Exotic Flowers in Boston

I’ll admit it.  This time of year is certainly not one of my favorites and there are several reasons why…

A).  I’m a warm-blooded soul who despises snow and ice.

B).  Traveling becomes tricky with bad road conditions forcing us to become  hermits for most of the season- another personality trait I’m missing.

C).  THERE ARE NO OUTDOOR FLOWERS!!

This last one is enough to depress any blossom lover because the fact remains that there are no wild flowers looming outside in the gardens.  Everything is frozen, stuck to the ground with no life signs what so ever.  I miss the days of carrying bundles of stems with petals scented with pure sweetness and arranging them in vases throughout my home. Did they make my house look pretty and smell good?  Absolutely, but there’s more to this than mere home decorating…

It is a scientific fact that flowers have the power to elevate our moods, particularly when we are feeling at our lowest.  All of the senses play a part, including the way a flower smells, its texture, color and arrangement with other species.  Our minds are positively enhanced the moment we set eyes on a bouquet and eventually we learn to connect this sensation of happiness with flowers in general.  So when the weather turns chillier and we lose our stimulation from outdoor gardening and growing, we have to make a conscious effort to seek them out elsewhere.  Contacting your local florist is the best way to solve this problem or you can even begin with indoor seeds such as marigolds and nasturtiums.   They’ll be fun to watch sprout and you’ll have pretty blooms flowering through the coldest months of the year.

Scientific Facts Supporting the Psychological Benefits of Flowers

1. Flowers arranged in areas such as entryways and foyers are symbolic of the meaning of sharing.  Guests who enter a building and are greeted by a fresh bouquet of flowers on the table react to this by feeling welcomed. 

2. Flowers are a wonderful gift to a loved one because it actually works as an aphrodisiac.  The gesture can build strong emotions of intimacy and likely bring two people physically closer together.

   

Photo credit via aboutflowers.com

Flowers open windows to creativity and often encourage a person’s imagination when exposed to flowers on a regular basis.  Some of our greatest artists of all time like Van Gogh surrounded him self regularly with flowers in order to find inspiration for his work.

So this might sound a little strange but there’s a new trend sweeping across New England this Thanksgiving and it’s all about dressing the bird in flowers!  That’s right!  People are actually asking caterers and florists to create small flower displays either around or on top of their turkeys in order to reap a particular benefit!  Sound crazy?  Well, the reason lies in the belief that doing so will bring about some…umm- interesting side effects.  We’re not quite sure where this phenomenon started but we do know that Bostonians are actively placing their orders for the upcoming holiday sending designers into turkey hysteria!  Want to learn more about how and why this fad is circulating?  Read on to learn the secret to this turkey taboo…

photo credit via http://blovelyevents.com/

According to ancient scripture, the turkey was once thought to be of regal stature in certain cultures and was often given a bed of petals to sleep on during customary celebrations.  Depending on the color of the feathers the bird adorned, people would actually attempt to match the shading to the blossoms presented.  If the turkey had more red feathers, he was thought to be a bringer of love and romance while a turkey having blue feathers was believed to induce sorrow or death.  Nowadays, the Thanksgiving turkey is being wrapped in flowers of a chosen color in the hopes to encourage the desired omen.  (For those who would like to try this, select green flowers to entice a windfall of money, purple for courage and yellow for happiness.)

A second theory for why people are covering their birds with flowers is due to the aroma-therapeutic benefits that can be infused into the skin.  While many of these dressings include herbs such as rosemary, parsley and sage, there are blossoms such as dandelions and nasturtium now being thrown into the mix.  Creative chefs are infusing their meat with an incredible seasoning of sweet to spicy tastes just by covering the top of the turkey’s back and legs with freshly cut florets.  Be careful not to use species like roses that will embellish a musty aftertaste and try choosing varieties that have an earthy consistency such as heather, alliums, chicory, geraniums and borage.

Ever really wondered why the number 13 is considered unlucky?  Think about it for a minute… Urban Legend says you should never be married on the 13th of any month, that you should never buy a home that has the number 13 included in the address and if we ever wake up on a Friday the 13th we just better expect the worst to happen.  

