Seasonal Flowers – Winter Flowers of South Africa

Submitted by Lulie Swanepoel
Whether you find yourself in the cold, wet Cape region with howling winds and driving rain, or in the sunny but icy Highveld, winter often creates the impression of a grey, barren time where all that is alive seeks to hide from the cold. In contrast to this, vibrant colourful flowers seem out of place and are usually not top-of-mind during these seemingly inhospitable months.

During the winter months

There are, however, a vast variety of winter flowers that thrive during these months and are, very possibly, the exact medicine needed to fight the blues when the skies are dull and the chilly wind cuts right to the bone. What about the special occasions that may arise during these months such as weddings, anniversaries, birthdays or simply lovely romantic gestures that can only be expressed with a bunch of gorgeous flowers?

The best part is that you do not need to weather the cold to bring a spot of warm colour into your home or office. Thanks to the existence of online flower stores, a splash or colour and floral indulgence is just a click or two away.

The options are wide and you’ll be surprised to find that there are flowers to get you through winter for literally any occasion. For the more reserved and stately there are lovely lavender and dahlias – timeless classics that never go out of fashion.

If the occasion calls for something more stately, nothing says it better than stylish and elegant irises and gladioli, or, of course, the striking and sculptured strelitzia. Naturally, these remarkable flowers need not only be the basis of a so-called serious flower arrangement. You can find many fresh and innovative ways to present these beauties at your leading online florist.

The hyacinth is also a very versatile flower that can be dressed up or down, so to speak. This flower would add splendour as part of a formal arrangement or can form the focal point of a simple arrangement that makes a graceful statement.

Flowers are definitely not meant to be enjoyed only on certain occasions. This could not be truer during these harsh winter months, when a splash of colour could brighten up even the most melancholy winter afternoon. For these days a great investment would be in chirpy anemones, the famous (but never tired) daisies and joyful rununculus.

More warm, vibrant colours that would put that extra spring in your step and a smile on your face can be found in the ultra-colourful selections of calendula, the bright cheer of daffodils and, of course, in the simple beauty of fragile Iceland poppies.

Unexpected delights

Winter also offers a few unexpected and unconventional delights. Many aloes flower during this period. Although they are relatively common in South Africa, you might not be able to readily get your hands on these flowers, but if you do, they will certainly make a statement when used in a flower arrangement.

With such a wide choice of beauty, no winter’s day will ever have to be dull again. Brace yourself against the cold by wrapping that blanket a bit tighter around your shoulders and chase the blues away with a few simple clicks when you buy flowers online. Without leaving the comfort of your couch you can invite a bit of cheer and sunshine into your environment.
Author Bio
Interflora is a professional online florist based in South Africa with a reputable flower and gift delivery service. Their flower catalogue includes an extensive range of beautiful winter flowers.

How to Make a Tropical Floral Arrangement : Tips for Making a Tropical Flower Arrangement

Submitted by expertvillage
How to use some tips for makingtropical flower arrangements; get professional tips and advice from an expert on making your own exotic floral arrangements in this free gardening video. Expert: Greg Harem Bio: Greg Harem is the owner of Palm Springs Flower Mart, which is considered the top designer flower shop in all of the Coachella Valley. His designs range from modern simple to high end custom designs. Filmmaker: Nili Nathan

How to Make a Tropical Floral Arrangement : Picking a Vase for a Tropical Flower Arrangement

Submitted by expertvillage
How to pick a vase for makingtropical flower arrangements; get professional tips and advice from an expert on making your own exotic floral arrangements in this free gardening video. Expert: Greg Harem Bio: Greg Harem is the owner of Palm Springs Flower Mart, which is considered the top designer flower shop in all of the Coachella Valley. His designs range from modern simple to high end custom designs. Filmmaker: Nili Nathan

How to Make a Tropical Floral Arrangement : Supplies for Making a Tropical Flower Arrangement

Submitted by expertvillage
How to use the supplies needed for makingtropical flower arrangements; get professional tips and advice from an expert on making your own exotic floral arrangements in this free gardening video. Expert: Greg Harem Bio: Greg Harem is the owner of Palm Springs Flower Mart, which is considered the top designer flower shop in all of the Coachella Valley. His designs range from modern simple to high end custom designs. Filmmaker: Nili Nathan

How to Make a Tropical Floral Arrangement : Adding Greenery to a Tropical Flower Arrangement

Submitted by expertvillage
How to add greenery for makingtropical flower arrangements; get professional tips and advice from an expert on making your own exotic floral arrangements in this free gardening video. Expert: Greg Harem Bio: Greg Harem is the owner of Palm Springs Flower Mart, which is considered the top designer flower shop in all of the Coachella Valley. His designs range from modern simple to high end custom designs. Filmmaker: Nili Nathan

