Exotic Flowers in Boston

One of HR’s biggest puzzles when attending to tasks of the office is trying to figure out what varieties of plants and flowers to order from their Boston florists.  Why is this challenging?  Office buildings tend to run warmer than the average climate of other work places so only certain varieties will hold up for a full week.  The other component of the predicament is that you have an eclectic group of people to be weary of who might have allergies or a general dislike for certain fragrances and textures.  Because of this, you need to be careful to order pieces that are low in pollen count and odorless, which shortens the list of possibilities even further.  

Does that mean to skip the weekly flower order all together?  Heck no!  

There are several options towards solving this pickle of a problem and all are easily attainable just by contacting your florist.  Check out these perfect flora and fauna for your office and watch the employees and clients stand in awe of their beauty.   

Tropicals

photo credit: Flower factor

Tropicals such as Birds of Paradise and orchids are fabulous for stagnant environments with little air movement because they can withstand the heat and have an incredible property of longevity.  Their bright colors and dynamic shapes will create a great topic of conversation as well as a bright welcoming for guests.  

Hydrangea

You might want to consider using hydrangea for two reasons; one they hate the cold so a warmer temperature is better for them and two if they are watered regularly, they will last for weeks.  Green is the strongest in many cases, so you might want to coordinate that color in your order.  

Cacti & Succulents

Photo credit: Flower factor

You can’t go wrong with cacti because they’re durable, need very little upkeep and come in a variety of colors and sizes.  Cactus plants also hold no aroma making them outstanding for sensitive noses.  Just be sure to invest in succulents instead of prickly varieties!

It’s time again to start getting a little spooky decorating for Halloween!  Not only will our homes need to be accessorized with cob webs, witches hats and fake spiders climbing the walls, our flower arrangements needs to be made to reflect this ghostly spirit as well!  Boston florists are devising cleverly creepy pieces for their customers who possess a fun imagination and passion for celebrating this BOO-tastic holiday in style.  Designers are considering all elements when putting together arrangements including style, décor and texture that will coincide with this scary time of year.  That means the slimier, furrier, scalier, sweeter and eerier we can make these floral presentations – the better!  Halloween flowers are among the top most requested ornamental pieces for New England residences and particularly for businesses.   Local establishments even claim that one of these festive arrangements can actually increase sales and revenue for the month of October.  

My husband always sends me Halloween flowers. The one above was created with a Frankenstein mask. He used candy for the eyeballs. His head rests on top of spanish moss. his scar is celosia flower, while the blood drip from his mouth is an orchid. Red roses and bittersweet provide the ideal frame for this creepy floral creation.

Last year, Ricky sent me this Frankenstein  arrangement at the Westwood Public Library. The focal point is the Universal Studios Frankenstein action figure. Antique hydrangea and sheet moss set the stage while pink and yellow spray roses, freesia, free spirit roses and bittersweet frame the arrangement. 

Neither of these floral designs will break the bank and either one will set your Instagram account on fire. 

Happy haunting.

- Suzie

Halloween is here and for some little ghost and goblins, trick or treating for the first time can be frightening.  Lucky for book lovers, there are tons of stories perfect for teaching young children all about the spooky holiday while taking a little of the fright away from their worries.  By using furry creatures, clever pumpkins and beloved characters that your kids may already be familiar with, parents have a huge selection to choose from to help get their witches and warlocks ready!  Halloween is more than eerie things creeping behind dark corners- it’s a lot of fun, too!  Here are a few of my favorites that I read to my boys, which have stayed favorites on our bookshelves during the month of October!

The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything

August 20, 2002

by Linda D. Williams

CLOMP, CLOMP, CLOMP… This great tale surrounds a little old woman who says she’s not afraid of anything but is she really?  Follow the scarecrow whose clothing makes noises and chases her through the woods to find out if what she claims is true!

Pete the Cat: Five Little Pumpkins

July 21, 2015

by James Dean          Who doesn’t love Pete the Cat or                   the classic story about The Five                 Little Pumpkins?  Now readers will          enjoy a double dose of the tale as               this cool character and his                buddies retell the                   Halloween favorite!

Mouse’s First Halloween

By Lauren Thompson

“EEK” mouse squeaked!”

Poor little mouse is so scared of everything that visits on Halloween night but one by one he finds that all of the things associated with the holiday “are not so scary after all!”

Goodnight Goon: A Petrifying Parody

By Michael Rex

A ghoulishly fun spin on Margaret Wise Brown’s, “Goodnight Moon” told from

the perspective of visiting Martians!  The kids will love the silly comparatives

and parents will adore the unique details the author creates!