Send 12 roses not 13. 

All of this sounds a little silly but the truth is, the significance behind the number 13 is very real.  Millions of people believe that #13 is a taboo and should be avoided at any and all costs.  Seeing this popular trend, I was curious as to how this number obtained such an awful reputation.  What I found was its unpopularity actually stems all the way back to biblical times!  Now that’s amazing… Here’s what I uncovered about the number 13 and see if you still think it’s unlucky!

There were 13  at the Last Supper including Jesus.  Judas Iscariot took the 13th place setting, the apostle who betrayed Jesus and hence brought about the original negative annotation for the number.  

If you’ve ever noticed a hangman’s noose, you might have counted the number of loops used to secure the rope around the head.  You’ve got it- unlucky 13! This has been argued to be only 8 but documentation shows that originally, there were 13.    

I bet you didn’t know that a space exploration was involved in this fiasco!  Apollo 13’s space mission to the moon in history that went wrong although all astronauts did return to earth safely.  Since then, very few missions were named #13 and almost never occur on Friday the 13th.

Speaking of Friday the 13th, it turns out this was an especially bad day when a flight from Uruguay crashed into the mountains killing several people.  The aviation catastrophe continued on that day unfortunately when another flight from the Soviet Union crashed and killed close to 200 passengers when they were nearby the landing strip.  Moral of the story is to try to book your flight on another day if possible.  

Here’s something for the kiddies!  According to the awesomeness of Spongebob Square Pants animated cartoon series, Mr. Krabs declares that there are 13 swears in the English language.  I’m dying to know what they are, aren’t you?

Having a name with 13 characters is also an unlucky sign since some of the world’s deadliest serial killers are included in this finding.  Those who do have 13 letters in their name such as Jeffrey Dahmer and Jack the Ripper are supposedly cursed by the devil.

At age 13, you become a teenager and we all know that’s bad news!

Of course, in America we send 12 roses not thirteen. Send some today. :)

If you share a love for both flowers and reading, you already know how fantastic it is to find a title that combines the two!  I’m not referring to gardening “How-To” manuals or floral designing guides but stories that are written to include themes and ideas related to blossoms.  Perhaps it’s a novel about an owner of a flower shop who falls in love with a customer or maybe even a “Who-Done –It?” about someone being poisoned by a lethal petal.  Whatever your tastes may be, there are a variety of options readily available from your local bookstore and library.

I know what you’re thinking… How do you know the page-turners from the duds when hunting for this particular type of novel?  Well, it just so happens that I recently found a list of recommended titles that are thematic of flower world and have reviewed as some of the best!  While you may enjoy one genre apposed to another, there are thousands to choose from which celebrate a passion for blooms penned after some of our most impressive literary talents.  So if you’re looking for a fabulous flower read, take a peek at these books for adults that have topped Boston florist’srecommended reading lists!

The Language of Flowers

By Vanessa Diffenbaugh

Victoria has always had trouble communicating with others but when she finds she has a gift of speaking through flowers, her world of possibilities change for the better.  Orphaned as a child, she discovers that she has the ability to improve others lives and circumstances just by giving them a particular variety of blossom.  Growing confident with her talents, she discovers her capabilities even when a stranger threatens to eradicate her ability forever.

Pretty Poison

By Joyce Lavene

Peggy adores her life as a florist and is excited to start the autumn season selling mums and other seasonal flowers.  Just as she unlocks the door to start a new day, she discovers a rich man bludgeoned to death by a shovel lying right in the middle of her fall display!  With time running out and a police station full of morons, Peggy takes it upon herself to crack the case and find the murderer before they find her! 

 Florist Grump

By Kate Collins

Abby Knight is a local florist with a passion for posies and pansies but when her housing situation goes belly up, she and new husband Marco are forced to live with her parents who make life difficult to say the least.  It’s not until an affluent member of the community daisy turns up “pushing daisies” that the newlyweds must find the killer before the killer finds them!