Teleflora Sweet Daisy Colander Flower Arrangement

Submitted by HSN
For More Info or to Buy Now: www.hsn.com Delight Mom or another special lady with the Teleflora Sweet Daisy Colander Flower Arrangement. This cheerful bouquet of spring daisies and solidaster is delivered in a eye-catching green ceramic… Prices shown on the previously recorded video may not represent the current price. View hsn.com to view the current selling price. HSN Item #437479

Teleflora Walking on Sunshine Flower Arrangement

Submitted by HSN
For More Info or to Buy Now: www.hsn.com Pour out your love with the Teleflora Walking on Sunshine Flower Arrangement—a charming, vintage-inspired pitcher filled with bright spring blooms. The molded green bottle-glass pitcher is as… Prices shown on the previously recorded video may not represent the current price. View hsn.com to view the current selling price. HSN Item #437485

How to Make a Tropical Floral Arrangement : Splitting a Tea Leaf in a Flower Arrangement

Submitted by expertvillage
How to split a tea leaf for makingtropical flower arrangements; get professional tips and advice from an expert on making your own exotic floral arrangements in this free gardening video. Expert: Greg Harem Bio: Greg Harem is the owner of Palm Springs Flower Mart, which is considered the top designer flower shop in all of the Coachella Valley. His designs range from modern simple to high end custom designs. Filmmaker: Nili Nathan

Flower Arrangement: Short Floral Centerpiece for an 80th Birthday Party

Submitted by Mindbitesdotcom
www.mindbites.com The Flowergod designs two different centerpiece arrangements for an 80th Birthday Party in this lesson. The floral arrangements includes various colored Gerbera daisies, sword fern, Springeri, and various other foliage.

How to Make a Tropical Floral Arrangement : Picking Greenery for a Tropical Flower Arrangement

Submitted by expertvillage
How to pick greenery for makingtropical flower arrangements; get professional tips and advice from an expert on making your own exotic floral arrangements in this free gardening video. Expert: Greg Harem Bio: Greg Harem is the owner of Palm Springs Flower Mart, which is considered the top designer flower shop in all of the Coachella Valley. His designs range from modern simple to high end custom designs. Filmmaker: Nili Nathan

Tips For Selecting Annual Flowers

Submitted by Bowe Packer
Flowers are one of nature’s heralds of the seasons. The various flowers that blossom in the different seasons can inform us what season we are in. For instance flowers like the Poinsettia are known to bloom only during the wintertime season, more specifically during December. Annual flowers on the other hand are wonderful flowers to plant in your gardens.

I know most of us have passed by a nice arrangement of outside florals and wondered – how might I do the same. Well, first we must start by understanding the different types of annual flowers and the which flower will survive in which climate.

You will find that many of these flowers are excellent choices for the garden as they can be grown in the different seasons. The best way to select the type of annual flowers that you want is to decide which flower varieties you want to see. You should buy the annual flowers that are appropriate for the required season otherwise your flower plant will rot even before you have a chance to plant it.

When you start selecting your annual flowers you can purchase stalwart annuals, half hardy annuals and tender annuals. These differences reflect the type of weather and soil conditions that these annual flowers will grow in.

Remember, the selecting process maybe some what challenging at first. However, don’t let that intimidate you, make a selection based on the season and what looks good to you. With experience you will start to understand the other elements, like soil, sun and water, that also have an effect on your annual flowers.

Sturdy annuals are beautiful plants that will produce flowers even in the cold wintertime season. These annual flowers are planted during the spring season or fall season when the weather condition is not that cold. Unlike other annuals these hardy annual flowers don’t like hot weather as they are not heat tolerant.

The types of stalwart annual flowers that you can buy include calendula, foxglove, viola, sweet alyssum, stocks, cornflowers, pansy, larkspur and the many varieties of dianthus cultivars. The half sturdy annual flowers include torenia, snow-on-the-mountain, blue sage, strawflower, baby’s breath, candytuft, bells of Ireland, celoma, love-in-a-mist, and forget-me-nots.

These half hardy annuals don’t mind damp cold weather but they can’t live during the cold fierce months of winter. You will need to plant these annual flowers after the last spring frost. Unlike tender annuals these half sturdy annuals have no need of warm soil conditions for the seeds to begin sprouting.

While some flower species can’t bear lots of hot summertime weather the half hardy annuals may sometimes wilt for the weather but they will perk up in the later summer months. You can select some tender annuals like scarlet sage, morning glory, petunias, begonias, celosia, balsam, nasturtium, and verbena.

These annuals as their name suggests are not well-off in the cold wintertime months so the idealistic time to grow them is three weeks after the last spring frost. Since these annual flowers grow well in warm climates you can expect to see them in all of their glory in the late spring and the warm months of summer.

These are just a few of the many annual flowers that you can grow in your garden, and the riot of colors that they bring will utterly make any garden look great. You will also have the added benefit of flowers that grow in different seasons adding a break up of color right through the year.