Flowers too expensive? Then try this!
Spring is around the corner
This winter has been especially dry and sunny albeit the temperature still being chilly. And even though I already know how fickle and unexpected the Dutch weather can be, I find myself hoping for this sunny state to continue. This is also the time I get most enquiries about flower workshops, as many of us get excited about decorating our homes with fresh blooms.
The cost of flowers isn’t what it used to be!
I was surprised to see the flower price having being increased quite drastically. All over the nation’s popular supermarkets like Albert Heijn and Dekamarkt, flower bunches have become visibly more pricey. Just 1-2 years ago, a bunch of 10 tulips used to cost 2.99-3.99. But now, I see price tags starting with number 5 or 6. I did hear about flower cost getting crazy mostly from my fellow florists in Korea, but hoped that we would be immune from it here in the Netherlands. Well, I guess not. This means that, in order to continue to have some of our favorite flowers in the vase, the old budget of 20 Euros might not cut it. So what can we do other than increase the flower budget, in order to continue to enjoy flowers in the comfort of our home?
Flower shopping
Let’s start from sourcing the flowers from a shop. Be extra careful when selecting flowers. If you are in a flower shop, ask for those that have just arrived. In a supermarket, go for the tight buds, especially when buying tulips and lilies. Healthy flowers will show sturdiness in the stem and smoothness in the petals.
Mix some greens (eucalyptus or euphorbia) and fruits (hypericum or winterberries) with your favorite blooms when shopping. These usually last longer but also provide a variety of texture.
Long-lasting materials to include in your shopping
These are eucalyptus, euphorbia and hypericum from the left. They are quite popular and easy to find in flower shops. Look for similar types of greens and fruits that can be the base of your vase for a few weeks.
Flower cleaning and maintaining
Don’t let the stems out of the water for more than a minute or two. If you must, then cut the ends 0.5cm before putting them back in to water.
Before arranging the flowers, remove all leaves from the stem so that no leaves are in the water when in the vase.
Use the flower preservative that you received, and add this to the vase.
Top up water everyday. If possible, change the water entirely to keep the debris away and water clean.
Re-purpopse your vase flowers
After about a week, you will see flowers starting to wilt. But some would still be fresh ie. greens, fruits, dianthus, straw flowers, lilies, statice etc. Selectively throw away only the wilted or dead flowers.
Go out and buy one or two bunches of colorful flowers and re-arrange, adding to the fresh stems that you’ve kept.
Cut the ends of the old flowers that you’ve kept when you re-purpose them, in order to retain only the fresh and healthy part
Use pot plants at home for your flower arrangement
Some pot plants would also be great in the vase. Just cutting a few will not damage your pot plant.
My favorites are anthuriums and orchids. They make great pot plants but also really long lasting cut flowers.
Other pot plants like pansies, begonias, petunias while being too short for a vase can also be great to be used in a bowl centerpiece.
Pot plants for both pot and vase
Pansies, begonias and petunias - are beloved plants that flower abundantly. Keep them in the pot but also use them in your not-too-tall vase or bowl.
Try foraging at a park nearby. Use greens
If you have a garden, you actually have plant supply for your vase all year round. See how you can use tree branches. Don’t prune for the sake of pruning only. Save some of the pruned branches to use in your flower arrangement.
If you don’t have a garden, then go to a nearby park. In the park near my house, I freely cut cow parsely and bring them home, as they are basically weeds.
Do you have a neighbor or a friend who has a garden? Ask then to call you when they are going to prune their tree. Go and take some branches to be used. Branches are especially iinteresting in the spring, if there are flowering branches like prunus, forsythia, hydrangeas, syringa etc.
Use fruits
Look at all the classic paintings of still life with flowers. Fruits are just as prominent or even more centeral than flowers in many of these artworks. So find ways to incorporate fruits into your vase
For fruits like grapes that has vines attached, it is easy to have them hang from the side of your vase. Cherry tomatos with vine works as well.
Other fruits like mandarine, lemon, or cherry have vivid colors and beautiful shape to make your arrangement even prettier. Use a skewer or a wire to fasten these to your vase.
Don’t give up on finding joy through flowers
Flowers to fill your vase don’t always only have to come from Albert Heijn or the corner flower shop. You can grow pots, bring branches from a friend’s garden and also subsititute with fruits and veggies. In short, no need to give up your big joy of having flowers to make your home feel homey. Ideas are everywhere.
What’s your secret method to having a unique flowery piece at home?