Bird of Paradise. Hands down. Colorful, exotic, and they last for friggin’ ever! A little pricey, but – no kiddin’ – they’ll still look good over a month after you put them in the vase.
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Actually you can eat daylilies, before they’re in bloom, though. To quote from “Stalking the Wild Asparagus” by Euell Gibbons:
It also says you can dip the buds or opened flowers in an egg batter then fry them in oil. You can also eat the tubers. I’ve only tried the boiled buds, myself. Quite good. I’m really looking forward to summer, since that’s not exactly something you can buy in the store.
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My very favourite cut flower is a calla lily; it’s so elegant and mysterious. I like to make bouquets with just callas and liatris, it’s simple yet refined, and I think they compliment each other really well.
Sunflowers have a certain wild, extroverted charm to them. Also they remind me of Van Gogh.
I’m also quite fond of dahlias and gladiolus. My mom works for a farm that grows these (and other flowers) commercially. Their main field is about 40 acres (I think) and is absolutely gorgeous when everything is in bloom.
::sigh:: Is it summer yet…?
Sunflowers is my favorite.
It’s summer for me,
the sun is skining
and the sky is blue.
Well, soon where there agin.
And yes, I’m tired of the winter now.
I love morning glories, although I don’t think you can really put them into a bouquet.
I’m also very fond of sunflowers. They always remind me of triffids.
Mmmmm, I love Gardenias. Nothing puts a smile on my face faster than to catch the scent of Gardenias. Sigh.
[list][li]Roses of all types[/li][li]Orchids[/li][li]Sweet William[/li][li]Yarrow[/li][li]Red Yarrow[/li][li]German Statice[/li][li]Irises[/li][li]Violets (notAfrican)[/li][li]Baby Mums[/li][li]Daffodils[/li]Chrysamthemums
Morning glories.
I like all kinds of flowers My favorites though are white and pink roses, sunflowers (red ones especially), daffodils, orchids, and frangipani flowers (both pink and white).
Don’t especially like flowers; just so long as whoever got them didn’t spend a lot of money I would at least not be as sad (I don’t like getting gifts in general).
Right on, Blondie! Bird-of-Paradise are like flowers from another world. So beautiful.
I also like heliotrope.
Scent-wise, Gardenias all the way. They smell like heaven! Or so I hope, anyway.
As far as the visual…black roses tend to suck because of the dyeing…so I like white roses. Since I prefer the number 4…4 white roses would be perfect to bring a smile to my lips and a certain dampness to my undergarments. (More than 4 white roses is just plain excess to me.)
I once received orchids for Valentines Day, a flower I had previously associated with Mother’s Day and my grandmother…but I was very touched so they now make the list. (It was something different and at that point “new” to me…with the bonus of something I would NOT have bought for myself)
In general though, I’d rather not get cut flowers, give me jewelry. If you must attach it to a flower, make it the cheapest one available. I won’t mind, provided there IS jewelry! (I’m not even saying expensive jewelry…give me a cheap plastic “diamond ring” you bought for a quarter with a carnation stuck in the middle!)
Evening primrose, followed by peppermint carnations.
One of the things I look forward to most about returning to Texas is seeing the wildflowers in bloom each spring
Robin
I have several flowers that I like:
- Plumeria - Heavenly scent, wonderful simple flowers, but amazing colors
- California Poppies - Amazing in a small bouquet. Golden orange
- Cymbidium Orchids - Spectacular panicles of flowers, especially in mature plants (I like the more creams and pinks instead of greens)
- Japanese Wisteria
- Sky Lupine
- Canna - Various types. Don’t do well as cut flowers but still are beautiful.
- King Protea - Often seen in “tropical” bouquets, it has huge flower heads from 11 - 12 inches across and showy pink or crimson bracts.
- Sacred Lotus - The type found in chinese or japanese ponds.
Um, just a question…but as a native Californian, I was always told these were illegal to pick…has something changed??? I always admired them on the ground but thought the “florist” police would slap me in irons if I even leaned in at 'em the wrong way.
Tequila, you can’t pick them but you can grow them. I’ve seen their seeds in many a catalogue.
irises of any kind
stargazer lilies
violets that grow by the side of the road
apple blossoms
orchids
Forget me nots…not really a gift thing though…
I like those flowers that let you spit fireballs when you eat them. Now if I can just get the seeds to take root inside the brick…
<taking quick notes about which ladies prefer which flowers>
I’m rather partial to foxglove, myself. I also rather like nightshade (really!) I suppose a bouquet of the two could be misconstrued…
On a less lethal note, I really like wisteria (another non-bouquet-suitable flowering vine). My father has had a huge trellis of the vines in his front yard every since I was very young–one of my favorite places in the summer was in the cool, sweetly-scented shade under it, watching the purple-edged sunlight filtering through the blooms and listening to the bees buzzing around them.
I love roses, of course; favourite colour – that barely blushing shade of pink. (Not bubble-gum pink. Yuck.)
Favourite non-rose flower – has to be bluebells.