What Do You Know About Baby’s Breath?

Are you searching for the perfect flower and getting ready for your next planned event or wedding? Sometimes there is no right or wrong flower but a matter preference as to what fits your needs or what fits your personality. The 101 series is a series of articles helping to educate everyone with the contrasts of various flowers. You may want to read the others in this series as well as many other helpful articles.

There are four things to know about Baby’s Breath:

1.    Baby’s breath is a species of Gypsophilia that originated in the Mediterranean and Eastern Europe. Many tiny flowers are produced on branched stems giving a delicate, lacy, snowflake appearance.

2.    Baby’s breath is available in either pink or white varieties, which you can also get tinted. Re-cutting stems will encourage full blooming. Make sure to keep it away from all external sources of ethylene, such as fruit, carbon monoxide and decaying plant material.

3.    Gypsophilia is primarily used as a filler flower to accent greens and fill voids between flowers. Using Gypsophilia in bouquets and arrangements creates more depth and dimension. Gypsophilia is very popular in Victorian style arrangements and wedding flowers.

Here are some other helpful facts about Baby’s Breath:

Names:  Baby's Breath, Gypsophila, Gyp

Varieties:  Gypsophila

Colors:  White.  Pink is available, but uncommon

Scent:  A sweet, distinct smell that is only associated with this flower, giving it its name.

Freshness:  Yes, very sensitive

Vase Life:  5 to 7 days.

Availability:  Year Round

Costs:  Inexpensive

Meaning:  Baby’s Breath got its name from its smell.

Arranging Tip:  Baby's Breath is a very popular (and sometimes overused) filler flower.  Small clusters of blossoms also work well in wedding and corsage design.

Growing Tip:  Gypsophila comes from the Greek for "gypsum-loving" in reference to the plants favoring of high calcium soils.

Here are some varieties we have available:

-       White
-       Yellow
-       Blue
-       Green
-       Pink
-       Red with Dark Pink Cast
-       Orange
-       Assorted

7 Ways to Use Rose Petals during Your Wedding

Rose petals are the classical wedding compliment. They’re absolutely vibrant and beautiful—soft and so alive. The rose has always been the universal representation of love. Here are some creative ways to incorporate organic, eco-friendly rose petals into your wedding decorations. Here are seven creative ways to use rose petals in your wedding plans.

1.   Showering them down the aisle – Nothing looks more like a dreamy fairy tale than to have a rose petal-covered aisle. From the moment the bride walks down the aisle till the transition of parent to husband, rose petals cushion their steps. Nothing pictures a commitment of love more beautifully.

2.   Surrounding the stage area – Arranging your rose petals around the stage area is a romantic way of exchanging vows. Use different colors from the assorted freeze dried selection to create a unique pattern that symbolizes the kind of love you two share.

3.   Sprinkling on tables and centerpieces – By adding some lavender rose petals to your table and sprinkling some around the base of your centerpieces, you can create a scene from a royal wedding. Rose petals look good on guest sign in tables too.

4.   Scattering on the couple after they say, I do – Get your photographer ready then have your guests have paper cups filled with pink and white rose petals. Create a beautiful shower of nature’s rose petals and enjoy the refreshing display.

5.   Smothering your wedding cake – Next to the bride, the wedding cake is the most visual part of the wedding. Peach rose petals cascading around it, creating a beautiful pattern will make your cake come alive.

6.   Sanctifying the props for photographs – Add some spice to your photographs by filling the ground with orange and yellow rose petals, creating a soft bed of curling petals, looking like fresh, fallen leaves.

7.   Sensualize the hotel room – There isn’t a better way to top of your day of love with the perfect decoration of red rose petals. Top it off with beautiful black magic roses in the center.

Create a more visual wedding with rose petals. Hopefully this gives you seven great ideas on how to use them in your wedding. Good luck with your wedding and planned event.

Finding the Right Tulips – Top 7 Favorites

Still searching for the perfect wedding flowers? Have you considered going with Tulips? Traditionally, tulips were popular, particularly in most of Europe and Holland. During the 17th century people were going crazy for them, popularly known as the Tulipomania.

Tulips are very popular in the springtime, and the third most popular flower next to the rose and chrysanthemum. If you are considering tulips it is good to be reminded of their incredible variety of colors, heights, and shapes. You also may want to consider their fresh fragrance, cheering up any celebration or festive occasion.

