quince
In the last few weeks I’ve noticed that some of the migrating birds have come back to my yard. That & the longer days have given me hope in a stretch of Grey, ugly weather.Flowering branches are another wonderful sign of spring and while their buds are growing outside they are not ready to bloom yet. Fortunately they are very easy to force indoors. On my property I have Forsythia, Ornamental Cherry, Crab apple, & several varieties of Heirloom Apples all of which have beautiful blossoms. I’ve cut these & brought them into the store as well as Quince branches from Connecticut, & Pussy Willow from New Jersey ( yes there is more to Jersey than Newark ) Blossoming branches are a great addition to any arrangement but my favorite way to use the is by themselves in a tall vase. Here are a few tips about forcing flowering branches, whether you buy them at Jephry Floral Studio or cut your own. First, remember to be respectful of other peoples property & only cut them on your own property or with permission if the branches are not in your yard. A sharp pair of hand pruners are usually the best tool for the job unless the branch is so big as to require a pruning saw. Give the branch a diagonal cut about one inch from the bottom, and then snip open the cut end of the branch vertically. This is intended to increase the exposed surface area of the cut so that the branch can drink more water. There are many opinions on this last step, and many people would say to split the stem open by hitting it with a hammer. While that method does work when done correctly, it is most often done incorrectly. The common mistake here is to smash the stem end so badly that it will never drink again. Splitting the stem end open with the pruning shears will do the job & is easier. Place the cut branch in a vase of warm water with flower food and wait. Depending on how developed the buds are you may have open blossoms immediately or have to wait up to three weeks. Give the branches a fresh cut in a clean vase with fresh water about once a week and you’ll be able to enjoy them for several weeks.

Quince Branch

It’s raining out now, snowed last night, tonight & tomorrow promises more cold rain & Friday thru Sunday are forcasted for Rain & snow glop. I happen to be just about the luckiest guy in town because I spend my days in a shop filled with bright, lively fresh flowers & plants. I am able to breath in the oxygen given off by my symbiotic friends, and take in the bright colorful hues that they so freely offer. As for the rest of you, There is hope. The cure for the winter blahs is here and available to all. Whether for yourself or a gift to brighten someone else’s day. This week we have Gerbera in deep saturated shades of orange, yellow & magenta which look great by themselves or paired with a bunch of Tulips. The first blooms of the Rannunculus season are in from California and I know from the number of requests that I get all year that they are a favorite of many. The spring blitz continues with fragrant Hyacynth, Freesia & Iris. Flowering Branches are a big theme this week. We have beautiful tall quince grown nearby in Connecticut, & I took the opportunity during a break in the weather to go out on my property & cut Forsythia, Apple & Ornamental Cherry branches. It doesn’t get any more local than that. A little less local are some of the best French tulips that I’ve seen in years. These are coming from Mexico and kudos to them for doing it better than the French. On the exotic side we have bright Mokara Orchids, pink Mini Calla Lily, and fragrant Oriental Lily’s. No Peonies yet but we are looking.

Which ancestor in our ancient past did it first? Gathered flowers brightly colored and fragrant for that object of their affection. Presented them, perhaps shyly, perhaps boldly – and then was the recipient of that first beaming smile.

Well Harry, Dani, Mike and Ted were hard at it a good part of yesterday as they drove around the state delivering valentine’s flowers. And that same denouement our ancient flower-giver experienced – that beaming smile is at the end of every driveway and doorbell …and they’ll be back it again today.

Meanwhile, in the shop lots of folk’s came by to pick up something special they could present themselves. Its always nice to see and speak with all these folks – a real feast of friends and acquaintances – the charming and interesting folk of Rhody. A gathering of flower gatherers.

And we’ll be there again today 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. or until the flowers run out.

We’ve been working through last weekend and into the night this week as flowers arrive from around the world. We narrowly missed a shipment delay on Tuesday night / Wednesday morning as the flight from Holland arrived with barely enough time for flowers to clear customs and the truck to head north from NYC before the big snowstorm closed the airport and clogged the roads. Around 5am the flowers arrived.

This year folks have been ordering their flowers to be picked up or delivered Friday, Saturday & Sunday as the weekend adds some flexibility to the Valentine’s holiday. Last night was a long one. Tip of the tired hat to big ‘D’ @ Nick’s for the duck and polenta – yowsa – excellent grub – we snarfed it.

We expect today (Saturday) to be a busy one with deliveries already scheduled to the 4 corners of little rhody.

Call or stop by – beautiful flowers are at the ready in service of that smile – you know the one – the one your true love shows you when you walk in the door with flowers.

gotta go!

So we are working away on Cupid’s big day. Special in store menus and order pads have arrived and of course you’ve already checked out the Valentine’s web page of ideas. Flowers are ordered from around the globe and extra drivers and counter help have been organized. Its up to you now, really. Call in and place your orders so we can work our magic!

Tulip Square with Amaryllis and Berries

We are setting up our twitter account @JephryFStudio … so maybe you’ll get a tweet from us soon… ?