Don’t you love the sense of freshness and renewal that comes with Easter and springtime? Seeing the flowers in the garden rising from the soil with their perfect petals and colors, knowing that they came from humble bulbs, always amazes me. Bringing those bulbs and blooms inside makes that experience even more splendid because you get to enjoy that growth and fragrance as closely as you’d like. Long~lasting living arrangements, made with materials from your local market, are so easy to create, scroll down to see how you can do it, step~by~step for Easter and beyond.
This type of arrangement can be made in most any container, and the color scheme? It’s all up to you. Select a collection of plants and bulbs that appeal to you at the market, grab a little bit of potting soil and some moss and you’re ready to create your masterpiece.
Welcome to my potting table… for this arrangement I chose this silver plated punch bowl that I found at an estate sale.
I lined the bowl with some repurposed floral cellophane, you could also use kitchen plastic wrap or aluminum foil.
Estimating the depth of the flowers I filled the base with potting soil and trimmed the cellophane.
White hyacinths, grape hyacinths {muscari}, yellow ranunculus and daffodils with white petals and saffron trumpets {narcissus} were my flowers of choice, this color scheme fits with the blue and white decor of the kitchen and family room section of my home. For greens I chose a thyme, a fern and a silver Dusty Miller.
I started out by placing some of the daffodils.
The pack had 4 bulbs in it so I gently separated out a couple of them and rested them in the soil, pushing the roots down in the soil.
Grape hyacinths add an elegant, slender line of green, fruity fragrance and that beautiful intense blue color to the mix. Here again, I eased out some of the bulbs so that I would be able to distribute that shape and color throughout the punch bowl.
As I do with my cut arrangements I like to add a variety of greens to provide a natural complement to the flowers. This fern nestled in nicely.
Ranunculus are one of my favorite flowers and I knew this bright sunny yellow version would look splendid with the blue and white flowers.
If the roots are tight like this you can gently loosen them up with your fingers so that they can reach deeper down into the soil with ease once planted.
Here is a view of one half of the bowl from one side
with at least another half to plant.
Fresh thyme adds a nice herbaceous fragrance to the arrangement and I love the look of the delicate leaves.
The rest of the ranunculus were placed next.
I love the delicate bells of these white hyacinths and how they elegantly arch out as they grow.
Dusty Millers add a nice softness to the mix. In addition to this third green element I filled out the rest of the bowl with the remaining daffodil and white hyacinths bulbs.
Here are views of the finished plantings, but we’re not finished yet.
The final critical step is the MOSS, this is what makes the whole arrangement look complete, lush and natural. In this case I used a Spanish moss. A fresh moss is ideal, but if you need to use a dried moss just soak it in water for awhile {an hour is ideal}.
I started by filling in around the perimeter, concealing the plastic lining and being very gentle with the delicate buds.
After filling around the perimeter, I tore off sections of moss and placed it between the plants on the inside of the arrangements. creating a lush full look.
Fast forward 2 weeks and miraculously most of those tiny, tight buds are in full bloom. I added a lichen adorned branch to support the tall daffodils with a twist of green wired twine.
Other potted plants and traditional Easter decor add to the overall presentation.
You can control the blooming process of your little garden by the amount of sunlight you expose it to and the temperature. For instance, if you want to slow the growth, put it outside at night. To speed it up keep it in a warm, sunny location.
Use a mister filled with fresh water to keep the arrangement hydrated without overwatering.
I hope this inspires you to bring the beauty of nature indoors, for Easter or anytime. You can find flowers in all stages of bloom at most grocery stores and markets so you don’t need to wait 2 weeks to enjoy the mature beauty.
I’d love to see your creations….. Happy Easter!
