February 2025
Welcome to February! Did you know that February was named after the Roman purification festival called Februa. The month of cleansing, in preparation for spring. The perfect month to clean all your containers. Any time you reuse them, you must always wash them thoroughly with a solution of bleach, soap, and water. Rinse well with cold water. This will kill any residue of bacteria left in that vessel. 1 Tablespoon of bleach per qt. of water.
As I mentioned in my January hints, this month I want to tell you about the mechanics you use to do an arrangement. A mechanic is what you use to hold your flowers in place.
Fresh flowers especially like a vase arrangement with just water. You can control their placement by using clear glass marbles in the bottom of the vase or putting the foliage in first will act as support for your flowers. You can make a grid with florist tape across the top of your vase, placing your flowers in the spaces you’ve created. Years ago, a “ frog” was used. It is a glass receptacle with small holes in it, put in the bottom of a vase for control of your material. Your flowers are placed in the holes. It can be used forever. They are available in most vintage shops.
In Japanese flower arrangement, called Ikebana, a kenzan, or pin holder is used. It doesn’t have to be just for Ikebana arrangements. Flowers are impaled on brass pins anchored by a heavy base. They come in many shapes and sizes. And can be used over and over again. The flowers last exceptionally long using this method. Available online.
There is also fresh oasis, which is a soft foam brick. It must be saturated with warm water for about 1 hour, then cut to fit your container using florist oasis tape to hold it in place. One advantage of oasis is it can be cut a little higher than the rim of the container allowing you to place flowers over the rim and downward. You must occasionally add water to keep the flowers fresh. Do this by taking the arrangement to the sink and slowly pour warm water over it. Leave it in the sink for a while to drip.
In large arrangements, I’ve used a piece of chicken wire tied over the oasis to keep it from crumbling and hold very large amounts of material. You must be very careful doing this as not to destroy the oasis. If the oasis crumbles a little, the chicken wire will hold it together. This adds great stability to an arrangement. The disadvantages of oasis are it can’t be reused or recycled.
Your mechanics must never show in your arrangement except if they are pleasing to see, like the glass marbles. As you do more arranging, you may invent your own way to secure your materials.
It’s near the time to start thinking about spring and what you want to do in your garden. Seeds and seed catalogs have been arriving. Start looking at what you like. Maybe you might like to start something from seed… Good luck.
