I have lots of fresh cedar and have tucked in some in my January florals with my other greenery. I don't feel this is too "christmassy" and can be added to winter arrangements.
What's your opinion?
What's your opinion?
cedar greenery
- Thread starter marie g bushnell
- Start date
I love cedar and I use it all winter,it lasts and smells wonderful. During the summer months I cut the local variety it is great in vases more of a bushy variety and it lasts forever. My customers love it. I definitely feel it is not too Christmassy.
twiggy
Well-Known Member
I would use it too- If I had some left! It provides beautiful texture and fragrance- I don't think people would complain about using your 'Christmas leftovers' in their bouquet if you also included plenty of other greenery too.
pfmflowermarket
Co-Owner of Flower Shop
Someone once told me to call it "winter greenery" not christmas greenery so I'll pass that along to you. We just say to our customers depending on their request, would you like that with traditional greenery or with winter greenery. Traditional greenery would be like Leather leaf fern, tree fern, etc. Winter greenery can be balsam, hemlock, pine, cedar, etc.
anytimeflowers
Linda
Our local wholesaler carries the flat variety year round, we often use it when someone wants a funeral for an outdoorsman.
What a great idea to call it "winter" greenery. My cedar is so so fresh. A neighbor cut his cedar down and guess who got it! I also have 1/2 a box of boxwood tips from Christmas and I always use that in my pieces, but the Douglas Fir, I might pitch.
Thanks.
Thanks.
I just wanted to insert my opinion. I'm not advocating that people should stop using Cedar because it is beautiful. I wanted to share my ecological experience with what I have witnessed in the harvesting of Cedar.
The long flat Cedar we use in the floral industry is a variety called Port Orford Cedar. It grows along the Cascade Mountains in the North West. The trees that are harvested usually come off private land but permits can be obtained to harvest off of public lands. The Port Orford Cedar trees have been in trouble for years. Harvesters that cut the Cedar foliage track funguses on their shoes that attacks the roots of the trees. I have not checked the recent data, but research I ordered back in 1998 showed that 60% of the Cedar population was either dead, or was dying. I directed my researcher to visit areas that were previously harvested and infact the researcher noted that all the trees harvested were dead. He noted that the trees were shaved of limbs or cut down and shaved.
I was the CEO of a lumber company that owned 70,000 acres in Oregon. My job was to create a company that harvested foliage and preserve them with glycerin. I hired a Agricultural Scientist that I relied closely on both for quality product development but also to develop sound environmental policies that addresses sustainable practices. I personally befriended a group of local harvesters that knew the southern Oregon land quite well, due to many many years of harvesting. On numerous occasions I would accompany them on harvest runs. For them to make any money the best choice for them was indeed to cut the tree down and strip. In areas that groves of Cedar trees were indeed cut and stripped there were no seedlings or young trees to replace because once the groves were gone, the undergrowth replaced and chocked out every thing else. Not only did I see this with the Cedars, but I also saw this with the berried Junipers in the high desert areas. The harvesters would simply push the trees over with their trucks and strip them. Sad thing is that Juniper trees that are harvested are one to two thousand years old and only stand fifteen to twenty feet tall.
I must say this because in a way I am getting back at what these people put me through. At first I looked the other way because it was my job to make this company successful. My division was housed within a huge facility that manufactured veneer to the paper rolls that make up paint roller brushes. The company was operating at a fraction of it's former glory so much anticipation and money was given to me to make it work. My main product was preserved Salal and Cedar. I invented a process to preserve Manzanita to keep it's foliage on. At times our largest runs were 10,000 pounds per day. This is a very small figure compared to the fresh demand on our forest overall. After witnessing this mill dump resins into areas that were within a mile from the Pacific, and going home each night with cloths tinted red and blowing red buggers because of the resin fumes from the paper injection lines, I started to object to these practices. Who among you would not of when a large percentage of workers even the President's own wife died of cancer. And then start to demand sustainable harvesting foliage? forget it. Top that off with I was only allowed to hire mill workers and former mill workers who basically stared at a giant machine with teeth that screamed while it tore into logs. Trying to motivation people to use two hands to increase production instead of one, dam easterner, fancy bastard. The mill itself caught fire and was completely demolished which made my resignation easy.
My opinion, Salal is sustainable, sheet moss is sustainable, Break Fern, Braken Fern, Huck, all undergrowth, all sustainable. Holly is agriculturally grown. Your Firs, not sure how thats doing, no experience. Manzanita, here again, a three foot branch is one to two hundred years old and I am not aware of any studies although they must exists because it's illegal to cut on public lands. I believe our use of Cedar will eventually deplete it's source.
Please make your own decision with this information.
I was fortune with greens this year. The former owner of my property planted cedar trees, and holly bushes many years ago so I have a long time source. However there is a Hydrangea company on the southern Oregon Coast that I befriended that advertises in local papers for people to cut from their properties ornamental cuts like Callas, Holly, Hydrangea in exchange for purchase certificates in their store. This process works very well for them. One could offer cash for product and still save money. I just think this is a good way to change our footprint and help our local economy. For more information on this company visit http://www.florapacifica.com/ they do sell wholesale of natural and preserved forest products as well as fresh lush cut and preserved Hydrangea.
