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Garden Stories
Roses Are Red
A dozen red roses say, 鈥淚 love you,鈥 but horticulturists at the 91短视频 transcend tradition on Valentine鈥檚 Day. Read on for thoughtful, unusual, and homemade floral gift ideas.
Spouses can evoke their wedding day by combining flowers from their ceremony and reception into a Valentine鈥檚 bouquet, said Tim Pollak, outdoor floriculturist at the Garden. Tim would use sweet peas, freesias, and delphinium for a nostalgic, sweetly scented gift. Tropical flowers from spots such as Hawaii and Florida can conjure up memories of a romantic getaway.
Seeking a seasonal and local bouquet?
Consider some of the dormant shrubs growing in your yard, said Heather Sherwood, senior horticulturist.
A little advance planning can produce beautiful flowering branches from early-spring flowering shrubs, such as forsythia. Prune 2- to-3-foot lengths, put them in a container filled with water, and place them in a sunny location. The bright yellow forsythia flowers will begin blooming in roughly a week, while other shrubs may take longer. Heather likes mixing the forsythia with silvery pussy willow. You can tie the bunch with a big red bow and attach a homemade card with a big 鈥淚 Love You鈥 on it.
Flowering plants such as kalanchoe, African violets, cyclamen, and azaleas can bloom for weeks and serve double duty in the summer garden. Tim Pollak likes giving indoor blooming plants to friends and family, because they serve as a lasting reminder.
Forsythia (Forsythia 鈥楴orthern Sun鈥)
Want to remember Mom on Valentine鈥檚 Day? Fragrant and long-lasting carnations can denote love for a mother, says Jill Selinger, manager of adult education. Delicate, blooming four-leaf clovers (Oxalis tetraphylla) can boost a friend who鈥檚 down on his or her luck. The clover leads into St. Patrick鈥檚 Day and can be transplanted outside in summer. Primroses, symbols of young love, can be put in the garden in spring and come back year after year.
A lucky gift: four-leaf clover (Oxalis tetraphylla) Photo by 漏 Alice Wiegand,
Considering a recipient鈥檚 color preferences can create a Valentine鈥檚 bouquet that鈥檚 in harmony with their decor, said Jacob Burns, curator of herbaceous perennials. 鈥淣ot that many people have red and pink rooms,鈥 he said. 鈥淚f I had to pick, I鈥檇 want a simple bouquet of ranunculus, anemones, or tulips.鈥
Presentation adds thought, meaning, and beauty to a floral gift, agrees Selinger. Gardenias, symbols of secret love, can be floated in a bowl, filling a room with their intoxicating scent for several weeks. How about placing a posy or small violet plant in a souvenir mug from a special date or trip? Remember, roses are red, violets are blue鈥
An unusual and stunning gift: this lady slipper orchid (Cypripedium calceolus)
Orchids can make an exotic, very feminine Valentine鈥檚 gift, and some varieties, such as Phalaenopsis, are very elegant and easy to grow, notes Sherwood. Plant biology graduate student (and our informal orchid spokesperson) Anne Nies recommends adding red and pink orchids鈥攈er favorite flower and research subject鈥攊nto a mixed bouquet to add color, fragrance, and texture. 鈥淵ou can also make a bouquet or arrangement out of orchids alone; they have a wide variety of shapes and sizes,鈥 said Nies. Among her recommendations are red Cattleya with their spicy scent, and mysterious-looking, blood-red Paphiopedilum, or lady slipper orchids. She also likes Oncidium 鈥楽harry Baby鈥, which smells like another Valentine鈥檚 favorite鈥攃hocolate!