Floral Foam - An alternative, just maybe...

The following is not intended to be a particularly scientific experiment but we thought it worth passing on to you that we were recently offered an off-cut from a coir brick with a suggestion that it could be used as an alternative to using standard floral foam in a flower arrangement.

The following are the steps we took to create a flower arrangement and to find whether the coir has the capability to securely hold flowers and maintain their life.

To start we used one of our Melamine Trays. 
The tray size is 20Lx10Wx4.5cm internal depth.

Tray with dried coir

Tray after the coir has been saturated

As you may know, dried compressed coir has the capability to double it size when soaked with water. We allowed the coir to absorb as much water as possible without becoming too saturated, then compressed it slightly, finally adding just a little more water.

The example of flowers in the photo above demonstrates how stems can be supported by the softened coir, the tray being 4.5cm or slightly less than 2 inches deep could if increased we think, support taller flowers and foliage.

With only fresh water used to saturate the coir there has been no nutrients for the flowers but in this experiment they have lasted well after 7 days, possibly if a sachet of floral feed was used in the saturation process the life of an arrangement could be extended.

Overall we hope you may agree that perhaps with one or two adjustments this exercise could prove to be yet another sustainable alternative to floral foam.The tray of course could be re-used many times over, the coir possibly could also be used again although it may need supplementing with another piece of coir and refreshing with a little more feed, but if not it is entirely home compostable.

Whilst at the moment we stock the Melamine Trays used in this trial we do not have coir bricks available, however with enough interest we could make this available for our customers. Please drop us a line to sales@floralmechanics.co.uk with your comments.

A sachet of standard flower food powder could be mixed with water to saturate the coir and help enhance the life of flowers. 

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Wired For Christmas

Possibly some of the most attractive and economic Christmas decorations can be made using wire bases all of which are reusable. Collecting together some holly and Christmas tree cuttings will make a solid foundation for a door wreath or as in the case of our Star on a Stand (below) a table arrangement.

The simplest of seasonal foliage make excellent wreaths 

The Wire Star below is from the same manufacturer as the item above.
Both are made from sturdy 3mm wire finished in a gold lacquer.

For traditionalists our Flat Wire Rings available in
10 or 12inch diameters there can be no other choice.

Before adding any final trimmings weave in a set
of 40 micro LED battery operated lights.
All you need do is switch on at say dusk, they stay lit for 6 hours then
turn themselves off. They'll follow the same schedule each day until re-set
so no need remembering to turn them on and off.

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Christmas Candles

Festive Candles and Candlesticks

Candles bring so much to festive floral arrangements, whether they are used as an integral part a table arrangent or stand alone using one or two of your old time favourite candlestick holders or a modern clear glass or gold finish, they never fail to disappoint.

The traditional tapered candles available in our webshop meet the exacting standards our customers expect from us, at 25cm tall they provide an 8 hour burning time or if not to be lit and used for decoration only, they'll provide that finishing touch you need throughout Christmas and into the new year. 

Our tapered candles are available in the following colours.
Silver
Holly Green
Ivory
Red
Gold

Candle Holders
Simple, effective and reuseable for securing candles
into table or mantle arrangements.

For that extra effect, how about something a little more contemporary?  

 Twisted Stripes

 Twisted off-white/cream

                 Red & Gold Twisted

Clear Glass Candlestick Holder

Gold Glass Candlestick Holder

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