Holiday Color Series: Essential Red

Holiday Color Series: Essential Red

Christmas flowers Holiday flowers ilex verticillata LA Hybrid red red flowers red holiday flowers red matsumoto asters red tulips Sumatra lilies

Welcome to Part Two of our Holiday Color Series. Now that we are fully in December, it is time to talk about the official color of Christmas: Red.  Not only is it adorning the windows of shops and the sweaters of my coworkers, I can also see it appearing more and more in our greenhouses, fields, and shipping coolers. 

Origin of Christmas Red

The use of red at Christmas has its history rooted in both pagan and Christian beliefs, tracing back to the Middle Ages, when using red and green symbolized the end of cycle and the beginning of a new one—typically around the winter solstice.  Christians associated red with this tradition as well, but they used it to indicate the sacred color of Christ's blood.  They celebrated the change of season with medieval miracle plays about the story of creation and Adam and Eve, featuring a "paradise tree" hung with red apples.  The holly berry, too, became associated with Christ's blood, along with the red robes of church bishops.  All these uses preceded the red of Santa's suit (which was actually made popular by artist Fred Mizen and Coca-Cola in the 1930s).

Regardless of the origin of using red with Christmas, it is here to stay.  All the better, I say, as there is a wealth of holiday flora that come in that nostalgic and symbolic, Christmas Red.

Red Matsumoto Asters

Matsumoto asters cheer up grey, winter skies with their warm and vibrant colors. They are especially fitting for the holiday season, as they come in that bright, enviable Christmas red.  Their soft petals gather tightly around a golden center, illustrating the Latin root of their name, which means “star."  Their lengthy stems and long vase life make Matsumoto Asters an essential addition to any Christmas decor.

Red Ilex

Ilex Verticallata (also known as winterberry) is the quintessential winter botanical.  We are unabashed ilex devotees here at Sun Valley, and as explained in Flower Talk before, it's because our ilex program has been hand-picked, bred, and cultivated by Lane DeVries for decades, and his long-term dedication to grow the best ilex is evident in what we offer today.   Have a look at these lovely greenery enhanced bunches below.

(Top L-R) Ilex Enhanced Bunches with: Cedar, Tulips and Cedar, Ilex M, Princess Pine

Also, the singular beauty of ilex displayed by itself is an arrangement that should not be overlooked.  The effect is both stunning and graceful.  Below are some gorgeous holiday ilex displays found on Pinterest, and there are hundreds of more ideas!

Red Tulips

We are also unabashed tulip lovers at Sun Valley! Tulips were one of our original bulb crops, and for the last thirty years, we have been working to provide high-quality, soil-grown tulips all year long.  During winter, we use bulbs from our Southern Hemisphere suppliers in order to have a fresh and timely supply of tulips during the "off-season." Red tulips pair amazing with all kinds of holiday greenery--cedar, pine, or fir, it doesn't matter--they all provide a great backdrop (and holiday scent) to bright red tulips. 

(From L-R): Rococco Red Tulips with Eucalytpus and Fir, Red tulip enhanced bunches with holiday greens

Red Lilies

Sumatra

Looking for a deeper red this holiday season? Consider Sumatra lilies, which have Bordeaux petals intensified by dark burgundy brushstrokes, ruby freckling, and a thin white ruffle at the edges of its petals.  Because they are part of the Oriental Lily family, Sumatra blooms are quite large and very fragrant.  If you're looking for an elegant and fragrant red flower for this holidays, try the dark hues of the Sumatra Lily.

LA Hybrids

LA Hybrids are perfect for those who want a long-lasting, red holiday lily with no fragrance. LA Hybrids fulfill that scentless need, making them a great option for those who have floral allergies or for those who want the notes of gingerbread and apple cider to reign supreme.  We've branded our LA Hybrids as Love and Royal Lilies, and they come in a range of red hues to fit any kind of holiday theme.   Their petals are velvety and strong, and their long vase life will help them last through the holiday season.

Some of our red-hued LA Hybrids

In case you need a re-cap of our list of Essential Red Flowers, I've rewritten a one a holiday classic to help you remember, called The Five Days of Flowers.

On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me - an ilex verticillata..
On the second day of Christmas my true love gave to me -two LA Hybrids, and an ilex verticillata.
On the third day of Christmas my true love gave to me - three red tulips, two LA Hybrids, and an ilex verticillata.
On the fourth day of Christmas my true love gave to me - Four Sumatra Lilies, three red tulips, two LA Hybrids and an ilex verticillata.
On the fifth day of Christmas my true love gave to me - Five Red Asters, Four Sumatra Lilies, three red tulips, two LA Hybrids, and an ilex verticillata.

Happy Holidays.