 

 As usual, I took some time to study the most popular kinds of tulips and I came up with my Top 7 list of favorite tulips for weddings. Please browse through these most popular choices and see if you can find the right tulips for you.

1.            White Tulips – White is a symbol of purity, humility. I chose this tulip first because it seems to convey the traditional image of any marriage. When this variety is displayed, there seems to be an aura of honor resounding from wall to wall, from floor to ceiling. Enjoy the rich spender of their white beauty.

2.            RedTulips - Red is a universal symbol of love and romance. If you decide to go with red alone, or combine with the purity of white, nothing but love it what is felt from this variety. Whenever I picture a bride and groom holding hands at the altar, I picture red flowers in the background.

3.            Purple Tulips – Purple has always been a symbol of royalty. During biblical times, every king or someone of great wealth was adorned in purple. It was one of the most profitable colors of fabric sold in New Testament times.  As a wedding flower, I can imagine a royal princess surrounded by the love of her charming prince. You could even mix, red, white, and purple tulips.

4.            Pink Tulips – Pink is also a color of love, but it is a bit quieter and says, I will never forget you.” Pink, red, white, and purple blend naturally together, but pink says it without words. Besides red, pink is a universal color of love and will fill any wedding attendance with love.

5.            Yellow Tulips - Yellow is the color of sunshine. It's associated with joy, happiness, intellect, and energy. This variety of tulip will bring to life any wedding. Tulips are a spring flower and seem to portray the marriage of a young couple in the springtime of their lives. Yellow and orange make a nice compliment to each other.

6.            Orange Tulips – Orange combines the happiness of yellow and the romance of red, displaying natural sunshine to all who partake of their beauty. Orange will make your wedding and reception feel warm, loved, and inviting.

7.            Assorted Tulips – Technically, assorted is not a color, but after studying the different colors of tulips, you may want to display some of each.

Tulips are rather affordable, around $1.50 a stem. If you want to go a little fancier, French Tulips are a bit more but have longer stems and larger heads. Flowers are an amazing gift from nature to represent the love you want to honor. Once again, I hope this list is helpful. Please look at our website and choose from over hundreds of varieties of flowers. Good luck on your wedding or next planned event!

4 Ideas in Making Single-Stem Bouquets for Your Wedding

A quick, simple, and inexpensive DIY project for you or your bridesmaids’ florals is to create single-stem flowers to use in place of bouquets, or fashioning a simple ribbon wrap to cluster informal bunches of flowers for a more casual wedding.

Single-stem and bunch bouquets, by virtue of being easy to create, are also great budget-friendly choices, as there is very little labor involved. The ultra detailed Biedermeier bouquet, which can take hours and hundreds of tiny flowers to affix in painstaking concentric circles, using both glue and pins. With this style of bouquet, you have just three easy steps.

Your bouquet choice always coordinates with the formality of your wedding and the design of your dress, so these styles offer the simplest class of effort for both formal and informal weddings. For instance, a single-stemmed calla lily works for a formal wedding, while a single-stemmed Gerber daisy suits an informal wedding. Your choice of ribbon must also work with the style and formality of your day, so look at lovely satin ribbon, some containing tiny pearl edges, for your more formal event, lace ribbon for your romantic Victorian garden wedding, or bright satin ribbon to match the color of daisy for your casual backyard wedding. In the informal realm, brides are choosing striped ribbon, plaids, and even ribbons with funky circles or color blocks to add a punch of creativity to their self-made designs.

The type of ribbon you use to create your single-stem or bunch bows and ties can also be used as coordinating décor for other parts of your wedding day, such as fabric placeholder in your guest book or the ribbon you use in your DIY favors, and even the ribbon you use in your flower girls’ hair.

1.    Using Single-Stem Roses

•    Choose a rose with a head that’s about to bloom for best appearance on your wedding day.
•    Choose a rose with a straight stem, strip it of leaves and thorns, and cut the stem to a length of 12 to 14 inches.
•    Ribbons wrap either the entire stem or simply tie a bow. Store your ribbon-bow-only single-stem flowers in a vase of water until it’s time to walk down the aisle.

