Just before Valentine's Day, there are two distict types of people. Those who have already found gifts for their honey, and those who are still wondering if they can at this late date.
This diary is for the latter.
doink doink
Real info about flowers and arrangements after the fold...
Yesterday CSI Bentonville had an excellent diary about sources for environmentally responsible Valentine's gifts - You Are What You Sweet; Valentines With Heart ♥. This started out as a couple responses (1, 2) to a comment there, but I kept thinking of more things to add and decided what the hey, let's make it a diary even if it is getting pretty late for Valentine's. It works for any floral buying reason - even wedding planning.
Background
For a couple of years in high school and college I worked in a floral shop. I had a knack for color combinations, and a light touch with the flowwers. While I never had any formal training, I got pretty good thanks to mentoring from a long-time florist and crafter that I worked with.
I know now I was probably exposed to enough pesticides to choke a horse. That whole topic is a diary unto itself, and I'll need more time to research it. For now, though, some quick tips on selecting and buying flowers:
Pricing
Valentine's Day is the WORST time of the year for buying roses price-wise, simply because the demand is so high the prices jump. May is the next most expensive time (Mother's Day).
June-August is about the cheapest. Spring for something other than roses for Valentine's Day (or just get 1-2), and indulge in roses from your farmer's market during the summer, when you'll be able to get a florists bundle (25 roses) for about the same as you'd pay for two roses (wrapped, not arranged) at Valentine's. Which brings me to:
Language
Wrapped: Just the roses, wrapped in tissue and/or florist's paper.
- NOTE: If you are in northern climes, ask them to put your wrapped package in a plastic bag as well - this will give them a protective bubble of air that will change temperature more slowly. Most flowers are extremely sensitive to cold, and even a few minutes without protection can harm or even destroy them. Don't leave them in the car while running other errands - make this your last stop.
Wrapped with greens: Same as above, but with some greenery. Check what you're getting when you ask for x flowers, wrapped. Greenery usually costs extra, but not that much.
Wrapped & tubed:If you're getting wrapped flowers, ask about having them tubed. Some will do fine without for even a few hours (give them a fresh cut before putting in water; more on that below), others, like roses, will begin to wilt rather quickly. Water tubes on the stems will keep them fresh and lovely for up to a day, longer if you refill the tubes. They may leak a little, but it will mostly be contained in the wrap. They will cost a little bit extra, usually 10-25 cents per tube.
Arranged: This will generally mean the kind of thing you see in the coolers, commercials, or on the website. Flowers and greens in a vase of some sort.
Cash & Carry: You buy them and take them with you. Usually loose flowers, more rarely arrangements. Doesn't always mean cash - any usual payment methods are probably going to be accepted.
Delivered: You come in, call in, or order (and pay!) on a website and have them take the flowers to the recipient. Usually involves an extra charge, which may vary depending on distance, whether the florist makes regular runs to the destination, and whether you're requesting an additional delivery run.
- Most florist have usual delivery times; ours were 10am and 3pm. If you're not sure, ask. If the recipient works half days, ask for the appropriate time. If it's a small office, ask them to call ahead and verify that someone will be there.
- Ask about their policy when someone isn't home when they attempt to deliver. Do they leave a door hanger with a phone number, do they call the recipient, are the flowers left on the step/inside the porch/with a neighbor?
- Some florists have free or lower delivery charges to hospitals, nursing homes, and (sometimes) large offices simply because they make daily trips anyway. Ask about this, if appropriate.
- Some florists offer free delivery if you spend more than a certain amount. Sometimes it's not that much- $30, maybe. Ask.
Choosing flowers
Don't skimp on greenery. This will most likely last the longest, and pretty greenery can stand on it's own as an arrangement. A single rose can look bare and lifeless, or full and lush - all depending on the type/amount of greenery.
- Instead of just flat fern, consider something spiky and light (think tall grasses), tall (eucalyptus or curly willow), draping (ivy), airy (Sprengeri or tree fern), glossy (lemon leaves, laurel, mulberry), or robust (pine/evergreen; primarily in winter). Two different types of greenery, or greenery with accent flowers, looks so much classier than a piece of leatherleaf fern and a rose.
- If you're planning to hand someone a single, stemmed rose all by itself (think tango), have the florist put a water tube on the end - this can be hidden with a couple wraps of a pretty ribbon, or pulled off at the last minute.
Accent flowers - baby's breath and statice are the "traditional" ones, but don't feel limited to them. Heather, Queen Anne's lace, alstroemeria, mini carnations, spray roses, lavender, lianthus, freesia, waxflower, Limonium (caspia), etc. Most smaller flowers, particularly "spray" types (multiple flowers on a stem), will add a lovely bit of color and interest to a bouquet. Ask the florist to show you what they have.
Consider using a rose or lily as the accent flower - pick some long-lasting flowers that will make a nice bouquet on their own, and add a single rose.
