Info & Care Sheets

• Top Ten Tips for Creating Elegant Vase Arrangements with Flowers from your Garden

  1. Choose a container that inspires you. Pair a purple lead glass vase from your Grandmother with her favorite peonies. Sunflowers in a lemonade pitcher are a classic favorite. Have an idea what blooms you’ll be working with before you choose a vessel. Larkspur, Gladiolas and Liatris are all stems with some serious height so a taller, narrower container will support the flowers without being top heavy.
  2. Cut at the right time! Choose blooms that are showing color but are not open. Cutting when blooms are too mature will affect the longevity of your arrangement. Garden cuttings can last an average of 2 to 3 days. -HINT- Most garden flowers will perform better if they are cut in the morning before the sun has a chance to warm them.
  3. Build a Base. Use foliage from trees, shrubs or even your indoor house plants to create a strong base for you arrangements. Hosta leaves are a great way to add texture and structure to your vase arrangements.
  4. Cut Long. When removing blooms from the plants, cut low, just above the node of the stem to improve productivity for new blooms. You can always trim to the correct length once you’re ready to assemble your arrangement.
  5. Remove all Foliage. It’s important to strip off all greens below the water line of your container. Leaves that are submerged will break down and harbor bacteria which will shorten the life of your flowers.
  6. Assemble in Groupings. For maximum visual impact group like stems together. 3 roses set low and off to the side in a cluster offer a bigger impact than splitting them up.
  7. More Water! Keep stems as short as possible. The shorter the distance that water has to travel to reach the head of the flower the longer they will last. Keep in mind that some flowers like Hydrangea, Peony and Tulips absorb fluid thru the base of the blooms as much or more that they do from the cut end of their stems. – HINT- if your Hydrangeas wilt, re-cut and submerge the entire flower in water. The bloom should re-hydrate in about an hour.
  8. Accent your Arrangement. Use Birch branches stripped of their leaves for dramatic height. Raid the ribbon box for a fun texture accent or tuck a lace doily in the corner of an arrangement to add a whimsical feel. – HINT- do not use material that is irreplaceable or sentimental. Water or the flowers themselves could stain the fabrics.
  9. Determine Your Style. An English Garden Style arrangement is lush and full of Roses, wispy Queen Anne's Lace and Scabiosa in an antique compote. While a more contemporary style can be mono chromatic or mono floral. A sleek silver vase with a gathering of simple Iris can add a pop of color to any urban living room.
  10. Have Fun- Try, try and try again. The best part about using your garden flowers is that they are free and always at your fingertips! Experiment with all types of colors and styles and enjoy your hard work.

  Posted on July 23, 2012

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