2.    Using Single-Stem Callas

•    Gather the stems, perhaps moving the green leaves to the top of the collection, nearest the blooms.
•    Wrap the stem and leaves in place with floral tape all the way down the stem.
•    Wrap the entire stem with satin ribbon to give the flower enough sturdiness, or skip the tape and ribbon wrap and just tie a satin bow around the top third of the stem for decoration

3.    Using Single-Stem Daisies

•    Carefully remove the plastic brace set just below the flower’s head for support during shipping just before it’s time to walk down the aisle, but leave it on as you wrap the stem.

•    Daisy stems should be wrapped tightly with floral tape to give it extra strength, then covered with a ribbon wrap and tied with a ribbon bow.
•    If you cut the stems to a six-to eight-inch length, you can wrap them with lace instead of ribbon.

4.    Using Bunches

•    Gather your chosen wild-flowers, tulips, peonies, daisies, or other flowers and begin assembling your chosen arrangement of blooms.
•    Begin with larger flowers in the center; then build in circles around the outside.
•    Wrap the entire collection of stems with floral tape, cut across the bottom for a uniform cut level, and then wrap the entire stem collection with ribbon or lace in spiral fashion, going once down and then up to tie in a bow at the top.

Creating a Doorway Garland

Create a dramatic doorway with a garland bursting with spring flowers. Luscious greenery is entwined with Alstroemerias, wax flower, and baby’s breath for a decorative garland perfect for draping anywhere—from doors, arches, and windows to tables, candelabras and chairs.

To create these beautiful pieces you will need the following: Alstroemerias, wax flower, foliage, Plumosa, baby’s breath, paddle wire, and petite water tubes.

1.    Remove all thorns – If the stems of the Plumosa are thorny, use a hand towel to safely strip the thorns off.

2.    Begin Garland – Start by crisscrossing two stems of Plumosa and wrapping paddle wire around the center to secure the stems together. This will create one end of the garland.

3.    Continue Adding Stems – Begin to form the garland by adding more stems of Plumosa.

4.    Layer Stems – Layer each stem of stems (depending on desired fullness) one after the other.

5.    Wrap Stems with Wire – To secure the stems of Plumosa, hold the garland with one hand and wrap the paddle wire around it with the other. The paddle wire should be wrapped over some branches, but others can be loose and free.

6.    Cut Stems – Any excess stems may be cut with clippers as you form the garland.

7.    Finish Plumosa – Continue adding Plumosa until the desired length is reached. Finish off the end of the garland by adding last Plumosa stem in a crisscross fashion. Make a slip knot with the paddle wire to secure it at the end of the garland.


8.    Add Baby’s Breath – Cut branches of baby’s breath and space them along the garland. Wrap the stems into the garland with paddle wire.

9.    Add Foliage – Cut stems of foliage and lay them underneath the entire length of the garland. Wrap paddle wire from one end to the other to secure the stems to the garland.

10.    Add Waxflower – Add stems of wax flower to the garland and wrap with paddle wire.

11.    Add Alstroemerias – Cut stems of Alstroemerias approximately 8” (21cm) long and insert into water filled tubes. Place the flowers in various directions along the garland. Wrap paddle wire around the water tubes to secure the garland.

12.    Secure Flowers – Wrap the wire once more around the completed garland to secure everything. Wrap wire under individual flowers and foliage as needed. Cut the wire and bend the ends into the center of the garland.

13.    Store and Maintain – The garland can be made up to 48 hours in advance of the wedding. To prevent wilting, lightly mist the garland, and then coil it inside a dark plastic bag with a few air holes. Store it in a cool, dark place.

What are the Best Flowers for Each Season?

If you are planning a wedding and are preparing bouquets and centerpieces, the availability of fresh flowers is something to keep in mind. Availability and much lower prices depend much on whether they should be shipped from Holland, Ecuador and Colombia. While any flower could be found available year round from around every corner of the globe, it’s always best to focus on in-season flowers to ensure the most beautiful selection and avoiding global weather fiascos that could potentially ruin a crop and prevent your shipment (or make it triple the price!).
This is a starter list of the types of flowers that are considered in season at certain times of the year. Keep in mind that this list is considered a national average. The weather may be milder in November where you live, so you might have access to additional summer flowers in addition to your locally grown florals and greenery.
Use this chart to research further and ask Whole Blossoms for additional ideas on what is current in the floral availability. As you explore these lists, you may be inspired by mention of a flower you never thought to bring into your décor plans, and your groom too may discover a flower type that would be perfect for his own boutonniere or as a gift for honored women on his side of the family.