Floral "Jewel Tone" Primer

Floral "Jewel Tone" Primer

Asters delphinium Jewel Tones Lilies Pantone Sumatra lilies tango lilies

“Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.”

                                                -Albert Camus

Now that it is officially autumn, it’s time to dig into the hot colors of fall. The fashion world dictates the color schemes we will see from the runways in New York and Paris right down to the colors a bride requests for her fall wedding. The name of the game this season is “Jewel Tones.” Jewel tones are the rich, saturated colors associated with jewels, such as emeralds, rubies, amber and sapphires.  These tones aren’t the bright and shiny side of the precious stones, but the dark, warm interiors of the stones. According to the trend setters at Pantone, the jewel tone palette will be accented by neutrals, such as browns and taupe.

So let’s investigate the flowers and botanicals that represent jewel tones.

Sumatra is a jewel toned delight

In the lily department, the Sumatra Lily will be a stand out this fall. This beautiful Oriental is big and dark; the saturated colors will ensure that this lily will be the focal of many autumn floral events.  For our Royal Lilies, which is what we call our LA Hybrids, the Sunset Royal lily has all the warmth of a vibrant autumn sunset.  Sun Valley has the exclusive North American rights to grow this lily, and there will be big numbers coming to harvest every week.  The other lily to keep your eye on is Orange Art. This stunning lily is from the Tango Series, so it is part Asiatic and part LA Hybrid.  This is one of our lilies that the average consumer hasn’t experienced; the gorgeous contrasting hues make this a show-stopping fall lily.

Orange Art from the Tango Lily Series.

The ever popular Matsumoto Asters we grow are a natural match for the jewel tone theme. Purple, red and our hot pink fit the bill nicely.

Fall color Matsumoto Asters

 A flower that grows beautifully at our Oxnard farm that we don’t mention nearly enough is our Delphinium Sea Waltz, now this is a rich sapphire blue.

Delphinium Jewel Tones

One of my favorite items we grow on the farm is Ornamental Kale, often called Brassica.  J Schwanke from uBloom just completed a great video showing off our product. Have a look, the dark purples and emeralds of our brassica will be hot this autumn, so you need to see this video!

Not all jewel tones are necessarily dark; our gerberas are bright, yet saturated. Some varieties which will be hot this fall are: Maya, Shania, Carambole, Intensa and Malibu.  I recently took a walk through the Oxnard gerb greenhouse, the crop is looking pretty spectacular.  The colors are popping and the plants are looking very healthy.

Our Gerb greenhouse in Oxnard, CA

The last crop I need to mention to give you the inside track on jewel tones are our Fall Tulips. The great part of growing bulb crops is we can grow the color mix you need on demand.  We often say, “We grow it, when you need it.”  This is the epitome of our year round tulip program.  We keep the tulips in coolers just until we are ready for them to burst into action. The crop is carefully planned, so we grow the colors that any given season requires.  Its fall, so we have the oranges, yellows, red and bi-colors that will be the color splash in your autumn arrangements. The bulbs are from the Southern Hemisphere so they are “spring fresh”, which leads to the best quality and the best vase life.

Jewel tones are the theme of this season, and Sun Valley is growing just what you need.

Lily Talks Lilies (Part 1)

Lily Talks Lilies (Part 1)

#americangrown #CAGrown Curie Oriental lilies Stargazer lily Sumatra lilies

Beauty is silent,—through the summer day Sleeps in her gold,—O wondrous sunlit gold, Frosting the lilies, virginal array! Green, full-leaved walls the fragrant sculpture hold, Warm, orient blooms!—how motionless are they— Speechless—the eternal loveliness untold!
                                                                                                           -George E. Woodberry

If you know Sun Valley and Lane DeVries, then you know his favorite flower is a soil grown tulip.  But I have a confession to make… my favorite flower is an Oriental Lily, sure “Lily” is my name sake, however it is more than that.  Ories achieve the epitome of what a flower should be; big, colorful, fragrant and absolutely beautiful.

Sun Valley Lilies: Sumatra in center, Marmara at the top and Curie at the bottom.

If you had to stand out on the roadside and stop traffic using only a 10 stem bunch of flowers, what variety would you pick? 

Our Sales Assistant Robin, stopping traffic with a 10 stem of Curie.

One of our Guiding Principles is “Always remain humble and gracious.” Our lilies certainly are gracious as they perform stunningly for our customers, but they are not humble.  Our lilies are the rock stars of the flower world, sure they have an ego, sure they are flashy, but as Muhammad Ali said,

“It’s not bragging if you can back it up.”

So why are our Orientals Lilies superior to others on the market?