It is finally October-the time of year when we dress up in costumes, tell ghost stories and most importantly, profess our love for the pumpkin!  Everything from our desserts to our lattes seem to become thematic with this icon of the month, leaving us New Englanders with a wide array of tasty treats and festive décor.  Lucky for us, there’s no shortage of beautiful orange pumpkins in these parts, making it all the more pleasurable to dive right into the fun!  Whether you love baking seeds or carving jack o lanterns, surrounding patches in the Boston area will surely help you find what you are looking for!  Here is a list of some of the best patches, which will provide you beautiful pumpkins and other seasonal activities perfect for the whole family!

Smolak Farm

315 South Bradford Street

North Andover, MA

(978) 682-6332

Smolak Farms is one of my favorites because they hold some of the biggest festivals such as the scarecrow and pumpkin head event!  They also facilitate an ice cream stand, hayrides, corn maze, tractor tire playground, pony rides and face painting that will keep the kids entertained for the entire day!

Boston Hill Farm

Route 114, North Andover, MA

(978) 681-8556

This farm has everything you’re looking for this October including several different pick-your-own patches plus their very own petting zoo!  They also throw an enormous party that runs every weekend until the end of the month luring patrons in with live music and lots of food including barbecue, roasted corn and specialty chicken prepared over the fire.

Belkin Family Lookout Farm

89 Pleasant St., South Natick, MA

(508) 651-1539

Not only is this one of the oldest working farms in the state, but this beautiful orchard boasts acres upon acres of fruit for your picking enjoyment!  Once you’ve picked out your pumpkin, don’t forget to take a ride on their train that circles the property.  Choo Choo!

New England is famous for their beautiful seasonal changes, which offers us a plethora of different scenery and climates to enjoy.  Undoubtedly the most celebrated out of the four are typically the autumn months of September, October and November.  It isn’t hard to guess why since we are constantly reminded of the reason every time we step outside our front doors.  The incredible rainbow of color that touches almost all elements of Boston’s environment provide us with a natural beauty that stays long with us after the snow begins to drift.  In order to capture the magnificence that the fall offers us we press leaves, take photographs and create decorative pieces to display within our yards and homes.  That’s why Bean Town’s florists are already prepping their inventories to use this theme throughout their autumn arrangements.  How do they intend to use this style without making vase work look shoddy or messy?  Take a look at these samples from designers that are wowing the city’s flower lovers with their exquisite use of seasonal color and texture!

Photo credit: Flower Factor / aboutflowers.com

Green and orange roses pop when Even wedding bouquets can utilize

with purple kale and green/red leaves. the autumn theme by tucking red

   maple leaves into the cascade.

Photo credit: flower factor / aboutflowers.com

It’s not hard to bring the outdoors Make your own fall wreath by weaving

into your home by plucking a few several multi-colored branches together.

branches and placing them in a clear

vase with pebbles on the bottom and

a small amount of water.

As we inch closer and closer to the spookiest time of year, New Englanders are beginning to get in the mood for scary costumes, carved pumpkins and other fun entities that tie in with the theme of October.  For me, I love twisting my creative writing around stories that revolve around mystery and mayhem, a pretty big change from my genre of children’s fantasy poetry.  As a native Bostonian, I particularly enjoy developing storylines that use the stunning picturesque images that are synonymous with autumn in New England.  If you’re a mystery book reader, you’ll know what I’m getting at because there’s no shortage of these titles.  Why is it that the industry doesn’t become over saturated with “who done it’s” based on this area?  The reason is because they’re rich with colorful detail and authentic spooky charm!  We are invested more when we read something that connects us to a story having relatable aspects such as background, characters or familiar settings. Just take a look at Stephen King who has successfully seduced his fans by cleverly by incorporating many distinguishing features of Maine within his thrillers.  

New England is a place full of mysterious potential and possesses a long history of fascinating folklore, some true and some made up.  Plots can be manufactured from actual facts or completely concocted from our imaginations.  Recently, I’ve written two short stories that are based on people, places and things that are identifiable with the cultural aspects of New England.  Take a peek if you’re looking for a little fright this season!

A Deadly Game of Jigsaw

Beth has just lost her job as a Manhattan columnist and has no choice but to return to the home of her grandmother, Lily, where she spent her summers as a child.

Becoming re-accustomed to the pace of the quaint New England town proves difficult at first until an ancient puzzle piece is found in her room. Scripted in Latin with the word “Letum” meaning death, the plot thickens when an intruder breaks into the mansion, assaulting Lily and leaving behind another peculiar clue. With time running out, the women begin their hunt to track down the person behind the mystery and be the first to win at the deadly game of jigsaw.

