SLOW FLOWERS: Week 36
September 8th, 2013
SEEDPODS AND PETALS
Humulus lupulus, common hops, a dangly little element that adds character to any arrangement.
Ingredients:
20 stems perennial flax (Linum perenne), grown by Charles Little & Co.
5 short lengths common hop (Humulus lupulus), grown by Northern Pacific Farm
10 stems lemon-lime zinnias (Zinnia elegans ‘Queen Lime’), grown by Everyday Flowers
12 stems masterwort (Astrantia major), grown by Ojeda Farms
Vase:
4½-inch tall x 4½-inch wide x 8-inch long rectangular vintage McCoy vase
The hops plays nicely with the zinnia, astrantia and perennial flax.
Grow This
Instant gratification: I had been waiting all summer to use hop vines and their dangling green cones in an arrangement. These stems came from Oregon. Floral designers love the dreamy, 18-foot-long hop garlands, often using them to decorate wedding arbors. Common hop is also used by home brewers. With fast-growing, twining stems, hand-sized lobed leaves and bract-like flowers, the female form of Humulus lupulus is also a “quick” screen for a fence, wall or trellis. It does, however, need to be cut back once a year (usually in late fall, after the first frost), in order to produce a new flush of vines the following season.