SPRING WEDDING FLOWERS
•    Anemone
•    Bells of Ireland
•    Daffodil
•    Delphinium
•    Hyacinth
•    Peony
•    Ranunculus
•    Sweet pea
•    Tulip

SUMMER WEDDING FLOWERS

•    Alstroemerias
•    Bells of Ireland
•    Chrysanthemum
•    Lavender
•    Freesia
•    Gerber Daisy
•    Hydrangea
•    Iris
•    Larkspur
•    Lily
•    Lisianthus
•    Queen Anne’s Lace
•    Snapdragon
•    Stephanotis
•    Stock
•    Sunflower
•    Turberosa

FALL WEDDING FLOWERS

•    Allium
•    Aster
•    Alstroemerias
•    Amaranthus
•    Anemone
•    Chrysanthemum
•    Dahlia
•    Freesia
•    Gerber Daisy
•    Gladiolus
•    Hypericum Berry
•    Iris
•    Lily
•    Orchid
•    Rose
•    Star of Bethlehem
•    Sunflower

WINTER WEDDING FLOWERS

•    Amaryllis
•    Anemone
•    Bells of Ireland
•    Carnation
•    Chrysanthemum
•    Daffodil
•    Gerber Daisy
•    Orchid
•    Phlox
•    Ranunculus
•    Star of Bethlehem
•    Sweet pea
•    Tulip

WEDDING FLOWERS AVAILABLE YEAR-ROUND

•    Baby’s Breath
•    Calla Lily
•    Carnations
•    Delphinium
•    Gardenia
•    Gladiolus
•    Lily of the Valley
•    Orchid
•    Rose
•    Scabiosa

11 Flower Buying and Care Tips

Here are 11 helpful hints to keep in mind when buying flowers and their prolonged care before a wedding or special event.

1.    A commercial flower food will prolong to life of cut flowers. Sugar, sparkling lemon-lime sodas, or aspirin added to the water will also keep the flowers healthier longer.

2.    If you are using flowers from your own garden, they may not last as long as commercially grown flowers. Garden flowers, like bought flowers, should stay in fresh water before use.



3.    Make sure that any containers used for soaking flowers are clean and bacteria-free. Rinse them with water containing a little bleach before using.

4.    Look for bright yellow stamens on lilies; old lilies (of all varieties) have dark stamens.

5.    Make sure lily stamens are removed; their pollen stains anything it touches bright

6.    Spray table arrangements with water to keep them fresh and the oasis moist.

7.    Keep all finished arrangements somewhere cool and dark, but don’t be tempted to store any flowers, including boutonnieres and corsages, in the fridge.

8.    The length of a teardrop bouquet should be tailored to the height of the bride: the taller the bride, the longer the bouquet can be. For petite bride, a tied bunch is probably more flattering.

9.    For pinning boutonnieres to lapels, use pearl-headed pins, which look more special than normal straight pins.

10.    Some of the longest-lasting flowers are chrysanthemums, carnations, orchids, roses, tulips, and calla lilies. Sweet peas and poppy anemones, though beautiful, have a short life once cut.

11.    Prices of exotic flowers such as callas and orchids can rise markedly during the peak wedding months (May to July), or if supplies are low. If you’re on a budget, go for the flowers less prone to fluctuations in price, such as roses and carnations.

What Do You Know About Bouvardia?

Are you searching for the perfect flower and getting ready for your next planned event or wedding? Sometimes there is no right or wrong flower but a matter preference as to what fits your needs or what fits your personality. The 101 series is a series of articles helping to educate everyone with the contrasts of various flowers. You may want to read the others in this series as well as many other helpful articles.

There are three things to understand about Bouvardia:

1.    Bouvardias are clusters of small tubular flowers with four equal petals atop slender woody stems. A fresh Bouvardia should be mostly in bud stage, with only one to two flowers open. The buds should show good color.
2.    Older Bouvardia has most of their flowers open; some may have started to bend or drop from the cluster. Bouvardias bruise very easily when handled.
3.    Bouvardias are prone to premature wilting because water has difficulty penetrating the dense woody stems to reach the branching flower clusters. To prolong vase life, recut the stems and place into deep, fresh water frequently. This will help keep a steady water flow to the flowers. Also, tear off any excess greenery and blossoms so that more water reaches the primary blossoms.