The long flat Cedar we use in the floral industry is a variety called Port Orford Cedar. It grows along the Cascade Mountains in the North West. The trees that are harvested usually come off private land but permits can be obtained to harvest off of public lands. The Port Orford Cedar trees have been in trouble for years. Harvesters that cut the Cedar foliage track funguses on their shoes that attacks the roots of the trees. I have not checked the recent data, but research I ordered back in 1998 showed that 60% of the Cedar population was either dead, or was dying. I directed my researcher to visit areas that were previously harvested and infact the researcher noted that all the trees harvested were dead. He noted that the trees were shaved of limbs or cut down and shaved.
I was the CEO of a lumber company that owned 70,000 acres in Oregon. My job was to create a company that harvested foliage and preserve them with glycerin. I hired a Agricultural Scientist that I relied closely on both for quality product development but also to develop sound environmental policies that addresses sustainable practices. I personally befriended a group of local harvesters that knew the southern Oregon land quite well, due to many many years of harvesting. On numerous occasions I would accompany them on harvest runs. For them to make any money the best choice for them was indeed to cut the tree down and strip. In areas that groves of Cedar trees were indeed cut and stripped there were no seedlings or young trees to replace because once the groves were gone, the undergrowth replaced and chocked out every thing else. Not only did I see this with the Cedars, but I also saw this with the berried Junipers in the high desert areas. The harvesters would simply push the trees over with their trucks and strip them. Sad thing is that Juniper trees that are harvested are one to two thousand years old and only stand fifteen to twenty feet tall.
I must say this because in a way I am getting back at what these people put me through. At first I looked the other way because it was my job to make this company successful. My division was housed within a huge facility that manufactured veneer to the paper rolls that make up paint roller brushes. The company was operating at a fraction of it's former glory so much anticipation and money was given to me to make it work. My main product was preserved Salal and Cedar. I invented a process to preserve Manzanita to keep it's foliage on. At times our largest runs were 10,000 pounds per day. This is a very small figure compared to the fresh demand on our forest overall. After witnessing this mill dump resins into areas that were within a mile from the Pacific, and going home each night with cloths tinted red and blowing red buggers because of the resin fumes from the paper injection lines, I started to object to these practices. Who among you would not of when a large percentage of workers even the President's own wife died of cancer. And then start to demand sustainable harvesting foliage? forget it. Top that off with I was only allowed to hire mill workers and former mill workers who basically stared at a giant machine with teeth that screamed while it tore into logs. Trying to motivation people to use two hands to increase production instead of one, dam easterner, fancy bastard. The mill itself caught fire and was completely demolished which made my resignation easy.
My opinion, Salal is sustainable, sheet moss is sustainable, Break Fern, Braken Fern, Huck, all undergrowth, all sustainable. Holly is agriculturally grown. Your Firs, not sure how thats doing, no experience. Manzanita, here again, a three foot branch is one to two hundred years old and I am not aware of any studies although they must exists because it's illegal to cut on public lands. I believe our use of Cedar will eventually deplete it's source.
Please make your own decision with this information.
I was fortune with greens this year. The former owner of my property planted cedar trees, and holly bushes many years ago so I have a long time source. However there is a Hydrangea company on the southern Oregon Coast that I befriended that advertises in local papers for people to cut from their properties ornamental cuts like Callas, Holly, Hydrangea in exchange for purchase certificates in their store. This process works very well for them. One could offer cash for product and still save money. I just think this is a good way to change our footprint and help our local economy. For more information on this company visit http://www.florapacifica.com/ they do sell wholesale of natural and preserved forest products as well as fresh lush cut and preserved Hydrangea.
BOSS
FlowerChat Administrator
We continue to use Cedar up until about March, especially for masculine sympathy work...
As long as there snow on the ground... it fits!
As long as there snow on the ground... it fits!
I truely appreciate all your input and experiences at the lumber co. I have many trees in my yard and we clip as needed, but I do order from the wholesaler as well. The cedar I had was from a neighbor that didn't want the tree anymore and cut it down. The cedar was beautiful and I'm using it.
I'm also an organic gardener, rather than use chemicals on my infected gardenia trees last summer, I mixed up the dawn and water and washed every leaf and branch for two weeks to get rid of the mites and it worked.
I have three large holly trees here and I cut and share some with another florist. Always trying to recycle.
I will check out that web site too. Thanks.
I'm also an organic gardener, rather than use chemicals on my infected gardenia trees last summer, I mixed up the dawn and water and washed every leaf and branch for two weeks to get rid of the mites and it worked.
I have three large holly trees here and I cut and share some with another florist. Always trying to recycle.
I will check out that web site too. Thanks.
Got still 15 bunches of cedar left....Will be using it for months especially funeral work.
Natives like cedar in their funeral pieces.
Luc
Natives like cedar in their funeral pieces.
Luc
