• Colored roses other than red are popular.  Ask Vogue Flowers for some unusual varieties that can really make an impression; there are so many fabulous choices that will impress your Valentine with your creativity: orange roses are hotter than hot, peach roses, lavendar roses and pastel roses.
• Orchids: dendrobium orchids, cymbidium orchids and vanda orchids in shades of blue and purple, stems of green cymbidiums evoke an eco-friendly feel
• Tulips are a great choice and there are great colors available
• Gerbera daisies in hot pinks and oranges paired with a citrus green foliage
• Alstroemeria
• Callas or miniature callas
• Chrysanthemums
• Carnations
• Gardenias
• Lilies
• Hydrangea
• Waxflowers

Want to do something different?

• Amaryllis stems in geometric glass conatiners weighted with river rocks
• Compact flower arrangements in heirloom containers
• Floral designs in monogrammed containers
• Tropical flowers, like protea, arranged with exotic foliage and bamboo accents
• A cactus garden
• Small peace lily plant
• Anemones
• Freesia
• Ranunculus

On a tight budget? There are lots of wonderful flower options for consumers on a budget:

• Ask Vogue’s florists for their specials in your price range and ask about the price of an earlier delivery.
• Consider sending a few stems of something wonderful like roses, tulips or lilies.  Volume isn’t everyting.  Vogue Flowers can make a few stems look romantic and lovely.
• Mixed bouquet of brightly-colored flowers
• Carnations are a great endearing flower full of texture. The bang for your buck is just great and teh vase life is quite long when cared for properly.
• Tulips are a tremendous value flower
• A bud vase with six, three or even a single rose
• Consider flowers in colors other than red, such as peach, orange, hot pink or chartreuse green
• Pompons or chrysanthemums are long lasting. Consider a bunch of green Fuji Mums or a bunch of Kermit Pompons. The chartreuse green is a huge attention getter!
• Stargazer lilies or other lilies
• Alstroemeria
• Gerbera daisies
• Blooming plants

Flowers come in so many beautiful colors.  Some POPULAR COLOR TRENDS AND COLOR COMBINATIONS this year include:

• We always think of red for Valentine’s Day, but many other combinations can say “I Love You.” Hot pink and orange for a fresh young look.  Purple is fun in either a monochromatic combination or mixed iwth red, very luscious. Chartreuse and pink is sweet yet crisp.  Orange and red is a powerful, masculine combination.
• Monobotanic design (all one type of flowers)
• Monochromatic design (flowers all in the same color family)
• Reds, burgundies and browns
• Hot pink, purples and browns
• Monochromatic reds in various textures
• Greens mixed with chocolate browns or stunning pinks
• Greens and purples
• Complementary colors cause excitement, such as lavender paired with yellow or blues coupled with oranges
• Green, lavendar and peach form an upscale color combination
• Rich purples and lavenders mixed with red

Doing this ahead of time ensures that when you are ready to plant you don’t have to worry about the soil not being ready, or having to spend extra hours preparing it and then planting your flowers. A little preparation can save you a huge amount of time later.

Plant by Size

If you’re planting your flowers against a wall, make sure to plant the taller ones (like sunflowers) back against the wall, with the smaller ones further away from the wall. If you’re planting your garden in the middle of an open space, you’ll want to plant the taller ones in the center, with the smaller ones radiating out from there.

These two configurations allow for all of the plants to get enough sunlight without having to compete with each other and insures that all of your flowers will be visible to both you and anybody else that might be enjoying your garden.

Plant Plenty

To help compensate for losses to insects and birds, plant the seeds closer than recommended on the package, as well as planting more than you expect to grow. Weather, wildlife, and any variety of other causes can leave you with far fewer plants than you put into the ground, and planting extra means you don’t have to worry about a sparse garden when everything blooms.

Be Colorful!

With so many summer flowers out there – sunflowers, petunias, marigolds, and cosmos just to name a few – there’s no reason that your summer garden should be anything less than a bright spot of color for your home. Don’t limit yourself to one type of flower or one color scheme, mix and match and brighten up your garden, lawn, or backyard with bright and colorful summer flowers that are sure to be a pleasure for you and your family to enjoy all season long.

Have Fun

The most important part of planting your garden this summer season is to make sure you have fun with it. Plant lots of flowers, plant more than one garden, get your family involved, get your neighbors involved, plant in patters – whatever you want to do to make sure that your flowers are something that you enjoy from the moment you start turning the soil to when you sit back and watch them bloom.

About the Author

Steve Papoulakos is the president of Vogue Flowers, a Richmond florist that allows you to send roses and buy flowers from our stock of amazingly fresh flowers. We can be found online at: http://www.vogueflowers.com .

The flowers that you choose for your mother should express the love and respect that you have for her. Some examples of flowers that could be given to mom on Mother’s Day are mixed or white lilies, white daisies, gerbera daisies, orchids, and roses. Roses are always very popular flowers to give. And if you decide on roses, the appropriate colors are pink, white, yellow, or orange.

Creativity in the Floral Arrangement

You always have the choice of sending something traditional or getting very creative when choosing your flowers. For example, you can choose to send mom her favorite flower, or select a beautiful array of colors that are sure to make her smile. And if you don’t know what your mother’s favorite flowers are, well now’s the time to get to know mom a little better, now isn’t it?

Look around at her décor and see what matches perfectly with other items in the room. Are there salient shades that the perfect bouquet can bring out even more? Is there a color scheme that she seems to follow? An arrangement that complements the scheme is sure to please her, and let her know that you do notice the “little” things. The delight is in the details when you use your creativity this Mother’s Day.

Choosing the perfect Mother’s Day Flowers may seem like takes a lot of thought, but the simplicity of it all lies in the fact that no matter whether you send roses, carnations, or tulips, she’s going to be pleased. The look in her eyes as she leans her head in to smell the beautiful freshly cut flowers will tell you that everything you did to make the day perfect for mom was well worth it.

Flowers are always a sign of love and respect, and they have the power to bring a smile to every woman’s face. It is a gift that you can bring to mom yourself or it can be delivered by the flower shop that you purchase them from. So whether she is down the street and around the corner or at the other end of the country, you can always give flowers for Mother’s Day or any day you want her to feel extra special.

About the Author
Steve Papoulakos is the president of Vogue Flowers and has been delivering Mother’s Day Flowers for more than 22 years. Vogue Flowers has long been the Richmond florist of choice with a large selection of quality flowers. Visit them online at http://www.vogueflowers.com .

About Vogue
Vogue Flowers is a leading provider of flowers for those looking to buy flowers online or send roses to that special someone. Check out our selection of fresh flowers and we’re sure you’ll find exactly what you’re looking for.