Month: June 2014

Gerbera Daisies – Coming Soon to Your Local Grocer

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Here we are readying Gerbera Daisies to wet pack and ship to a grocery distribution center. They are lined up like this so packers can walk by and grab a different color bunch from each bucket so the box going to each store has assorted colors.

This photo was unplanned; I dropped by the gerb packing area to grab a bunch for a bouquet sample I was working on. When I saw the gerberas, I couldn’t resist whipping out my iPhone for a photo. The photo quality isn’t the greatest, but I thought it was a cool moment to share.

I’ll do a more comprehensive post on Gerberas another time. Gerbera greenhouses are probably the most colorful of all cut flower greenhouses.

Matsumoto Asters – My Happy Flower!

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I walked the farm today and fell in love again with Matsumoto Asters. They are so bright and cheerful you can’t help but feel happy when you walk by them.

Matsumotos are part of the Aster family. The botanical name is “Callistephus Chenisis”. I think they are well named; Callistephus means “Beautiful Crown”. They are originally from Eastern Asia.

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Matsumotos are also called “Rainbow Asters” as they come in a wide variety of colors – peach, yellow, light pink, dark pink, red, white lavender, purple and bi-colors.

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Colorful, long-lasting and hardy, Matsumoto Asters are an excellent cut flower. They are great by themselves or in a mixed bouquet.

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I found a lot of different possible meanings for Aster. They include….. Afterthought (kind of a depressing meaning). Contentment and Love (my favorite meaning). Watchful Eye. I will think of it.

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Asters are the official flower for September birthdays.

Strange fact: According to Wikipedia, supporters of the 1918 Hungarian Revolution wore Aster flowers. The movement was thus dubbed the “Aster Revolution”.

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Sunroad Floral Trade Center Grand Opening

A couple of weeks ago I traveled down to Carlsbad California to attend the grand opening of the Sunroad International Floral Trade Center. The event was well attended and the organizers did a great job. I was very impressed by the display put on by the wholesaler Holland Flower Market. I am posting some photos I took of their display. Unfortunately I don’t know the name of the floral designer. If I find out, I will post later. Enjoy!

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Dahlia Fun Fact

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Did you know that Dahlias are native to Mexico and parts of Central America?  In the Aztec language, the name for Dahlia loosely translates to Water Pipe Flower as the stems of the Dahlia are hollow.

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A couple of weeks ago, the local dahlia fields featured plants in the above stage of maturity.

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Now they look like this…..   I can’t wait until the fields are in full bloom.

Stay tuned for more photos and fun facts.