How many of you out there are real comic book fans?  Perhaps the super-hero phenomenon has always appealed to you, too?  If you find yourself a member of these clubs, you are well informed of the super sexy and villainous, “Poison Ivy” of the Batman DC Comic series. Florists are paying particular attention to the vixen and are wondering if this impressive force of nature has got what it takes to represent the floral industry?  According to her background, I do believe she does!

“Poison Ivy” was created by two bright cartoonists (Robert Kanigher and Sheldon Moldoff), who mirrored the villain after the famous pin-up model, Bettie Page.  Often accompanied by Harley Quinn as her sidekick (another bad guy often tied to the Joker), she was written to be completely obsessed with preserving nature from human harm.  Plants, flowers and anything that grows become her army that she’ll stop at nothing to protect and nurture.  An interesting fact is that her super powers are some of the only seen throughout the entire DC rogue cast, where her adversaries often only possess mere human properties.  Poison Ivy’s evil magic runs deep through her veins and her mouth where her kisses are lethal to whomever she touches.  This weapon is can cause both an infection and cure, placing her victims under her spell.  Batman becomes a love-interest when she kisses him the first time but makes the mistake of curing him when she kisses him again as the story progresses.  This causes a tension between the two much like he had with Cat Woman except Poison Ivy is clearly the scarier female enemy.  

Poison Ivy was also designed to reflect a political theme that was arising at the time, women’s liberation and feminism.  Audiences craved a character that could harness independence, intelligence and toughness, which Poison Ivy performed perfectly.  Her costume also reflected this idea where she wore a green bathing suit, yellow tights, green mask and leaves covering only portions of her body.  Her hair was also specifically chosen to be fire engine red to give her a wild quality.  Young female readers were applauding the stronger force of women as villains and saw this as a major improvement coming from the comic industry.

After the 1966 introduction edition in Batman #181, media enterprises took notice of her appearance and revamped Poison Ivy in several books and movies.  The most recent film featuring the vixen was in  “Batman & Robin” which was produced in 1997.  George Clooney starred as Batman while Uma Thurman gave a stellar performance as Poison Ivy.  Their interesting connection is played out well within this version and audiences can visualize their underlying heated passion for one another.  

Fierce, feisty and willing to make flowers and plants her number#1 priority, Poison Ivy sounds like the perfect mascot to me!

If you’re a big fan of flowers, you might want to pass along your hobby to your children.  Whether you have boys or girls, floral enthusiasts understand the importance of nourishing their child’s connection to nature, particularly when it comes to flora and fauna.  The reason lies in the benefits, which include a healthy development of curiosity, creativity and a stronger bond to our surrounding environment.  According to scientific study, kids that play with flowers grow up to have a stronger nurturing tendency towards both nature and human beings.  Many lessons can be learned by all who raise a family with fresh flowers in and around their homes, which are beneficial to all long term.  If you’re stumped as to how you can begin educating your children about the importance of appreciating flowers, try these fun activities and projects to get you started!

photo credit via www.milajasmineflowers.com.au

Fun and Easy Activities to Nourish a Child’s Bond to Flowers

1. Pick a patch of land and start a flowerbed in your backyard!  Allow your child to hand select their desired varieties of packaged seeds and let them get digging!
2. Literally, make your kids stop and smell the roses.  The effects of aromatherapy are said to cure issues such as anxiety and depression without having to use over the counter drugs.  When they feel better, they’ll instantly tie flowers with positive feelings and mindsets.
3. Crafting with flowers shows little ones the vast usage of heads, petals and stems while simultaneously opening the door to their imaginations.  Try having them glue dried petals to construction paper and let them make cards, bookmarks or beautiful pictures to hang up on the wall.
4. Encourage your kids to play “florist” and allow them to manifest their own arrangements using cut flowers that are either purchased from local shops or simply cut from the backyard.  Don’t focus on the perfection of the piece, instead emphasize creativity and see what their tiny hands can come up with!  Who knows?  You might just have a brilliant designer in the making!
5. Do your neighborhood some good and have the kids mix together small bouquets that they can gift to friends and family.  They’ll see the immediate joy and happiness they elicit and seek out to replicate that reaction over and over again.

