Anthophobia
“‘No, not allergies. Fear. Seems she has a fear of flowers. Did you ever hear of such a thing? So I brought them back here.’ Lilly touched the blooms. ‘Anthophobia, I think it’s called. Rare, but it happens.’ Donica sighed...”
Lovely spring design with ranunculus, tulips, scabiosa, and pussy willows designed by Wyoming Stuyvesant Floral.
Not to be dramatic, but I think I have a touch of anthophobia.
As I mentioned in my first post, Flower Expressions, here at Flower Fables I hope to find a space to explore renewed inspiration I’ve found for floral design. In March of 2018, I listened to episode 14 of the Botanical Brouhaha podcast. In this episode, hosts Amy McGee and Maria Maxit interview Marco Groot, CEO of Hilverda De Boer USA, a Dutch wholesaler with operations in the U.S.
Lots of dutch blooms including lilacs, anemones, hyacinth, and hellebore.
After listening to this interview, I started thinking about the limitations I place on the fresh flowers we stock. Why was I discriminating against certain varieties of flowers?
The first reason, and a pretty rational one, is money. A lot of these blooms I had blacklisted are expensive. Since we are mainly a retail flower shop (versus exclusively wedding and event floristry), our customer base is not always willing to pay for a luxury bloom. Valid point.
The second reason, and again valid, is longevity. The blooms I had boycotted are not necessarily known for their longevity. But this is where a bit of irrational fear starts to creep into my logic. The fact is, cut flowers are not intended to last a long time; but what I perceive to be the expectation of the customer and the recipient has clouded my professional judgement. I have a tendency to apply one customer’s unrealistic expectation to every customer.
The last reason that the blacklist ever existed is purely internal. In the past, I only was experiencing these blooms during what, for me, was a high-anxiety, stressful event, usually a wedding. I expected all these flowers to do exactly what I needed them to do at the exact moment I needed them to do it. The reality of flowers is they are in control. You can make suggestions, but really, they kind of do what they want. So, when that anemone didn’t open to full bloom or that peony, garden rose, or ranunculus wasn’t as big as I thought it should be or a sweet pea didn’t have as many blooms as I thought is should, it went on the list.
Sweet peas from Hilverda De Boer with Moody Blues roses, lisianthus, and lilies.
That last bit, that’s what I needed working on. Once I recognized that I had developed a fear of these flowers and just the thought of having to work with them caused me anxiety, that seemed like something I should address. It was more a personal growth issue than professional development at that point.
If I wanted to be comfortable with snakes, I guess the first step would be to spend more time with snakes: get familiar with them, see how they behaved, learn what I could expect and not expect from them, observe how different environments affected them. I might just learn to love snakes. (Now I’m being dramatic.)
Hilverda De Boer shipments are packaged and shipped directly from the famous Dutch flower auction, Bloemenveiling Aalsmeer. I picked up this shipment at the GR airport, a unique experience for me. All our other supply chains arrive at our back door.
Clooney ranunculus, sweet peas, anemones, lilacs, and yellow calla lilies from Hilverda De Boer.
I took a similar approach with these flower varieties. I placed an order with Hilverda De Boer just to try out their flowers. It wasn’t for a specific order, event, or wedding; it was just for the experience. What is the best care and vase life of each variety? How long does each variety take to open to full bloom? After full bloom, what is its longevity? No pressure. Let’s just see what they do.
The infamous list really does include some of the most beautiful blooms. My experience with Hilverda De Boer sparked an exploration for new supply options for luxury flowers, and through that process I’ve discovered even more flowers to love rather than dread.
After the exercise of sourcing these flowers and having them in the studio, I recognized the need to live with these flowers. I had virtually stopped having flowers with me at home. I was only experiencing flowers while they were in the cooler or while designing.
Can you really know a flower without living with it? So, I started taking these varieties home with me. No special occasion, no holiday, no dinner party, simply to watch a neglected hydrangea last for two weeks. And marvel at how scabiosa revive their strength with this amazing S curve in their stem and this unexpected raised dome of petals. And be amazed by the Clooney ranunculus that continued to open wider and wider with a vase life that I would have never predicted.
The practice of observing how the flowers behaved through their whole vase life made me trust them. To touch a hydrangea morning after morning and marvel that it’s still hydrated, that’s a lesson worth learning.
There’s definitely still room for growth in this area of inspiration and exploration. I’m looking forward to exploring more blooms in 2019, as well as finding new resources to experience, avenues to discover, and paths to cross.
At home with scabiosa
At home with red ranunculus
At home with white king protea
Jennifer Schuitema
Co-Owner of Wyoming Stuyvesant Floral, Wyoming, Michigan
Third-generation florist working in the same location established by her grandparents. She’s worked in flower shops most of her life but in earnest since 1998 when she graduated from Western Michigan University with a BBA. She lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