Here are some facts about Bouvardia:

Names – Bouvardia
Varieties – Bouvardia hybrids in single and double varieties.
Colors – Whites, pinks, peaches, red, and a new green shade.
Scent – Very faint to none
Freshness – The buds show color, and only a couple of blossoms are open. The flowers bruise very easily.
Vase Life – Approximately 5 days. Bouvardia is very water sensitive. There is a special floral food available at most florists for Bouvardia, which aids in water absorption.
Availability – All year, but summer and fall are the predominant seasons.
Cost – Moderately priced
Arranging Tip – Bouvardia is popular choice for a wedding bouquet flower, but remember that they do not hold up out of water.

Here are some popular varieties of Bouvardia:
 •    White
•    Light pink
•    Pink
•    Red
•    Assorted

Making Rose Pomanders in 4 Easy Steps

Rose pomanders are becoming very popular for smaller bridesmaids because they are such a beautiful accessory. They look particularly pleasant when complementing rose nosegays, which are also a very popular trend. You can construct a pomander in many different ways, but the easiest method by far is to purchase a small ball of floral foam and attach a ribbon or cord. Then simply cut the roses with about ¾ inch (2cm) of stem, and push the soaked ball all the way around. Although easy to construct in this way, soaked floral foam can be very heavy. The downside to this type of pomander is that as the foam dries out some of the rose heads and may become dislodged, causing it to start to break up.

The best method for making pomander is to wire each rose head and place it into a ball of sphagnum moss. A simpler way is to use the method in which they are wired into a ball without any moss or foam. This is the lightest possible method for constructing a pomander. Traditionally, all bridal flowers were wired in this way, as it also makes the arrangement more secure and, therefore easier to hold. In recent years, there has been a preference for natural-looking flower decorations, and the widespread use of floral foam has changed the way florists construct floral accessories. Wiring flowers in this way takes practice, and is not recommended if you are attempting to make a rose pomander for your own wedding without practicing several times first!

What Do You Know about Bells of Ireland?

Are you searching for the perfect flower and getting ready for your next planned event or wedding? Sometimes there is no right or wrong flower but a matter preference as to what fits your needs or what fits your personality. The 101 series is a series of articles helping to educate everyone with the contrasts of various flowers. You may want to read the others in this series as well as many other helpful articles.

There are three things to know about Bells of Ireland:

1.    Bells of Ireland are tall, apple-green spike flowers consisting of several small white blossoms surrounded by green shell-type petals. The spikes are generally about 24 inches in length. Fresh bells of Ireland have the shell petals open and the small white flowers exposed. The spikes are straight and firm to the touch.
2.    The tips of bells of Ireland begin to droop with age. The shell-type petals at the base of the spike appear to be closed and may be discolored. The spike is soft to the touch.
3.    Bells of Ireland are most appreciated for the predominantly bright-green foliage surrounding the small white flowers, rather than for the flowers themselves. They can be used as a foliage choice as well. The color accents other flowers and brightens the overall bouquet.

Some facts to know about Bells of Ireland:

Names – Bells of Ireland, Moluccella, and shellflower.

Colors – Very small white flowers surrounded by predominant bright-green shells.

Scent – Very faint musk fragrance

Freshness – The shells are open and the white flowers exposed. The stems are upright.
Vase Life – 7 to 10 days or longer.

Availability – spring and summer

Cost – Inexpensive.

Arranging Tip – The bright-green color of bells of Ireland is a great accent in flower combinations. Use them like a foliage choice. Cut the tips off about one-third of the way down and set aside. Fill the vase with a base of the cut stems. Fill in with other flowers. Add the tips of the bells of Ireland around the edges of the other flowers and the container. The color really brightens the bouquet.

Christmas Is Here

You, family and friend have been waiting for this all year round, and the name of it is Christmas. When you stop to think about Christmas and what is involved with it you imagine: Christmas music and caroling, an exchange of Christmas cards, church celebrations, a special meal, and the display of various Christmas decorations, including Christmas trees, Christmas lights, nativity scenes, garlands, wreaths, candle rings, mistletoe, and holly. In addition, several closely related and often interchangeable figures, known as Santa Claus, Father Christmas, and Saint Nicholas, are associated with bringing gifts to children during the Christmas season and have their own body of traditions and lore.

