More Do-It-Yourself Arrangements:
Easy, Creative Summer Centerpiece
Frogs and Flowers
Fast Flowers, Easy Bouquet
More Do-It-Yourself Arrangements
5-Minute Arrangements
Slide Show: Everyday Arrangements
 



Southern Accents

Gardening With Stiles
Stiles Colwill reinvents his mother's 1940s victory garden on his family's farm in the Maryland countryside.


 
Can-do Summer Arrangement
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MAKE IT LAST

Follow these pointers to keep your petals perky.

  • Avoid using rusty cans, as they will reduce the longevity of the flowers.
  • Place stems in warm water, up to the necks of blooms, after cutting.
  • Remove all foliage below the waterline.
  • Add floral preservative to keep blooms fresh. Tip: If you don’t have any, add 1 tablespoon of lemon-lime soda to a quart of water.
  • Change water often, and recut the stems underwater each time.

  • Striking Stems Summer’s bounty is endless. Here are some great flowers you can include in your next arrangement. Look for them in your yard, or buy them at the grocery store.

  • Black-eyed Susans
  • Butterfly Bushes
  • Coreopsis
  • Dahlias
  • Daylilies
  • Ginger lilies
  • Gladioli
  • Hydrangeas
  • Irises
  • Lilies
  • Mexican Sunflowers (Tithonia rotundifolia)
  • Red-hot Pokers (Helianthus sp.)
  • Roses
  • Salvias
  • Summer Phlox
  • Sunflowers
  • Yarrow
  • Zinnias

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