At the end of the rainbow is another free Connells Maple Lee Kids Club event for ages 5 to 12.
Join us March 15 for an opportunity to decorate a white carnation by giving it a smiling face. You’ll be able to take your creation home in a bud vase and watch as the green dye in the water changes the color of the flower.
Participants also will receive a balloon.
Time slots are available at 10 a.m., 2 p.m. and 3 p.m.
Registration is required by calling your nearest store: 2408 E. Main St. (Route 40), Bexley, 614-237-8653; 2033 Stringtown Road, Grove City, 614-539-4000; and 8573 Owenfield Drive, Powell, 740-548-4082.
Category: Flowers
Five Valentine’s Day options for $40 or less
You can put a price on love.
No matter what your budget, Connells Maple Lee has a Valentine’s Day option for you.
Let’s get to the heart of the matter with five options for below $50 each:
1. Single rose: $5; perfect to give to a son or daughter, or for them to give to Mom
2. Flower handful: $5 to $10; consider something less traditional such as tulips
3. Single rose with bear: $15 to $18; another great option for children
4. Mixed bunch: $15 to $20; easily dropped in a vase — and most of us have vases at home
5. Dozen rainbow roses (photo): $40; great value on mixed-color roses in a vase
As an added bonus, we’re offering an incentive to encourage customers to have their Valentine’s Day orders delivered by Feb. 13: The recipient will get a coupon for a free dozen-rose bouquet.
Rather than national services, call your local florist to get the most bang for your buck on Valentine’s Day: NBC’s “Today”
Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
With the Valentine’s Day fast approaching, NBC’s “Today” put three national floral delivery services to the test. The results weren’t always pretty, with “Today” concluding that what customers received didn’t always match what they ordered from the 1-800-Flowers, Teleflora and FTD websites.
In the clip above, “Today” consults with a flower expert on the subject of getting the most bang for your buck.
The takeaway? Shop a local florist.
In his introduction, “Today” correspondent Jeff Rossen said: “Here’s tip No. 1: Experts say call your local florist. Most of them deliver. You can say to them, ‘What flowers are fresh today?’ You have that personal communication, so experts say you’re more likely to get what you pay for.”
Connells Maple Lee Kids Club announces full 2014 event schedule
We hope to see your family at Saturday’s Connells Maple Lee Kids Club event. But even if you can’t make it, you will have four other opportunities to join us throughout 2014.
Be sure to mark your calendars for these dates and event themes:
- March 15: St. Patrick’s Day
- June 21: Connells Maple Lee Stems Hunger (food drive)
- Aug. 23: Back to school
- Nov. 1: Bouquets for Books (book drive)
Registration is required for all events, which take place on Saturdays and are open to children ages 5 to 12. Typically we offer sessions at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.
To keep up on the latest kids club news and events, join the club by clicking here.
See you soon!
National Poinsettia Day is Dec. 12 and other facts about the most popular holiday plant
We typically think of the North Pole when it comes to Christmas, but the most popular holiday plant originates with our neighbor to the south.
Poinsettias are native to Mexico and were introduced to the United States in 1825 by Joel Roberts Poinsett, who was the first U.S. ambassador to Mexico.
In fact, Poinsett’s death in 1851 is commemorated every Dec. 12 as National Poinsettia Day.
Some other facts:
- The colored parts of poinsettias aren’t flowers but bracts (leaves).
- Poinsettias have been called the lobster flower and flame leaf flower.
- Poinsettias are not poisonous, to humans or pets.
- An Ohio State study found that a 50-pound child who ate 500 bracts (leaves) might have a slight tummy ache.
- Poinsettias are commercially grown in all 50 states.
- Ninety percent of all poinsettias are exported from the United States.
Source: www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/poinsettia
Connells Maple Lee exclusive: Corazon rose
The poet and writer Gertrude Stein was wrong.
A rose is a rose is a rose, she said.
If she meant to suggest that all roses are alike, then she was wrong.
We’d like to introduce you to the Corazon rose. It’s unlike any other rose we sell. Don’t get us wrong, we love them all, no matter the variety. But they aren’t one and the same.
Which is why it’s going to take some educating in order for our customers to appreciate what sets Corazon apart from other rose varieties.
First, let’s start with the name: Corazon. It’s pronounced coh-rah-SOHN, and it means “heart” in Spanish.
Corazon only comes in red.
It is grown in Quito, Ecuador, high in the Andes Mountains, approximately 2,800 miles south of Harrisburg.
But a lot of flowers are grown in Quito, including other varieties of roses.
So what’s special about Corazon?
• Its bloom opens fully, like a garden rose
• Its bloom is extra large: almost 5 inches across
• Its petals re-curl at the margins, giving Corazon a classic look
• It lasts a long time: seven days given proper care.
Corazon was a blue-ribbon winner at the Society of American Florists’ most recent convention.
What’s more, Corazon is exclusive to Connells Maple Lee. No other florist in our market area can carry Corazon.
Tom Royer, our senior vice president and chief operating officer, has been making regular trips to flower farms in South America for decades. You’d expect that it takes a lot to impress him, right?
Color him impressed – the color red, of course – when it comes to Corazon.
“Number one, it’s the head size,” Tom said. “They’re incredible. The color is just absolutely gorgeous. And it looks like you cut the rose out of your garden.
“It’s all about the characteristics of the rose. Even though it opens quickly, it lasts a long time. I was shocked how long.”
Of course, what gives Corazon its unique appeal also makes for a unique challenge in getting customers to embrace it.
“It’s a test for us,” Tom said. “It’s exciting because it’s a different type of rose. Hopefully it will go really well and people will be mad at us because we don’t have enough of them.”
