Sunday, June 28, 2015

Protea Care & Handling: Tips From Chrysal


With alluring flower colors, exotic shapes and rugged woody stems, proteas are the new “It” bloom. The family tree originates in South Africa and these blooms love sun and sugar, especially Eximia, Latifolia, and Dutchess varieties.


The key to long vase life and minimizing leaf blackening is attention to temperature and processing stems into flower food, full sugar flower food. The best holding temperature range for protea is 38-42F. Cold temperatures and a well-lit cooler (proteas like to rest with the light on) greatly reduces leaf blackening.

Processing stems in flower food on arrival rather than selling dry from the box also limits blackening issues. Fill buckets with full-sugar flower food—Chrysal Professional #3, the same product for filling vases. It’s best to use the powder formula because protea like glucose and the Pro #3 sugar ingredient is 100% glucose.


What’s the difference between Chrysal Professional #2 holding solution and Professional #3 vase solution? The amount of sugar. Both solutions keep the water clean and flowing up to 5-6 days. Both lower pH to stimulate flow, but holding solutions (Pro #2) contains less sugar than vase solutions (Pro#3). Holding solutions are perfect for wholesale and retail display and wet-pack shipping, but protea, tuberoses and lisianthus are some of the exceptions—these blooms thrive best in high sugar solutions.


Many Thanks to Chrysal and Gay Smith for these helpful tips!

Wednesday, June 24, 2015

Garland: Thinking Outside of the Vase


The fashion world is enjoying a ’70s renaissance of bell bottoms and bohemian blouses, so it only makes sense that wedding season is all about flower power.  But who’s to say the décor needs to be in a vase?  This year, flowers, foliage and succulents too, are showing up in lots of unexpected places.














Feeling creative? Here’s a wonderful DIY garland blog from Style Me Pretty Living!



Saturday, June 20, 2015

Aristata: Welcome Summer Blooms


Protea aristata (aristata = sharp-tipped leaves), was first collected in 1928 near the town of Ladismith in the Cape Province.  Although thought to be common in the Seweweekspoort region, aristata could not be found again until 1953, prior to which it was believed for quite some time that it had become extinct.  Aristata, also known as Ladismith sugarbush, Ambassador sugarbush, Small pine sugarbush and Christmas sugarbush, has become one of South Africa's most famous proteas in spite of its relatively late 'discovery'.

Aristrata provides welcome summer blooms – June through August!  And, this distinctive protea has unusal pine-needle like foliage which provide a lovely background to its striking large and bright crimson flowers.





Sunday, June 14, 2015

10 Chic Boutonnieres with Personality

Though they are small ‘bouquets’, boutonnieres can add a huge splash of persona, color, and texture to the wedding party’s lapels.   So, if a bride is looking for something unique and bursting with personality, you may want to consider skipping the more classic boutonnieres and suggest garnishing the lapels with leucadendron, leucospermum, serruria, waratah, berzelia and even fabulous filler flowers.  Here’s a few of our wedding favorites.