Newport Wedding Gallery

We have been pick-up by The Newport Wedding Gallery blog at: http://newportweddings.blogspot.com/2009/03/avq-nautical-floral-monogram-for-you.html

Thank you, Nancy!

Easter 2009

Easter Sunday celebrations for 2009 fall on April 12 in the western calendar (Catholic and Protestant Churches). The Eastern Orthodox Church has set the date for Easter 2009 to be 19th April.
Easter is a "floating" holiday whose main constant is that it falls 40 days after Ash Wednesday, which is the day after "Fat Tuesday" or in French, "Mardi Gras." The 40 days between Mardi Gras & Easter is called Lent - a period of fasting, sacrifice and prayer in symbolic remembrance of the Christ's sacrifice.
The float has been occurring since the Council of Nicaea in the year 325AD, when Roman Emperor Constantine I ordered the Christian leaders to set doctrine and dates of principal Christian events.
Easter (literally, to the east) is not only the Christian Resurrection, but that of older paganism as well, calling the re-birth of the Earth and spring from the depths and deaths of winter and the solstice. Not coincidentally, Easter's "float" moves around the vernal equinox.

SPRING FLOWER SHOW

Surprizing (and disappointing) as it may be the BOSTON FLOWER SHOW (a/k/a the NEW ENGLAND FLOWER SHOW) has been cancelled! Funding appears to be the main issue and if you would like to help the Mass Horticultural Society out for 2010, you can visit their site at http://www.masshort.org/New-England-Spring-Flower-Show.

The good news to all this is that The 16th Annual Rhode Island Spring Flower & Garden Show will take place THIS WEEKEND, February 19-22, 2009 at the Rhode Island Convention Center. For all information follow this link. http://www.flowershow.com/. These shows are always welcomed by winter-weary New Englanders and are well worth your support.

JORDANS FURNITURE

A big 'Thank You' is in order for Jordans Furniture, for their inclusion of some of our floral work in their 2008 catalog. As always, this company stands above the pack in their support of community (and of course, exemplary taste!). Again, thank you folks!

WHAT'S SO FUNNY ABOUT PEACE, LOVE & CARTHAMUS TINCTORIUS?

Carthamus tinctorius - or safflower - is one the oldest cultivated plants of record. Seeds have been found in pharaohs' tombs dating back at least to 2000 B.C. and safflower has been cultivated by the ancient Chinese as an oil crop and for medicinal use. In more recent centuries the flowers have been used for yellow, orange and red dyes as well as 'saffron-like' food additives. In the U.S. in the first half of the last century saffron oil was used as a high-quality paint medium. Today the oil is a readily-available cosmetic & food additive, including its use as a cooking and salad oil.

But it was not until the recent 1970's that the cut-flower industry began developing safflower as a marketable product. Through the 80', 90's and early 2000's demand has steadily increased for this hardly known, peculiar little flower. Be sure to ask for availability the next time you're looking for something a little different.

10 Farmers Make 12 tons of Nitrogen Fertilizer Disappear.

Last year, ten Pennsylvania farmers took on AMERICAN FARMLAND TRUST's "Best Management Program Challenge" to grow their field crops using less nitrogen fertilizer than the recommended levels nitrogen fertilizer. The results of their year long experiment are good news for the environment and the wallet! In 2008, these farmers reduced a total of 24,658 pounds of nitrogen that otherwise would have been applied to their fields. Not only did these farmers remove thousands of pounds of nitrogen that could have ended up clouding the Chesapeake, they did it at a fraction of the cost of other nitrogen removal strategies—at only $2.74 per pound versus the up to $8-9 per pound it is estimated it could cost tax payers to remove the nutrient through other means. It isn’t just farmers that can make a difference; you can do your part too! Whether you live in the Mid-Atlantic or in the plains of North Dakota, water always makes its way downhill. Find out what you can do: check-out the Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s nitrogen calculator and take a challenge of your own!

GETTING INTO HOT WATER...with roses!

As we quickly approach Valentine's Day (our pre-book roses were actually ordered 2 weeks ago), our thoughts turn to roses.

The old saw is to put roses into cold water. While there are benefits to water - and air temperature - being cool, it is important not to shock your cut-flowers, whether they be roses or any other type of flower. The ideal temperature for refridgerated cut-flowers is around 42 degrees, and that's where commercial operations (farms, shippers, wholesalers & florists) target. Maintaining that temp through the channels of distribution are essential to longevity.

In reality it is the continuity of temp as much as the temp itself. Like food items and beer, cut flowers tend to fail rapidly in "temperature-cycling." The shock is too much.

Back to the point at hand. Cool water -rather than cold - is best for your newly arrived roses. Ideally, being winter, if you have the choice of a warm room versus a cooler one, you will get significantly longer vase-life in the latter. Caveat here is to make sure the room is well above freezing at all times.

Cut your roses at an acute angle before putting them into water, and perform this step every 2-4 days for longer vase-life. Always use the preservative packaged with your fowers, and besure to use clean water and containers. If you have an old vase, wash it first. Bacteria is the #1 enemy of cut-flowers.

Lastly, on occasion, rose stems will "wilt." They will actually bend over and face their drink like so many people I know 2 hours after the ball drops on New Year's Eve. The exception to the above is in this case. Cut back the woody stem hard, and place the stems into HOT tap water. Say a "Hail Mary." Your roses are pretty well gone by this point, but if you pray and follow this step, you might well "resurect" them. .

It happens...