We at Whole Blossoms feel It is really important to understand how to care for garlands, wreaths, and candle rings.  It is not just about throwing some garland around the door and you are done. You see garland can be made in many different ways. Some of these are bead, popcorn or cranberry, flower, lei, rope, vine and finally pine garland. Most people during Christmas use the pine garland, but there we sell different types of green garland such as: Carolina Sapphire, Cedar and Carolina Sapphire, Fresh Boxwood, Leyland Cypress, Magnolia and Leyland, Magnolia, Magnolia Green, Nagi, Plumosus, Plumosus and Green Ivy as well as many other kinds. Why not allow a wholesale wreath to add a big smile to your face. We sell a variety of cross, square, heart, and round. Round wreaths are mostly used during Christmas.

Candle rings are used to compliment the garland and the wreaths that you are using for Christmas. After you have decorated parts of your house the candle rings can be placed in the center of your dining room table or they can be placed in every room of your apartment or house to welcome your guest with a beautiful candle ring. Like wreaths and garland, fresh candle rings are an eternal part of the festive season since Roman times.  I can see that Whole Blossoms have put a lot of time and effort to make the wreaths look special and different, so much that these can be used in weddings, parties, and many other occasions.

4 Seasons of Birth Month Flowers to Personalize Your Event

For many years the floral industry has promoted a symbolic tradition each month having a special flower known as a birth month flower. Brides and grooms have long incorporated their birth month flowers into their wedding designs as a way to bring a personal touch and deeper significance into their floral pieces, and they also use birth month flowers to honor their parents, departed relatives, their own children, and yes, even their pets.

Another popular way that couples use their birth month flower is to embrace the birth month of their wedding, which marks the start of their new life together and gives their big day an actual birthday. At the wedding and on the anniversaries, they will incorporate the birth-month blooms of their union.

Taking this personalization a step further, they’ll share the story of their wedding birth-month—or the inclusion of their own or parent’s birth-month flowers—in their wedding day floral pieces and tribute arrangements so that guests can appreciate the special, thoughtful steps that went into designing each element of the day.
Your birth-month flowers can be combined in your bouquet, including both his and hers blooms, and you can also bring in the birth-month flowers of your children to give your bouquet a truly family oriented symbolism—provided that each flower complements the collection as a whole. Tulips and holly would be a strange combination, for instance. We’ve provided two flowers for each month, giving you more of a selection for combinations and the blending of special family blooms.

Want to add even more meaning? Look at your birth-month gemstones, such as emerald for May, and bring those colors into your bouquet and décor. This just makes the symbolism even deeper, giving you a fresh combination of the two major birth month specialties with plenty of color to work with.

If your birth-month flowers don’t work with your desired bouquet or centerpiece plans, such as daisies not fitting in with your formal wedding sea of roses and calla lilies, then use those daisies as a theme at another of your pre- or post wedding events.

•    SPRING BIRTHDAYS
•    March: daffodil or jonquil
•    April: daisy or sweat pea
•    May: lily of the valley or hawthorn

•    SUMMER BIRTHDAYS
•    June: rose or honeysuckle
•    July: larkspur or water lily
•    August: gladiolas or poppy

•    FALL BIRTHDAYS
•    September: aster or morning glory
•    October: Calendula or cosmos
•    November: chrysanthemum

•    WINTER BIRTHDAYS
•    December: narcissus or holly
•    January: carnations or snowdrop
•    February: violet or primrose violet

3 Ways to Create a Water Ceremony to Show Your Honor

If your wedding will take place on the beach, either lakeside or Oceanside, or on a yacht, you have the perfect opportunity to cast tribute flowers into the water as you remember your departed loved ones.

Tossing flowers into the ocean has long been a ritual in many cultures; with some bearing the interpretation that you are offering flowers out to the souls of the departed that now exist as part of nature out in the horizon. Other cultures practice water-based floral rituals as an offering to the gods and mythic characters that are said to transport the souls of the departed to the hereafter. And still others hold fast to the concept of water being the main element of life, and by offering gifts to the sea you support the “lives” of those who have passed to another realm. And some couples just like the practice of throwing flowers into the sea and watching them float gently on the waves. No deep spiritual meanings for them.

You can learn to design the floral pieces that you can use in your on-the-water remembrance rituals, deciding on your loved one’s favorite flowers, colors, and other personalizes choices.