In search of the best rose
“Where will I wander and wonder?
Nobody knows
But wherever I`m going I`ll go
In search of a Rose”
–From the song “In Search of a Rose” by The Waterboys
that are grown specifically for Connells Maple Lee.
Just after Labor Day, Tom Royer is going in search of a certain type of rose.
“We don’t want a rose,” said Tom, Connells Maple Lee’s senior vice president and chief operating officer. “We want a rose. We want the best rose and that’s what we need to do to be competitive in our business, is find the best of the best.
“We pride ourselves in doing that. Our flowers last longer, they’re bigger. We constantly have to be looking at all the things that are available to us to make what we do in the flower business better than what anybody else does.”
Tom, who visits flower farms in South America multiple times each year, will be returning to Quito, Ecuador, to meet with three or four rose growers (and a lily grower).
In some ways, this is nothing new. Tom is always in pursuit of better-looking, longer-lasting flowers.
“I’m constantly looking at farms,” Tom said. “It’s just now that the focus has been more on Ecuadoran roses.”
Specifically, he is looking for roses that have bigger head sizes, consistently. It costs more to ship fresh-cut roses from Quito than from Bogota, Colombia, the single-biggest source of Connells Maple Lee roses.
“So all things being equal, why would you buy from Quito?” Tom said.
“Well, Ecuadoran roses have always had a little bigger head size, and we’re focusing more and more on that.”
While its farms are capable of growing roses comparable to what is found in Quito, Bogota experiences more rain and clouds that can be detrimental to head size.
One of the growers that Connells Maple Lee buys from in Colombia also operates farms in Quito.
“And so we’re getting some of their Ecuadoran farm’s (roses)” and comparing with the ones from Bogota. “And the thing you see is the head size is bigger.”
Tom’s trip will help him determine which one or two farms in Quito he will work with.
“But we’re experimenting with them because you can’t just get a shipment and say, oh, OK, great, this is wonderful or it’s terrible. One shipment doesn’t tell the story. You have to do it over a number of months.”
And even then it’s a never-ending process.
“But wherever I`m going I`ll go
In search of a Rose”
Wherever he’s going, Tom is in search of a rose, too. The best rose he can find.
Calling all kids club members: We want you to design our next birthday card
Would you like to win a flower delivery to your door? You could if you enter the Connells Maple Lee Kids Club birthday card design contest.
The winning design will adorn the birthday card that each kids club member receives on his or her special day. If we pick your design, you will receive a flower delivery on your birthday.
The contest is open to kids club members, ages 5 to 12. If you aren’t a kids club member yet, you can register here.
Now, download the birthday card contest entry form here, create your design, and drop off the entry at your nearest Connells Maple Lee store by July 12.
Good luck!
Feed me, Seymour
A little while back, a customer purchased cut hydrangeas from one of our stores. A brunch was being held in honor of her mother-in-law, and the customer was making hydrangea centerpieces for the occasion.
We placed a special order for the South America-grown flowers, so we knew they were as fresh as could be. Yet the customer was back in our store within 24 hours, her hydrangeas having wilted.
We replaced them so that her needs were met, but in the meantime we recut the original flowers and put them in water with cut-flower food. Within hours, they looked gorgeous again.
The moral to this story? If you’re going to work with cut hydrangeas – lots and lots of consumers are these days, and with good reasons – then don’t skimp on flower food.
Garden feel
Hydrangea flowers have big heads – a single one can be 4 to 8 inches wide – and make a bold statement with great ease. Just plop them in any kind of water-holding container (canning jars are popular) and they look terrific, bringing a garden feel indoors.
Clearly, hydrangeas are popular these days: You’ll find lots of evidence on Pinterest, the online bulletin board. In fact, we incorporated them into a number of our arrangements and deliver loose hydrangeas to our stores a couple of times each week.
Once you get the flowers home, make certain that they have plenty of water that has been mixed with flower food. You can purchase packets of food from your local florist; mix one packet per quart of water.
Hydrangeas represent a great value because you don’t need many of them to make a big impression and, with proper care, they last a long time.
Mums the word year-round
Many of us decorate porches and patios with hardy mums in the fall. But a little bit of loving and some attention to the calendar can help you get the most out of your mums and even keep them blooming in a garden for years to come.
If you planted mums in the ground back in the fall, then the summer months are important in their growth cycle.
Feeding: From spring through July, nourish your mums twice a month with an all-purpose garden fertilizer mixed in water. Stop feeding in August.
Pinching: By July 15, you should pinch the top growth back 1 to 2 inches. This will ensure that your mums bloom in the fall rather than during the summer.
Controlling pests: Aphids are the most common pests that afflict garden mums. These are small soft-bodied insects about the size of a pinhead. They range in color from green to yellow to black. They make their livings by sucking the sap out of tender new growth. To control them, spray an all-purpose insecticide or insecticidal soap on the plants once a week for a couple of weeks. Take care not to spray plants in direct sun or when the temperature is above 90 degrees.
Now, if you are thinking about planting your potted mum for the first time, here are some steps to take:
• Be sure to water your potted mums daily as warm days will make them thirsty. At the same time, too much water can damage the roots; provide drainage in decorative pots or baskets.
• It’s best to plant the mums in October so their roots have time to grow before cold weather sets in.
• Once the mums are planted, water them thoroughly a couple of times each week through mid-November. This will encourage the roots to grow deeply. The deeper the roots, the stronger the plants will be.
• In late spring, cut the plants down 6 to 8 inches above the ground. This will give you bushy, compact plants with lots of flowers. As spring gives way to summer, follow the instructions above relative to feeding and pinching.