Archive for April, 2008
Posted on April 29, 2008 with 1 Comment
Afloral.com has created a new site for those who are not exactly informed in the field of flowers, FlowerstothePeople.com. This site is host to all kinds of information on types and names of flowers. There is also a photo gallery, advice on sending flowers, and flower care tips.
FlowerstothePeople.com is best site to find information on how to send flowers, and other for finding resources on flowers. There are in depth descriptions on which kind of flower is appropriate for which person or occasion, and of course the price these blooms can be purchased at.
Meanings of flowers and tips on caring for them are also included in this site. There is also a specific section dedicated to roses, with facts about the flower and just about every type.
Also included is advice on flowers for weddings, flower associations, schools, and state flowers.
Afloral.com provides most of the silk flowers for Upstate New York, and with their success in this aspect of business they decided to expand to the internet. They have a vast expanse of knowledge extending from years of experience.
Posted on April 28, 2008 with No Comments
The first day of the month of May is known as May Day. It is the time of year when warmer weather begins and flowers and trees start to blossom. It is said to be a time of love and romance. It is when people celebrate the coming of summer with lots of different customs that are expressions of joy and hope after a long winter.
Many of these customs are celebrated during the weekend before the May Day Bank Holiday: the first Monday in May. Garlands are made, a May Queen will be chosen, Morris Dancers appear and children dance around a Maypole. In some towns local customs are celebrated on other dates in May and might be called oakapple day or Garland Day.
Roman festival of Flora
Although summer does not officially begin until June, May Day really marks its beginning. May Day celebrations have their origins in the Roman festival of Flora, goddess of fruit and flowers, which marked the beginning of summer. It was held annually from April 28th to May 3rd. This is still celebrated in Helston in Cornwall where they have an annual Floral Dance which involves the whole town.
Posted on April 28, 2008 with No Comments
The Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival, is a great event to go to for those who are looking for new ideas for their gardens, or for new tips on gardening.
Every year at the festival there are a multitude of seminars on gardening, people from all over the United States attend, and speak; even the horticulturalists for Disney have been at the show.
There are many colorful flower displays — one nautical flag display houses as much as 75,000 plants and bedding flowers. There are floating gardens, which are put out each spring, and housed in the nursery during the year.
Along with the colorful flower gardens there is a butterfly garden area, where guests can experience the beauty of butterflies up close, as they fly among the flowers.
According to Debbie Mola-Mickler, one of the horticulturalists and presenters at the festival, after the flower displays the seminars are not to be missed.
However for those looking for some gardening inspiration will have to wait until June 3rd to visit the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival.
[Via: CFnews13]
Posted on April 26, 2008 with No Comments
In Victorian times the sending of coded love messages became a popular craze. The advantage was that you could flirt without there being any incriminating evidence.
In 1884 a whole book on the subject entitled, The Language of Flowers, by Jean Marsh and illustrated by Kate Greenaway, was published in London. It became popular and respected and has been the standard source for Victorian flower meanings ever since.
Selected Flower Meanings
Here are some selected flowers and their meanings, a short dictionary.
Almond flowers — Hope
Anemone — Forsaken
Aster — Symbol of love
Balm — Sympathy
Basil — Best wishes
Bay leaf — “I change but in death”
Bell flower, white — Gratitude
Bergamot — Irresistible
Bluebell — Constancy
Borage — Courage
Broom — Humility
Campanula — Gratitude
Carnation, pink — I’ll never forget you
Carnation, red — My poor heart aches for you
Carnation, striped — Refusal
China rose — Beauty always new
Chrysanthemum — Love
Clover, four leaved — “Be mine”
Daffodil — Regard
Daisy — Innocence, new-born, “I share your sentiment”
Fern — Sincerity
Forget-Me-Not — True love
Furze or Gorse — Enduring affection
French Marigold — Jealousy
Gardenia — Ecstasy
Gentian — Loveliness
Geranium — “You are childish”
Hare bell — Grief
Honeysuckle — Bonds of love
Heather — Admiration
Hyacinth — I am sorry, Please forgive me
Ivy — Fidelity, friendship, marriage
Jasmine — Grace
Jonquil — “I hope for return of affection”
Lavender — Luck, devotion
Lilac — First love
Lily — Purity, modesty
Lily of the Valley — Purity, the return of happiness
Lily, Calla — Beauty
Marigold — Health, grief or despair
Myrtle — Fidelity
Orchid — Love, beauty, refinement
Pansy — Loving thoughts
Periwinkle — Happy memory
Poppy, red — Consolation
Primrose — I can’t live without you
Rose, cabbage — Ambassador of love
Rose, red — Love
Rose, pink — Grace, beauty
Rose, yellow — Friendship
Snowdrop — Hope
Sweet Pea — Departure, tender memory
Sweet William — Gallantry
Tuberose — Voluptuousness
Tulip, red — My perfect lover, Reclamation of love
Violet — Loyalty, modesty, humility
Wheat — Riches of the continuation of life
Willow, weeping — Mourning
Wallflower — Fidelity
Yew — Sorrow
Posted on April 26, 2008 with 1 Comment
Flowers have always been used for decoration at weddings.
Some people choose the flowers at the wedding on the basis of their symbolic meaning. For example orange blossom has always been associated with weddings because it signifies purity and chastity.
Peonies are avoided by some as they represent shame; azaleas represent temperance: roses symbolise love and snowdrops represent hope.
A combination of red and white flowers is avoided by the superstitious because they stand for blood and bandages.
However, people from different regions may attach other meanings to the same flower. For example lilies symbolise majesty to some but are thought unlucky by others because of their association with death.