It starts in the ground; Lane’s soil mix provides the perfect environment for the bulbs to grow.  It is a mixture of redwood, Douglas fir and other local wood fines, compost, sand and love.

“Operational Excellence” is one of our hallmarks on the farm, and the steps involved in the early stages of our lilies development are a testament to this goal.  The bulbs are hand planted in black crates, then brought into the Rooting Coolers, this is a step many growers are unable to achieve. In the Rooting Coolers we simulate early spring, creating a chilly and moist atmosphere which signals the bulbs that it’s time to grow.  The bulbs start forming a strong root base for the flower to use as it's support system; the bulb will sprout out of the soil in less than two weeks.

It's always spring in the Rooting Cooler.

Two weeks doesn’t seem like a big deal, however, it is a HUGE deal.  We are able to have these lilies growing for the first two weeks of their life cycle before we put them in the greenhouses.  Lilies take between 12-16 weeks to come to harvest, so this two week stretch gives us the ability to have a huge inventory of Oriental Lilies for Valentine’s Day, as well as Mother’s Day.  At big floral holiday times, space is extremely limited inside the greenhouses, so two weeks in the rooting cooler gives us room to breathe, and you get a steady, year round supply of lilies even at peak times.

Lily roots, the newest growth is coming out of the top.

Strong roots lead to big blooms, with superior vase life.

The oriental Lilies grow in a bit of an unconventional way.  The new roots actually grow out of the top of the bulb, then reach down to the soil. As our lilies grow we help support them, using a wire frame which we raise incrementally as the lilies reach skyward.

The metal bar is raised as the lilies grow.

Our California farms are blessed with consistent light levels and cool nights.  Both these factors contribute to our lilies’ quality.  Most people think flowers need bright light and hot temperatures to bloom; this is actually not the case.  Ironically, we prefer nice steady light levels, and we use the shade cloth in the big Dutch greenhouses more often than not. The cool nights that come with our Pacific coastal climate also help our lilies.  The chilly nights lead directly to bolder, more vibrant colors in the bloom.

Chilly nights make the colors POP!

Oriental Lilies are all about purity of purpose.  They are meant to be divine and ethereal.  The lily possesses an unending sense of wonder, even before the flower opens; the stage is set for greatness.  Once opened, the lily commands your attention and thrills your senses. 

 

Tune in next week for part 2 of Lily Talks Lilies. 

   

Decadence on a Stem

Decadence on a Stem

Doug Dobecki LA Times Rose Lilies Sumatra lilies Sun Valley Floral Farm

The Rose Lily - Decadence on a Stem

In an industry as vast as floriculture, it is rare when a certain flower really shakes things up. It started about three years ago; the Rose Lily sprang onto the flower scene as the new upstart in autumn bouquets. The premise is simple; a lily with two or three times as many petals as a traditional lily, a low fragrance level and it is pollen free. The complex blooms are very impressive, pure decadence on a stem. These beauties are the eye candy of the floral industry, and we just happen to have a green house full of them!  

Eye Candy

Two springs ago, even the LA Times took note that this new hybrid is a game changer in the cut flower industry.

As beautiful as these lilies are, an issue we kept running up against was certain petals opening up before all the petals opened. This led to the bloom being uneven. 

Juan, our resident Rose Lily expert, shows a blossom where a couple petals opened up too early.

So to remedy this problem we had to get very creative, after a lot of testing, we settled on using gerbera nets on each blossom. We traditionally use these nets on our gerbera daisies, however, we found that they work perfectly for protecting the Rose Lilies. Now they burst open in a perfectly symmetrical feast for the eyes.  It definitely takes some serious effort to place a net on each bud, but at Sun Valley we are committed to delivering our customers outstanding quality, and this is a small price to pay. On the day I was out chatting with Juan, he showed me that they wait until just the right time in the buds development to slip the net on.

Juan and his crew were about to tackle netting these rows of Rose Lilies.

This autumn marks the true second generation of the Rose Lily.  According to Sun Valley Sales Manager, Doug Dobecki , "This new generation of Rose Lily has bigger and better blossoms, and there are some new colors out in the greenhouse that are gorgeous."

Last weekend, I took a bunch of Rose Lilies and a bunch of our gigantic Sumatra Lilies home.  What a wild contrast, the deep warm magenta of the Sumatra and the elaborate flourish of the Belonica Rose Lily.  This combo just jumps out of the vase at you, it demands your attention.

While cooking breakfast, I found myself just staring at the blooms, inspecting each detail.  Suddenly, the smoke detector went off.   I snapped out of my trance to find a set of pancakes smoldering on the griddle, my young son startled and about to cry and my wife jumping heroically to turn the alarm off.  ...Now isn't that the effect a flower should have on you?