We are well into the fall season and leaves are drifting to the ground right on cue.  Plants are a bit frozen, fruits and veggies are long gone and flowers are shriveled up tightly, which are all hints to us that the season for growing in New England is over.  In some parts of our state, you may have already seen snow (I shudder to thing).   For me, it’s a very disappointing next few months but accomplishing outdoor tasks are far from over.  There’s a lot to be done before next years cultivation of newly flourishing gardens and right now is the time to do it.  Last Sunday, I spent hours preparing raised beds and the surrounding grounds for a chilly winter freezing so that next spring, I’ll be raring to go out there! 

The truth be told, many avid gardeners forgo the whole process of shutting down their green thumb efforts and decide to deal with the aftermath the following April.  I’ve been tempted to take the easier path and just skip the whole thing as well, but considering the time and extra cost I’ll have to succumb to, it’s really not the smart way to go about things.  The ordeal isn’t that bad once you’ve got a system going so in order to help you, I’ll pass along mine!  Before the weather turns to sub zero temps, consider these facts and easy care tips to maintain your gardens throughout the entire year.

Setbacks of Ignoring Winterization

1. Leaving tools and ceramic pots outdoors during storms and frigid temperatures can damage and break these necessities we use throughout growing season.  Extra money will need to be spent on replacing what is lost and can incur considerable budget blunders. 

2. The time wasted cleaning leftover plants that will not return for another year can take up valuable space in your garden planning.  Instead of starting off fresh with new additions, you’ll be stuck yanking roots systems that you’ll find trickier since they’ve been in the ground for over a year.

3. Instead of emotions of happiness and elation we typically feel when celebrating a new gardening year, we can actually regress into anger and disappointment when we have to start spring with unrewarding work such as raking and weed removal.  We want to keep things positive, so make time in your schedule to things done!

4. Let’s face it-when we haven’t done our job at the end of fall, things turn out to be much, much messier when the calendar flips to May.  Who wants to stare out the window and see dirty remnants of last years harvest when we could be gazing at sprigs of early pretty perennials?

Fast Tips to Close Your Garden for the Season

1. Anything that is fragile or breakable (including ornaments and containers) should be safely put away on “low” shelves within garages, storage sheds or greenhouses.  If we have a windy winter, you’ll be glad they’re not up high where they can fall down. 

2. Remove all veggie, fruit and annual plants from beds because they will not re-grow next spring.  Keeping them planted past their prime can solidify their roots making it difficult to pull after a freeze. 

3. Store any chemical products such as weed killer, turpentine or other gardening food in an airtight area to avoid possibility of fire.

4. Place reusable items such as garden stakes, tomato cages and netting in dry areas of your home so that they can be utilized again.  Saving these materials not only will save you cash next year but also support “going green” which helps keep our environment healthy. 

You’ve heard them say, “The best gifts in life come in the smallest packages,” and that remains to be true even when talking about flowers!  Although large, bountiful and cascading creations still cause quite an affect on audiences, smaller vase work and nosegays are brimming up excitement for the “Less is More” end of the floral spectrum.  People are starting to become enticed by miniature arrangements and the precision that goes into making them.  Tiny pots, jars and urns are being snatched up by designers and filled with the most delicately beautiful blooms from the best wholesale markets in town.  Word has it that they’re being utilized in a massive array of situations including weddings, restaurant/hotel functions, personalized presents, holiday décor and interior decorating.  Because of their wide screen of desirability, florists are having a grand ole time projecting what their product needs will be for future sales.  

photo credit via Flower Factor

According to them, it ain’t easy…

One reason is due to the fact that orders are ranging in all types of design and color including contemporary vs. French styles and bold hues vs. pastels.  Some local Boston buyers are even saying that tropicals are starting to show up within this trend as well as succulents and cacti.  Apparently, anything is up for arranging when it comes to these tiny wonders.  

photo credit via Flower Factor

The Symbolic Meaning of Chrysanthemum

Chrysanthemum

Chrysanthemum,

Rose,

Buttercup.