The groom often chooses a flower for his buttonhole which also occurs in the bride’s bouquet. This is a vestige of the time when a Knight would wear his Lady’s colours to display his love.
Posted on April 26, 2008 with No Comments
There was strange weather and even stranger music to start off the Woodland Tulip Festival in Washington, making for a lively start of the annual event.
The show is held every year at Holland America Bulb Farms and there are many kinds of tulips featured — all the colors of the rainbow are present.
This year the festival began with a blast of cool windy weather. Russell Prewitt, a bagpiper, provided the music for the visitors of the farm. There was really no explanation for the Scottish bagpipes introducing the Tulips from Holland. Prewitt simply said, “It’s a haunting sound. Whether you are playing in the forest or in the tulips it just fits.”
Admissions are free for the festival, and it was only supposed to last for a week but has been extended.
Though only the tougher tulip lovers came out as the weather has been fairly nasty for the time of the festival with a couple of hailstorms to make things worse.
The tulips have been protected from the hail with the help of an anti-hail machine, allowing the sightseers the best of the tulips.
Many children and adults attended the festival, buying fresh cut, and potted flowers. In addition to the flowers there was food and drink to keep the crowds entertained.
[Via: The Columbian]
Posted on April 25, 2008 with No Comments
Sometimes it is difficult to define exactly which flowers are new and which aren’t. A lot of flowers that are advertised as being “new” have actually been in existence for a long time. Though, they may have been very rare and extremely expensive. Very frequently, they are just given different names and put out on the market again. This year many of those tempting flowers are out in stores and easy to get to.
The first and most exciting flower is the Pink Octopus, being a very beautiful, candy-pink, swirling petals.
The Pashmir is not a hybrid, but was found in India. It is appearing in the United States for the first time; it has very eye-catching bright blue petals and is extremely sturdy.
Scabiosas are perennials that grow for quite a long time. Their blooms resemble pincushions. They are a popular choice for cut flowers and bouquets; they require quite a bit of water, but give unending blooms in return.
The first among cone shaped flowers is the Coconut Lime. It is a small, tough plant with ruffled double flowers, which have a pale green coloring. This flower is especially pleasant as it attracts butterflies.
The most interesting flower is the Ultra Violet. This is a naturally bred hybrid and it’s the hummingbirds that are responsible for breeding this flower, by transporting pollen from one flower to the other to create a new plant. It blooms until there is frost, with pinkish violet flowers.
[Via: The Seattle Times]
Posted on April 24, 2008 with No Comments
The Dixon May Fair has been around for years, the cut-flower contest bringing many contestants. Flowers anywhere, from miniature red roses to weeds have been entered in the various categories of arrangement. The fair is held from the 8th of May to the 11th.
Though the paperwork for the fair is due fairly early on, the contestants and exhibitors deliver their arrangements only a day before the fair.
One of the oldest exhibitors at the fair is 101 years old. Almost everybody calls Letha Cannon of Dixon, “Grandma.” According to tradition she has entered African violets every year. This year her daughter Ruth Leber will enter as well.
There are many divisions in this contest, perennials, tall bearded iris, flowering shrubs, annuals, petunias, pansies, and violas, with the most popular being miniature roses.
There is a special category for those who are not so at home in the garden called, “largest weed.” The only rule is that the exhibitor must know what type of weed they are showing. The giant reed is one the largest types of weeds found on the banks of creeks.
This is one of the oldest fairs in the state of Texas at 133 years of age.
[Via: DailyDemocrat]
Posted on April 23, 2008 with No Comments
Over a million mothers will be getting bouquets of flowers this coming mother’s day, which may seem like a big waste of flowers.
This Mother’s Day the gift of flowers will have even more meaning. There is a company called Florverde in Columbia, which is helping the mothers working for them. The florticulture industry in Columbia is an ever expanding business bringing in a lot of money. Women employed in this field can become certified for a program. Asocolflores, which gives these working mothers aid for their families. They get funding for education, health-care, housing, childcare, and they are included in many other programs.
The certified flowers of Florverde, will be send to the United States by the millions, 2 million stems to be exact. Those who buy flowers for their mothers next month can feel that they have a part in this as Columbia is the greatest supplier of flowers to the United States.
Augusto Solano, President of the Columbian Association of Flower Exporters (Asocolflores) says, “Families can take comfort in knowing when they celebrate mother’s day, or any other day, with the purchase of flowers, they are also helping to enhance the lives of thousands of Columbian women and mothers working in our country’s floriculture industry.” Solano goes on to say, “Through the growing Florverde initiative, more Columbian women and families will have the opportunity to benefit from social, environmental, labor, and occupational health and safety standards we have established.”
If you want to give your mother a truly meaningful and beautiful gift perhaps this year flowers will be the right choice.
Posted on April 22, 2008 with No Comments
Flowers are most likely to put a smile on any mother’s face; however the decision on which flowers to choose can be mind boggling.
It is now the season for buying bouquets especially with mother’s day just around the corner. For those who are completely lost as to which blooms they should choose, flowerpossibilities.com is where they can turn for advice. This site is a great resource for getting yourself educated on flowers. There are many flower varieties on this site, possibly allowing you to find your mother’s particular favorite. There are also recipes for designing bouquets. Bridget Behe, the Flower Doctor is also available to answer any of your questions about flowers.
According to Dr. Behe, “Everyone loves flowers, even if they don’t know the names of the various varieties, once you learn about flowers, you grow to appreciate and love them even more.”
Some of the favorite flower varieties are: roses, lilies, alstroemeria, and carnations.
This year’s creative idea is to get a mug with your picture printed on it, and a special message to your mother. Of course, the mug is to be filled with her favorite flowers.