There are three ways you can create your remembrance rituals:

1.    Rituals Using Single Flowers

•    Give each guest a single short stemmed flower to toss in the water
•    Decide if you wish to cast all white flowers, or if you wish to create a colorful bloom tribute with multiple hues of flowers
•    If stems are too unwieldy, hand out flower heads such as daisies, which are better floaters than rose heads.
•    If you prefer, keep this ritual to yourselves; be the only ones to toss your single white, red, or other colored flowers out to sea.

2.    Rituals Using Wreaths

•    Fashion smaller wreaths, almost the size of bracelets, for your guests to throw into the water.
•    Toss two wreaths into the water, one for relatives and friends on each side of the family.
•    A third wreath might be thrown in memory of departed friends you share in your own relationship.
•    Wreaths may be made purely of greenery, without roses or other blooms, as a way to save on your floral budget.

3.    Rituals Using Petals

•    Rather than throw stemmed flowers, wreaths, or bouquets into the water, toss handfuls of pretty petals. The most popular color is white for these water tributes, with bright colors coming in a surprising second place.
•    Again, the two of you may be the only ones to sprinkle your flower petals into the surf or over the railing of the yacht to decorate the water surrounding your floating ceremony.

Some other flowers you can use are: dahlias, and sunflowers. If you are considering a personal event like this, please allow Whole Blossoms Wholesale Flowers assist you with all of your floral needs. They will be glad to help you choose the right flowers for such a solemn occasion.

What Do You Know About Liatris?

Are you searching for the perfect flower and getting ready for your next planned event or wedding? Sometimes there is no right or wrong flower but a matter preference as to what fits your needs or what fits your personality. The 101 series is a series of articles helping to educate everyone with the contrasts of various flowers. You may want to read the others in this series as well as many other helpful articles.

There are three things to keep in mind with Liatris:

1.    Liatris are tall, narrow spike flowers consisting of dozens of tiny fuzzy blossoms graduating down the stem. Liatris are unusual in that they blossom from the top of the flower downward. The leaves are thin and grass-like. Fresh Liatris have the top one or two inches of the flower’s blossoms open, with the middle of the flower showing good size and color. The bottom blossoms do not fully develop after the Liatris is cut.

2.    Older Liatris have about half of the flowers open, and the tips discolored and dry. The bottom, undeveloped blossoms may have a dried appearance.

3.    Liatris add instant color to tall combinations, because the flowers open from tip to base. They are a versatile choice—useful in exotic bouquets as well as in more casual arrangements.

Floral Bunches for Bouquets

If a single flower is too small, and round is too formal and expected, consider a floral bunch for your bouquet. This grouping is not as organized and symmetrical as a round bouquet. Flowers are not organized in circles or definite patterns. Instead, the bouquet has that just-picked look and as such is far more appropriate for a less-formal wedding.

One of the trends in bunches is the presentation bouquet. Think about the long-stemmed bouquet presented to the newly crowned Miss America. She holds the lush collection of flowers across her lower arm as she takes her first walk down the aisle with her new title. That’s the same look you’re afforded with the presentation, or arm, bouquet.

Many brides love the arm bouquet design, as it allows the bride to comfortably take her father’s arm as he escorts her down the aisle, and then the arm of her husband as he escorts her back up the aisle.

Because you will use this bouquet for your wedding and not a pageant, you will want to fill the bunch bouquet—in a long style or as an eight-inch stemmed, less dramatic bunch that’s not so Miss America—with flowers and greenery according to your wedding’s formality, location, and theme.

Choosing the Right Flower during the fall

The fall season is now upon us and you have probably heard all about using in-season flowers for your bouquets, centerpieces, and other décor, since their availability means fresher delivery of fresh cut blooms, and a wider variety of color variegations. During this time of the year certain flowers are much lower in price.
It’s always good to focus on in-season flowers to ensure your odds of getting the best and most beautiful selection and avoiding any weather fiasco that could potentially ruin a crop and prevent your shipment (or make it triple the price!).

The following is a list of flowers recommended for the fall. As you explore this list, you may be inspired by mention of a flower you never thought to bring into your décor plans, and your groom too may discover a flower type that would be perfect for his own boutonniere or as a gift for honored women on his side of the family.
You may want to consider the following:

Allium
Aster
Alstroemerias
Amaranthus
Anemone
Chrysanthemum
Dahlia
Freesia
Gerber Daisy
Gladiolus
Hypericum Berry
Iris
Lily
Orchid
Rose
Star of Bethlehem
Sunflower