The same environmental and health concerns that we have for our food exist in the floral industry, except maybe more so.
Support local.
Agrochemicals used to grow flowers pollute air as does the journey from Holland and South America (most desirable climates for growing flowers) to your house or floral studio.
Source locally grown organic flowers direct from the grower or ask for local at the markets.
Share your style and color palette with your floral designer and give them freedom to create around this using only locally sourced and sustainable flowers.
Join the slow flower movement, promoting the support and purchase of American-grown flowers in the United States. The philosophy behind slow flowers is part of the wider slow movement.
Reduce toxins in your floral design to increase your chance at composting appropriately .
Say no to toxics and non-bio-degradable floral foam.
Say no to noxious weeds in styling such as pampas grass.
Say yes to dried and edible elements in your arrangements
Talk to your floral designer about using fake flowers in event installations such as flower walls or florals hanging from ceilings and chandeliers.
Flowers thrown away in landfills emit harmful greenhouse gases that change our global climate, making new flowers (among other things) challenging to grow. By composting flowers + greenery, we help create organic topsoil + mulch from which new things will grow.
Use potted plants instead of florals if it compliments your aesthetic.
Why composting is not so simple: The consumer demand for visually perfect flowers, that also need to last the travel miles, equates to the use of chemical pesticides in the industry. So much so, that my favorite floral designer Erica Jones of O Luxe Design doesn’t recommend composting your florals when they are done, in most cases. It has to start with the behavior of the farms. Fivefork Farms is a trusted grower and distributor in the local Boston market.
Repurpose flowers + extend their temporary joy.
Include flowers in the growing sharing economy movement by re-gifting blooms to a nursing home or community center after a wedding or event. The Reflower Project is an admirable non profit, passionate about re-purposing flowers.
Hang them dry and have them forever.
Make floral smudge sticks from your event flowers.
Make your own confetti with dried leaves and hole punch.