If you do go with roses, consider sweetheart roses instead of long stem - usually half the price per stem, not much smaller, and just as lovely. (I'm partial to the Volare red, myself.) The sweetheart lavenders often have more scent than the large ones.
Consider the recipients situation:
- If they have hay fever, maybe skip the mums, daisies, and potted lilies (the most likely to set it off)
- Do they have pets? Tall skinny vases can be easily knocked over unless well-weighted or placed carefully out of reach; some plants are poisonous for cats/dogs; dangly flowers/greens/bows can be very tempting to pets if not placed well out of reach, etc.
- If they live in a small apartment or the flowers will be in a closed office, unless you know they love it, try to pick flowers that don't have overwhelming scents, or keep those flowers to a minimum in an arrangement.
- Are they in a hospital, nursing home, or other controlled environment? Some parts of a hospital don't allow flowers in patient's rooms; call the place in question and find out, or ask the florist - they will probably have a list if it's aplace they deliver to regularly.
Cards: Including a card or message with your arrangement is a VERY good idea. Usually the little florists cards are free with purchase, and there are many, many designs to choose from. You don't have to think of anything amazing to say, just a simple message like:
- I love you
- congratulations
- happy birthday (anniversary,etc.)
- thinking of you
- get well soon
- see you soon
- something to brighten your day
is enough. Feel free to say more, though - just remember those cards are about the size of a business card, so a whole sonnet probably won't fit. Most floral shops will also have at least a few regular cards (Hallmark-type cards) to choose from, if you want to go bigger.
Extras: You don't HAVE to have extras. They'll probably try to sell you some, and they can add a little zing, but they're not necessary. Potentially a good choice if you're calling in an order to be delivered to someone you won't get a chance to see. It's all up to you.
- Ribbons & bows: many arrangements come with them, others don't. You may be asked if you want one. This is up to you. Sometimes a bit of color, lace, or interesting ribbon gives it that little bit more, other times the flowers are perfect all by themselves. It will cost more, though. Most floral shops will have a lot of bows made up already that you can chose from, and rolls of ribbon that are fancier or in more unusual colors that they can use to make others. Don't feel you HAVE to have ribbon or a bow if you don't want to.
- Balloons: Mylar balloons can last for weeks; regular ballons treated with a bit of "balloon goo" on the inside can last up to a week under perfect conditions. Balloons are appropriate for any age or gender, and almost any situation. Balloons can go places flowers can't. (Some hospital rooms, etc.) For what it's worth, I've never seen anyone NOT smile when they received a delivery of/with balloons. A good option as an add-on, or just by itself as a balloon bouquet (1 or more mylar balloons with a few regular ones). They can be tied to a vase, candy, special balloon weights, what have you.
- Candy: You can choose something there, or not. Not a requirement - and you may want to go with some of the more socially responsible options listed in CSI Bentonville's diary (linked above). If you are considering it, ask what they have, and let them know whether you would have taken the option if they had free trade and/or organic chocolate/candy.
- Teddy bears & more: Yeah, schmaltzy, but sometimes so darned cute you can't resist. All I'll say here is that it might be an option.
Staying power
Some flowers that usually last a bit longer - 10-14 days, instead of 5-7. These are the ones that I remember off the top of my head; I'll try to add more later. (links are just for the pictures)
- alstroemeria, some variants are called Peruvian Lily - comes in many colors, looks like bunches of mini lilies - I love these. Keep the water fresh and they'll usually last for a while.
- mini-carnations, aka spray carnations - come in many colors, and a few stems can make a lush bouquet
- Mums - pincushion, spider, puff - just about all of them will last a fairly long time. (Not the best choice for someone with hay fever.)
- Orchids - They're tender and you need to treat them gently or they will bruise, but they are lovely and have an exotic, lush quality - an excellent choice! (thanks to Skeptical Spectacle)
- Daisies - gerbera and others - they come in more colors than you might imagine! (thanks to high uintas)
Caring for flowers once you get them home
- 1-2 drops of liquid bleach in the water will keep bacteria from "clogging" the bottoms of the stems
- Every 1-3 days (will depend on your flowers) refresh the water and trim a 1/2" off the bottom of the stems. Your bouquet will get a little shorter over time, but the flowers will last longer.
Please remember, when you're dealing with the florist in the week or so before any holiday, but particularly Valentine's: They're probably working 14-16+ hour days, are swamped with orders and work that all pretty much HAS to be done at the last minute, and they may be just an eensy bit frazzled. They will still want to help you, but sometimes the best option is to ask them to show you some things (see above) and then spend a little time looking on your own.
I have to get back to work, but I'll try to stop back and add more as I think of things.
Update #1:
profmom reminded me in the comments to include:
if you buy flowers, try to buy locally produced ones (which might be hard, depending on where you live) and try to avoid carnations and roses from high-pesticide productions in Ecuador and Colombia.
Plus, with a local grower your flowers will last an extra day or three - time that flowers from distant growers spend in transit.