Abundance of Holly & Winter Greens

[pfmflowermarket]

Ok the holidays are over. We are getting ready to start the new year! Hopefully a good one! Have just a few questions about using supplies from the December season.
We didn't have good luck with selling variegated holly this year. Only a few customers requesting it. What ideas can you think of to help us use it up? :idear: They are shorter pieces so using it in tall vase arrangements is out of question. Any help or ideas are greatly appreciated.
Greenery for January arrangements? What type of greenery do you use? If you have left over pine, cedar, balsam is that still ok to use?
Thank you fellow Flower Chatters. Such a great resource for florists. I'm a transfer from Ubloom. Most of the posters on there are more event designers that work out their home.

 

[Flowerchatter03]

Personally, I don't use real holly. It turns brown really fast in my experience. I usually use realistic silk holly.

I do use evergreens after the holidays. Just today, I had 2 arrangements that were to look wintery. So I used blue glass bowls with cedar and white lilies, white poms, etc. I also used blue limonium and blue delph. They looked wonderful. I was really pleased with the outcome.

I am really careful about using anything that looks Christmasy with everyday work.

If you have short pieces of greenery, you could use it to fill in the oasis areas of your funeral pieces depending on the design.

Hope this helps!

 

[StephKey]

Abundance of Holly and Winter Greens

Ok the holidays are over. We are getting ready to start the new year! Hopefully a good one! Have just a few questions about using supplies from the December season.
We didn't have good luck with selling variegated holly this year. Only a few customers requesting it. What ideas can you think of to help us use it up? :idear: They are shorter pieces so using it in tall vase arrangements is out of question. Any help or ideas are greatly appreciated.
Greenery for January arrangements? What type of greenery do you use? If you have left over pine, cedar, balsam is that still ok to use?
Thank you fellow Flower Chatters. Such a great resource for florists. I'm a transfer from Ubloom. Most of the posters on there are more event designers that work out their home.

It really depends on the arrangement. Candle arrangements you could use the Winter Greens as long as they are still fresh. Winter greens can be used in table centerpieces along with the holly. Just some ideas.

Stephanie

 

[CHERYL BAKIN]

It does depend upon the arrangement, somewhat, but.....

You can use it & keep using it thru January as long as it is fresh.....When asked, we especially like to use oregon & incense cedar thru January -- we show it or explain it as a "winter evergreen" -- and mix it in with our other greens (oregonia, baker, pitto, etc).

I think you are out of luck with the Holly -- unless you perhaps can spray it gold or silver and use it up in the next few days with party work.

Hope this helps,

Cheryl

 

[shannonlovesflowers]

I hate holly and holly hates me, I never use it, I use italian pitt instead..

We just threw out about 2 boxes of greens, not too bad, next year I'll order 2 less boxes.

 

[BOSS]

I'm with Cheryl, but I take it a little farther, on into March especially for male funeral work...Been doing this for many years...always preorder enough to give us at least 4-5 cases of Port Orford Cedar left after Christmas.

Holly...well, used to order 20 cases, cut back more than once...down to 5-6 now days. Thing is we don't ask if they want it, we use it!

 

[Joe Mioux]

Funerals yes.

I am already into spring flowers for everyday work. Tulips especially.

joe

 

[sklepikova]

well..... here's what i don't understand. if you don't use evergreens in your evereday arrangements..... than why would you use for funerals???????

 

[pfmflowermarket]

I guess maybe because funeral designs are meant to be beautiful and displayed for the viewing only 4hrs max. Where as maybe everyday designs are at the home and expected to be looked at and enjoyed longer.

 

[bloomz]

I vote for funerals only - I think it looks exactly like what it is when you're using up the shid you didn't/couldn't sell for Xmas - tacky tacky tacky

 

[goodie]

For me its a NO NO NO for xmas left overs !!! As soon as its over , i cant wait to use fresh, crisp, spring, vibrant colours and materials ! I only had a small amount of holly and blue pine left over, which went in the bin !!

 

[lori042499]

I will use pine and other winter greens in winter arrangements, holly is a very christmas thing and I would probably not use this type...

I only had 2 stems of holly left, one stem of cedar, some seeded euch, 3 stems of magnolia and one stem of another fancy varieagted cedar, no balsam no pine left first time ever...

 

[shannonlovesflowers]

well..... here's what i don't understand. if you don't use evergreens in your evereday arrangements..... than why would you use for funerals???????

This is exactly what I say!

Florists already have a rep for using "dead flowers" or "clean out the cooler" flowers for funerals.
Consumers are not naive, a shop I worked for years ago used to use Christmas leftovers in funerals, and we got complaint after complaint

 

[inferno63]

I just pitch it all into the compost pile but use the fragrant greens in baskets around the shop and on the register counter for good smells. I pitched about 20 pounds of greens and one live wreath this year. I ordered one-half of what I used last year.....and last year, I ran out a week before Christmas and cut from a friend's wooded lot (which by the way was a lot nicer evergreen and was awesome in arrangements).

 

[BOSS]

well..... here's what i don't understand. if you don't use evergreens in your evereday arrangements..... than why would you use for funerals???????

Assorted Pines, especially Port Orford Cedar makes an awesome addition to casket sprays and standing vases. It's not a "Christmas Green" it's a Winter Green...

 

[Luc]

Why is people throwing out winter greens.

Heck I hada funereal around christmas for a male and used those greens.

I have 2 coming up this weekend and willbe usingthose greens.

You can do a woodsy type arr for a male with all of those greens.

If they are properley stored and taken care of, they will last a few months in our fridge. Water gets changed regulary just like other flowers.

As for holly we had a few stems left over from a case.

We even had several orders of the holly bowl arr.

Luc

 

[sklepikova]

Assorted Pines, especially Port Orford Cedar makes an awesome addition to casket sprays and standing vases. It's not a "Christmas Green" it's a Winter Green...

ok... than why wouldn't you use it for everyday winter arrangements? i just don't get the difference in approche of some florist to funeral and everyday arrangements. we have just a bit of evergreens left in our store. and i'll probably use it for another week for both, funerals and everyday arrangements as long as there's a reason (= as long as a customer WANTS them)to use them.

 

[BOSS]

I would if the customer request them, but generally the day after New Years we flip into "Spring" flowers... Tulips look kind of silly with pine

 

[sklepikova]

why don't you "flip into Spring flowers" for funeral arrangements as well? what's the difference?
P.S. i LO-O-O-Ove red or white tulips with pine ;0)

 

[BOSS]

We do... but for men, especially, pines and the out of doors look fits the bill in many cases.