1. ACADEMY FOR LIFELONG LEARNING (ALL)
Lone Star College CyFair – March 6, 2013
Peggy Meeker, Instructor
Basic Floral Arrangement Instructions
Whether you're a gardener or just enjoy having fresh flowers around, learning a bit about
flower arranging can help you make truly beautiful flower arrangements that will amaze your
friends and family!
The 3 Main Types of Flowers: There are 3 main types of
flowers in any arrangement:
1. Line Flowers -- 2. Mass Flowers -- 3. Filler Flowers
Line Flowers, also sometimes called Focal Flowers, are tall and add height and width to your
arrangement. Most will have buds or flowers growing up a center stalk. Some examples of
flowers that work well as line flowers include Delphiniums, Snapdragons, Bells of Ireland,
Gladiolus, and Liatris. You can also use branches like willows and others as line flowers.
Mass Flowers, or Intermediate Flowers, are what give your flower arrangement its mass
(makes sense!) and these are the flowers you should begin your arrangement with. They are
usually the focal point of the bouquet and as far as colors go, will incorporate the main colors
of the arrangement. Some flowers commonly used as mass flowers in flower arrangements
include Roses, Carnations, Tulips, Iris, Lilies, etc.
FIller Flowers are just this, flowers that fill in the spaces left by the Line and Mass flowers.
They are often stems with a lot of little flowers, like Baby's Breath, and Heather, or greenery
and foliage that are used to round out your flower arrangement.
Create a simple but beautiful flower arrangement in a basket/container. Design a
monochromatic arrangement featuring lots of different shades of the same color, or use all
warm or all cool colors. Select three to five types of mass flowers. These flowers generally
have a single medium to large flower per stem. Choose one main type of flower to feature in
your arrangement, and use more stems of this type than the others. Additionally, select one or
two types of greenery stems and one type of filler flower.
Things you will need:
1. Floral foam, the type that absorbs water, such as Oasis brand.
2. Sink or bucket of tepid water
3. Floral basket with plastic liner
4. Clippers/scissors to cut the stems

2. Instructions:
1. Mix a packet of floral preservative into the water before cutting the flowers.
2. Soak the foam for about 15 minutes for a small piece and overnight for several bricks in
a sink or bucket filled with tepid water while you prepare the flowers.
3. Hold the stems of the flowers and greenery under the water and give each a diagonal
cut. Aim to make the total height of the arrangement between two and tree times as
tall as the height of the container. Clean any leaves off the bottom several inches of
each stem.
4. Drain the excess water from the floral foam. Do not compress any part of the foam; just
let the extra water drip off. Cut the foam with the knife so that it fits the container and
sits up taller than the container rim. Secure it to the bottom of the container with a
loop or two of floral tape. Stick small pieces of greenery all around the foam to cover
the rim of the container.
5. Select an odd number of stems of the main type of flower you have chosen for your
arrangement. Sink them about an inch or two into the floral foam. Rotate the basket as
you evenly distribute these main stems, striving for a mounded or domed shape, with
the flowers in the center of the basket standing a little higher than those on the sides.
6. Add the other mass flowers, taking care to spread them evenly throughout the
arrangement. Keep building a mounded shape, and use an odd number of each flower.
Spread the colors evenly through the arrangement; leave room around any closed buds
so they will have space to open.
7. Place stems of greenery and filler flowers evenly throughout the whole arrangement. Do
not overpower the main flowers with too much filler.
Securing Your Flowers in Your Container - Floral Foam vs. Flower Frogs
When you're creating flower arrangements, sometimes it's nice to be able
to secure the flowers the way you want them, as opposed to letting them
just float in the vase. To achieve this, some people like to arrange their
flowers using Floral Foam, while others prefer to use Flower Frogs. Some flower arrangers do
prefer flower frogs over floral foam as they don't cause the stems of the flowers to break
when inserting them into the flower arrangement, and they allow the flowers to more readily
absorb water. Floral foam comes in many shapes, hearts, crosses, circles, rings and the
standard bricks.

3. Strive for Balance in Your Arrangement
Once you've thought about how you'll incorporate the different types of
flowers, picked your colors, and selected the flowers you'll use, you'll want
to begin arranging your flowers. As you work, one of your main goals is to
maintain balance to your flower arrangement.
Basically, what is meant by this is that you should try your best to use the colors and shapes of
your flowers in your arrangement so that no one flower, color, shape, etc. takes over the
bouquet.
This doesn't refer to balance in number though; it's more about balance in appearance. For
example, dark colors appear "heavier" to the eye and take more focus than lighter colors, and
the same is true for large vs. small flowers.
As a result, you'll likely require lighter and smaller flowers (depending on your flower
selection) to achieve a balanced looking arrangement as opposed to the darker and
larger/taller flowers.
Tips for Making Your Flower Arrangements Last as Long as Possible
It's always a shame when a lovely flower arrangement starts to look, well, not so lovely
anymore. Here are some tips you can use to make the flowers in your arrangements and
bouquets last as long as possible.
Keep Your Flower Arrangements Cool - This includes both keeping your flower arrangements
in a cool location as well as keeping the water they're in cool.
Make sure to place your arrangements out of direct sunlight (I know they look pretty there,
but they won't last as long), as well as away from large lights, heating units, fireplaces, etc.
With regards to the water, change it often, and use the coldest water possible. Also, if you
must put your flowers in that sunny window (or another warmer location) slips a few ice cubes
into the water every so often to keep things cooler.
Pick or Buy Your Flowers When they’re Young - If you can, try to select flowers that aren't
fully open yet. This will allow you to watch them open, and, more importantly, make them last
longer. Read the dates on the flower packages.
Feed Your Flowers - Florists give you flower food with your flowers for a reason, it helps them
last longer! The nutrients in the flower food help flowers take up more water, provide them
with necessary nutrients, and help kill bacteria that may form in the water.

4. Re-Cut the Stems - If it's possible, re-cut the stems of your flowers once you get them home,
preferably under cool water. Make sure though to use a very sharp knife or clippers, not
scissors. You want to use something that will cut the stems but not crush them as this will
decrease their ability to take up water and thereby decrease their lifespan.
When you re-cut the bottoms of your flowers, try to cut about 1 - 2 in. off the bottom and
make the cut at a sharp angle.
Eliminate Plant Material in the Water - Use your sharp knife or clippers to also remove any
leaves, stems, and flowers, etc. that will be under the water in the vase/container. Leaving
these on will help promote bacteria growth, which, as we now know, will shorten the life of
the flower arrangement.
Be Gentle - Whatever you're doing with your flowers, be gentle. Don't drop the flowers into
the vase or container as when they hit the bottom this can bruise their stems. Gently set them
into the arrangement. Arrange them delicately for the same reason. Plus, you don't want to
accidently break any of the stems.