strange images, since most of us associate straw with something you feed animals.

Just a few of the dozens of strawflowers I've harvested.

However I don’t think you’d ever feed a strawflower to an animal, they are just too pretty. Just like their common name implies, though, the flower, even just picked from the plant, feel stiff and straw-like. The really cool thing about these flowers is that they are called everlastings. This means that after you let them dry, they will stay looking like a just picked flower forever, or until they fade from too much sunlight. There are lots of everlastings, but I like strawflowers the best. I think this is because of the vivid colors they come in. Of course there’s the typical white, but this year I’ve got hot pink, orange, yellow, burgundy, pink with a white center, and what I’m calling tiger striped. That one is yellow and a rusty color in little stripes on each petal, quite unusual.

One thing about strawflowers (Rhodanthe chlorocephala), is that they are extremely pricey at garden centers. They are usually sold as individual plants and can cost as much as $5 for one plant. I decided to try my hand at growing them from seed. The first year I didn’t have much luck, but this last year I managed to have about a dozen plants make it through horrible seed starting conditions. I was so excited when I got to put them out. So, I would recommend growing them yourself. For around $3 you can get a packet of seeds and have lots of plants, as you aren’t going to be happy with just one. I can guarantee that.

So, now I have a table full of strawflowers, drying (yes even an everlasting has a drying period) and then I need to figure out what to do with them all. I’ll show you some of what I create, once I’ve figure it out.

Saying I Love You With Flowers

9 August, 2011 Reply

Whatever the occasion, I don’t know a single woman who isn’t delighted to receive flowers. Flowers always bring a smile to their face. When saying, “I love you” with flowers, most people immediately think of red roses. Roses are the flower that symbolizes passion, but let me give you a tip here, nothing says, “I love you” more than a bouquet of her favorite flowers in her favorite color. Anyone can send roses, but someone who sends a bouquet of her favorite flowers in her favorite color, really loves her, because they’ve cared enough to find out what she really enjoys.

Sometimes getting just the right combination of flowers takes some planning, because a florist may not always carry unusual flowers. Florists can get almost any flower, but they cannot possibly stock every flower available, so contact them in advance and have them order them in special for you. That, too, will say, “I love you,” because you will have to have planned in advance and not just picked the flowers up at the supermarket on the way home.

There are some flowers that don’t do well as cut flowers. Ask your florist for their recommendation of a flower that is a close match for that flower, then they can order it for you. Also, their favorite flower may not come in their favorite color, but do the best that you can to make the match.

Also, make sure that your bouquet includes cut flower “food.” It has been shown to extend the life of cut flowers. If you’ve gone to all the trouble to get special flowers you want them to last as long as possible.

Never fear, even if your loved one lives out of town many online florists can make that special bouquet, too. Just give them plenty of time to get the flowers ordered in. Although many of them guarantee next day delivery, specially ordered flowers will take some extra time, so you still need to plan ahead.

Give me a bouquet of fragrant lilies, or any blue flowers and I’ll be much happier than if I receive the now overdone red rose. I think your loved one would enjoy a change, too.