Don’t Just Pick The Flowers! Use The Whole Garden!

Looking for a unique way to add interest to a flower arrangements? Take a hint from Mother Nature by utilizing everything that grows in the garden to create unique and fun arrangements. Gardens contain a multitude of wonderful flowers as well as fruits and vegetables.

Sometimes we forget how noteworthy fruit and vegetables can be used as decorations, or as gifts in the form of  “floral arrangements”.  By marrying the items found in gardens with fresh cut flowers, you can create unique and fabulous designs. For example, try something as simple as roses and statice with green grapes draping over a container. The mixture of the roses with the grapes is less formal, but conveys a bit of garden whimsy.

What I enjoy about adding fruits or vegetables to flower designs is the ability to blend different textures, colors and smells into my table centerpieces.  I recently had a dinner party and was serving  Mexican food, lots of spicy Mexican food.  My florist designed a centerpiece using bright red cayenne chili peppers along with red roses, grapes and red apples.  The peppers, grapes and apples made the arrangement pop from the table.  Everyone commented on the wonderful idea of incorporating fruits and vegetables.

Taking  A Cue From The Farmers Market

Open yourself up to new ideas and creations by thinking outside the standard florist cooler. Browse your local fruit stands or grocery centers for unconventional ideas to use in arrangements.  Fall is a great time to experiment with gourds.  Try using small gourds, both round and elongated styles, with oranges in a clear tall vase to hold fresh flowers.  You won’t need floral foam because your gourds and oranges do the trick.

Another fantastic garden option is kale, which comes in a variety of beautiful colors. The colorful ones are often referred to as flowering kale. All flowering kales are edible like the garden varieties, making it a superb item for use in fruit and flower arrangements.

Imagine joining a bright, white-colored flowering kale with the deep green of  broccoli florets and bright orange baby carrots all in an edible arrangement. This is a great way to treat your Mother on Mothers day with an edible gift you both can share.

Edible Flower Arrangements

Most of us have seen edible flowers, such as pansies used as wedding cakes decorations. In fact, edible flowers have been used in the catering industry for a very long time.  Just like fruits and vegetables, edible flowers can be used to add a special touch of beauty or uniqueness.

More and more florists are using veggies and fruits to spice up their arrangements and to add texture as well. Vegetables and fruits are becoming more common in floral designs. Often you see fruits and vegetables used in silk flower arrangements because the colors and textures work well with different types of flora.  The use of fresh fruits and vegetables is growing more common. Fresh fruit and vegetables offer you a wide variety to draw from for inspiration and work your creative magic.

Sure you can eat them…But mostly they are for admiring.

When using fruits and vegetables in arrangements, most often the idea is not to eat them but to enjoy the unique idea of fruits and vegetables as floral arrangements.  If you decide to use or send edible flowers with edible fruits and vegetables in an arrangement, be sure they are indeed edible. Some flowers are not edible or may have an unpleasant taste.  You can find charts that tell you which flowers are edible as well as their taste. I highly recommend checking charts. Just as I used flowering kale and broccoli with carrots for a Mother’s Day gift suggestion, some people may not be aware that flowering kale is edible. Be sure to insert a note that tells the receiver about the arrangement. That note should include care instructions and if the arrangement is for admiring, eating or both.

Yes! You can make a “flower” arrangement by using fruit.

These types of arrangements can be edible! Just wrap them in colorful cellophane to keep them moist prior to delivery.  Edible fruit arrangements are easy to make. They just take some time and some creativity, and cookie cutters to make some “fruit flowers”. Or you can do as I do. I have my local florist make them for me. Not all florists, will make these types of edible arrangements, but it’s worth a phone call to see if they will.

The art of flower design takes on a new perspective, a whole new pizazz when you add an element of fruit or vegetables.  Enhancing your arrangements by adding the unexpected, shows design flair, as well as creativity. Don’t be afraid of fruits and vegetables.  Maybe you don’t like to eat fruit or vegetables, but don’t deny yourself the beauty found in veggies or the brilliant colors found in fruits. Use them in a colorful fruit and flower arrangement.

I don’t like brussels sprouts but using them as a base to add some light green color with pink roses in a topiary style is one way I can enjoy brussels sprouts. So contact your local florist to get a dose of healthy fruits and vegetables in your flower arrangements, today.

A special thanks goes to Belvedere Flowers for the picture of their Fresh Lemonade arrangement. A special thanks to King Creek Flowers for the fruity reception centerpiece photo. A special thanks to Apple Blossoms Floral Design for the fruit and flower arrangement photo.

Whether you are a Havertown PA Florist, a Miami Florist, a Tampa florist or one of the fine florists across the U.S. and Canada, Flower Shop Network would love to see pictures of your fabulous arrangements.  You can send pictures to jadams@flowershopnetwork.com.