We've got loads of pollenless sunflowers, especially the medium and large ones. We cut these with stems 22" to 36" long, allowing you to recut them to whatever length you need. The hybrid varieties of pollenless sunflowers are very long lasting in the vase, usually 7-10 days if the water is kept full to the neck of the vessel. It doesn't hurt to change the water at least once. Also, a clean vase is really important. If the vase isn't scrubbed out between uses, bacteria can lurk inside, shortening the life of your bouquet.

Sweet scented dark pink oriental lilies look great with dark maroon or shades of pink, yellow and peach dahlias. The longer stemmed dahlias are ready now and we have many different colors and blossom shapes. Dahlias will keep longer if a packet of flower food is added to each quart of water. If making an arrangement using floral foam, make sure it stays wet. This should be checked at least once a day. We have a special type of soft foam on hand that works well with the delicate stems of dahlias for $3 a brick. The price includes sales tax.

Dahlias should last through Sept, often into October, depending on the weather, of course.
The pink oriental lilies shown in the arrangement below will be available for a few more days. Still to come are a white oriental lily with yellow throat and a dark red one that we should have on hand from the end of August into the second week of Sept. Either one will mix well with sunflowers, glads, and dahlias. Please call or email ahead (mr32069@yahoo.com) if you need a large quantity of flowers. If calling, a detailed message is appreciated. Our phone answering machine message includes a different email address: grguitars@msn.com either one is ok, but the first one is preferred.

  

This year we have many new dahlias for cutting, including some novelty types. With over 300 plants, we expect to be flooded with dahlias from mid August at least through September. One of the really fun parts of arranging dahlias in playing with color. A bouquet can be a wild mix of many colors or a more sophisticated monochromatic arrangement. Check out the links we're adding to flower arranging websites to get some ideas to spark your creativity.