According to the Koran, bread feeds the body, but flowers feed the soul. Like diamonds, flowers are never necessary, even though I am sure Mae West would differ with that statement. Still, who would ever want to go through life without being surrounded by beautiful things? Flowers can be expensive but they can also be affordable and fall within almost any price range. Lilies of the valley and calla lilies may not be birds of paradise, but they do their job more than sufficiently and warm their surroundings with their splash of colors.
One rule of thumb, which will help keep the floral budget down, is to only buy flowers in season. Mums and delphiniums are at their best in the fall, while violets, Lily of the Valley and calla lilies are durable and inexpensive spring blooms. Out of season flowers have a shorter life span and are always more expensive because they are usually grown in hot houses thousands of miles away.
Keep options open when it comes to choosing flowers. Buy what looks best not what you think should look best. The local farmer’s market is a good source for fairly priced blooms of all types. Since these markets are usually set up one or two days a week, the flowers sold there are sure to be fresh, cheap and plentiful. Watch out for wilted heads though (even your own), if shopping day turns out to be a very warm one.
Cut off their heads, but watch out for the ghost of Marie Antoinette! All kidding aside, one woman cleverly advises the purchase of geranium heads and mums when they are out of season when all other flowers are priced sky high. Float the heads in a glass bowl and plant what remains in the garden next spring.
Sometimes a single flower can say it all. Grace a table with a two dollars special: a single rose or spray of orchid in a bud vase.
Whatever you do, enjoy flowers. They are like diamond sparkles of light and goodness, although as Mae West once so aptly put it, “Goodness had nothing to do with it.”
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“Flowers In The Home: An Old Thought”
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