Each morning he would guess a floret that might match

Her loveliness.

And every night,

When he pulled her close under…

By Pearl

photo credit via Flower Factor

The Chrysanthemum has a long history of importance within several different regions and cultures of the world.  Today, the flower meaning “gold” is seen in most flower shops and is used consistently within arrangements, particularly funeral pieces.  Although they can mean love, loyalty, friendship, luck and a whole slew of other connotations, mums historically have been tied to death and mourning.  In practical terms, the bloom’s impressive overall physical properties of longevity, wide spectrum of color, and year round availability is responsible for their high demand in global markets.  The chrysanthemum’s sturdy stem and large head also make them a pleasure to design with as well although the symbolic significance behind the flower is its real reasoning for being the number one flower bought for this occasion.

According to belief in Japan, the flower signifies peace and strength of the soul to those survived by their loved ones.  Mums are continually seen throughout many festivals and are utilized in celebrations extending from religious rituals as well as weddings.  The flower became such an asset to this culture that Japanese horticulturalists were the first in the world to cultivate shades outside of its wildlife hue of natural yellow.  Thanks to their expertise in knowledge of the chrysanthemum, varieties now exist that include tones of red, white, green, gold and violet.

As travel options increased and the floral industry widened, Japan was able to share and expose their native blooms to other countries.  Slowly, mums began to pop up everywhere making a huge splash across Europe, particularly France.  In the late nineteenth century, the French became obsessed with the new species and began farming the chrysanthemum in abundance along their countryside.  Due to its fuss-free nature, the flower became increasingly popular where they even attached its significance to the holiday, “All Saints Day”, ironically occurring during the time when the flower blooms.

Japan and France aren’t the only countries that adore this stunning species either.   Australia uses the mum as the preferred choice for gifting mom with flowers on Mother’s Day and China recognizes them as one of the “Four Gentlemen” which ties into the importance of cultural artwork.  In the United States, not only does New Orleans use it as the symbol for “All Saint’s Day” but the U.S. has officially deemed the chrysanthemum as the primary flower for the month of November.   

The following article appeared in the SAF Sales Wake Up ! on Saturday, October 29th 2016.

By Mary Westbrook
In Boston, Rick Canale has found a new way to solve the ongoing challenge of helping staff members connect quickly with customers in an authentic way: sweatshirts.

Earlier this week Canale handed out hooded sweatshirts to his employees at Exotic Flowers. On the back, each shirt has the word "Flowers" and the number "98"— both a reference to New England Patriots defensive end Trey Flowers, whose name is too perfect for Canale to resist.

At Exotic Flowers in Boston, employees don a sweatshirt featuring the name of a favorite New England Patriots player — who's last name happens to be flowers — as a way to create connection with customers.

"This visual statement sends a message to customers," Canale said. "It not only opens a dialogue with clients to show common interests, but it shows that we are not just the 'florist behind the counter.' We have similar likes and dislikes."

That personalization is no small thing. According to the research firm Gartner, 64 percent of people say customer experience is more important to their purchasing decisions than price.

In addition to keeping staff warm, the sweatshirts have injected an immediate dose of personality into customer interactions. (Imagine a big smile and shared "Go Pats!" compared to the far less memorable and often ineffective sales approach "can I help you?") 

"It is just another piece that personalizes our relationship with customers," said Canale.

Canale has also taken the flowers/flowers love beyond the physical store, interacting with the football player on social media.

"He has re-tweeted our support to his fan base, which is an added bonus," Canale said.

And Canale says that florists in other metro areas who want to copy the easy conversation-starter have options, too.

"There are many pro and college athletes with the last name Flowers," he said. "Tyler Flowers is a catcher for the Atlanta Braves. Brandon Flowers is on the San Diego Chargers and Marquis Flowers plays for the Cincinnati Bengals." 

Read more about why "can I help you" is ineffective and get 25 ideas for alternative phrasing.