At this time of year, it’s nice to support our local B.C. cut flower growers by sharing the many positives of having fresh cut flowers in our homes, especially over the holiday season.
While doing research for a presentation about the floriculture industry, I discovered some interesting facts related to the strong connection between people and cut flowers.
A recent Garden Media ‘Garden Trends Report’ (2022) pointed out that flowers are the "new hugs," and the giving or receiving of flowers triggers feel-good hormones. It also states that we’re just starting to understand the healing power of flowers.
The new local summertime floral farms and flower fields in the Valley, many offering u-pick options and designer classes, have become very popular. Boutique flower businesses and their Instagram reach has really engaged the Millennial generation.
Today’s new concept is very much one of "create it yourself." Both boutique and floral markets are now in the process of diversifying their flower selections to recreate more of a garden look.
At this time of year, a surprising number of folks are using homegrown or locally grown deciduous ilex berries, rose hips, hypericum, male skimmias, shrub dogwood stems and contorted willow branches, along with pine and true fir boughs, to design stunning outdoor porch pots. They are going to boutique and mainstream floral outlets to find items, like imported blue eryngiums, hydrangeas and pampas grass, resulting in uniquely customized and personalized indoor centrepieces and bouquets made at home.
Roses, carnations and gerbera daisies are still popular, but they are being blended into new combinations for a more cutting garden look.
Creating floral expressions has also become a family affair. Getting children involved is important because it offers them a great connection to creativity and art.
Spring and summer home cutting gardens are a big part of today’s gardening scene; so too are edible flowers for baking and for drinks, like mocktails. Flowering shrubs have also become popular, not only for colour and interest in the garden but also for their unique flowering stems, such as forsythia and pussy willows, to use in arrangements.
Purchased flowers are being combined with garden-grown flowers and plants for more personalized bouquets and creations. There’s no question that cut flowers have become very much part of our daily lives, and that’s a good thing.
It’s interesting that over 50 per cent of all cut flowers, both in Canada and the U.S., are sold in grocery stores. Cut flowers are becoming very much part of our current lifestyle experience. More and more flowers are being sold online through Instagram, mainly by young tech savvy folks. Leading traditional florists, too, have realigned their business models for online sales.
These are all great trends for our local growers, and it’s nice to see that we’re becoming more like the Europeans in making cut flowers an important part of our daily lives.
