FLOWER ARRANGING FROM YOUR GARDEN
There are many paths to follow in learning about flower arranging. Even if you don't seek formal training, you will want to know some basics to make it easier and more fun for you. Then dive in. Walk around your own garden and look for foliage and flowers that look good together. The advice of garden author Felder Rushing comes to mind, "spikey, frilly, roundy". Rushing suggests that combining plants of these three shapes will inevitably result in a "design".
Carry a container of warm water with you in the garden. As you cut stems, immediately put them in the container to keep them flushed with water until you make your arrangement. Cut them a little longer then you think you want so that you can make adjustments later. Cut a lot! Think of it as pruning with a purpose.No flowers? No problem. Choose foliage of different shades of green and different shapes and you can still make an attractive arrangement. Keep an eye out for bare branches with interesting shapes that will add interest and remember that you can prune excess to keep the branch from being too cluttered. Old growth will hold up better than new growth.
- Cut the end of woody growth vertically to help it drink up water.
- Clean all material of any visible dirt.
- Immerse stems in deep water for several hours before creating your design.
- Strip all foliage from the part of the stalk that will be immersed in water.
Pine cones and seed pods can be wired to picks to insert into your design.
Pay attention to nature. Look at your garden. Foliage is denser toward the bottom and center and more open to the outside. Your arrangement should reflect that as well. Heavy forms should be lower and more central with airy shapes and open branches to the outside.
It is likely that the plants that look good together in your garden will also be attractive sharing a design.
Get out there and try it!
Click on this photo to see a larger image.Study the shapes (roundy, spikey, frilly) and note the different colors of foliage. Nature is denser at the middle and heavier at the bottom with airy branches at the outside. Imagine this arrangement in a bowl!
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