Godbye Dahlias, Hello Amarylils and Mums!

This arrangement was for a rehearsal dinner a few weeks back. Right on the cusp of the dahlia/amaryllis season. Amaryllis are being grown in a lot of colors now- not just Holiday Red and White. They begin to show up at the market in late fall.  Large flowers evaporate from the market this time of year and amaryllis fills that need along with some really awesome mums that are starting to appear.  Yeah, mums- the flower that my eyes tend to glaze over due to overexposure. The ubiquitous round disks in the usual brown, yellow, white and sometimes lime green. They are so tough and long lasting they have certainly earned their place. But let me tell you, there is a whole world of color and form to be explored and new flower growers are beginning to grow them.

Last fall Jon and I attended a Chrysanthemum Exhibition west of Sacramento in a hotel event room. We were greeted by rows of mums in tubes and hushed reverential tones. This was after all a juried exhibition. Judges seriously considered the attributes of each flower that may or may ot receive an award for very specific attributes. This flower jurying business takes place in different parts of the world in shrinking pockets. Below are some I saw that were pretty awesome.