A Flower To Die By

It’s Valentine’s Day once again in the city of Boston and florists are gearing up for a busy holiday that is until the owner of Delicately Yours Flower Shop, Reuben Crench, is found dead in the ice chest.  As the case unravels, the victim is discovered to have ingested a large amount of digitalis, ironically traced to his own shipment of flowers.  Detective Mike Hinkley has his work cut out for him with a long list of suspects including disgruntled employees, a competing local floral business, an angry wholesaler and a cheating husband. Will he be able to find the killer in time to save Valentine’s Day?                                     

Download it free here.

The children of Boston are busy coming up with ideas for this year’s best Halloween costumes such as zombies, pumpkins, witches and other scary figures.  But is dressing up for the holiday just for kids?

I think not!  

Bean Town’s florists are also using their noggins to try and make the festivities a part of their establishments and why not?  There are several benefits to having your staff prepare a costume for October 31st including marketing tactics, demographic increase and most importantly, to have fun!  People want to know that the places they due business with can join in the spirit, which will make your shop a more enjoyable experience for customers.   Statistics show that businesses which incorporate creative tactics such as costumes see a substantial hike in revenue so why not give it a go this Halloween?

Ghosts, goblins, Dracula’s, they’re all appropriate choices but if you really want to wow your patrons, try implementing a theme congruent to the flower industry!  There are a ton of characters associated with blooms and plants that will match perfectly to your store’s product line and genre.  Here are some ideas to get you and your staff ready to celebrate the spooky holiday of Halloween in flower style!

The Lorax

Dr. Seuss’s adorable critter that taught us the importance of protecting our trees and plants makes a great “green” costume for the concerned environmentalist.  

                    The Giving Tree

Shel Silverstien’s poetry within The Giving Tree told the story about the beautiful relationship between man and nature.

                  Little Shop of Horrors

Become one of the characters from this hit movie about a plant taking matters into his own hands after being the star attraction in a little city flower shop.

                 Plant Book Encyclopedia

Dress up as your favorite flower and plant reference book to get a giggle you’re your brainiest patrons!

We’re New Englanders so it’s pretty safe to say that we are really into the seasonal changes, particularly autumn.  We admire everything from the leaves changing color to the acorns piling up on the ground because they are all beautiful signs from Mother Nature that fall has arrived.  For those who like to decorate, these natural gifts from the outdoors are often utilized in accessorizing our homes such as back patios, doorsteps and walkways.  One area that appears to be a strong focus for Boston home designers are the pieces used as props for our front doors.  

Why is that such a desired display feature?  

photo credit: marthastewart.com

The entryways to our homes are the first impressions we give to visitors that can have a direct effect on their mood or state of mind for the duration of their stay.  If we give friends and families a presentation that encourages an elated or comfortable feeling, than some believe that their visit will reflect these positive emotions.  

Sound silly to you?  

Photo credit: MarthaStewart.com

Well, have a look at these top autumn looks for New England front doors and see if your state of mind is automatically improved!  All of these designs are easy to construct on your own and lucky for us Bostonians, the materials are readily available as well.  If you’re not sure that your artistic capabilities are up to the challenge, visit your local flower shop that will be glad create the perfect piece for you’re home.  Happy decorating!

The phases of the moon are said to affect the earth in a variety of ways including tides, atmospheric pressure and even a person’s mood.  Depending on the cycle, lunar status can make us happy, anxious, uneasy or energetic, and can be used to forecast how someone will react to a particular event or circumstance.  Astronomers study these variables in the hopes that they can better understand the solar system’s changes and how they pertain to human beings.

Sounds pretty smart but shouldn’t Boston florists be doing the same thing?

If a moon’s shape, color and size can bring about a certain response from a person, shouldn’t we suspect that a variety of flowers are capable of accomplishing the same thing?  We already make an effort to please our customers using different textures, shading and styles, so why not experiment a bit with blossoms that coincide with lunar phases?

photo credit: Flower Factor/ aboutflowers.com

After scoping things out, I found that there are actually florists who are already incorporating this theme within their daily work and even some of their wedding pieces.  If you have brides who are getting ready to walk down the aisle on the next full moon, why not let them take a peek at these samples, which perfectly mirror this stunning concept?  The Harvest Moon will be making its debut on September 27th, so get ready and start with some of these fabulously inspired “howl” worthy arrangements!