5 Extraordinary Blooms for Extraordinary Women

March 8 is International Women’s Day and here is a chance for us to truly give honour to girls, ladies, and women and the roles they play and can play in society.

What better way to celebrate womanhood than a gift that’s ultimately feminine? Mark this year’s International Women’s Day with a special flower gift. But don’t choose just another pink or dainty bouquet. #BreakTheBias remember? This time, be a bit more intentional in choosing a floral gift. Pick a more unconventional floral ensemble; one that reflects and empowers the female recipient, one that speaks true of her.

Look for the following unique blooms when selecting a bouquet. With these unconventional cut flowers, you’ll be able to get a floral gift that truly celebrates the individuality, uniqueness, and versatility of women.

Love Lies Bleeding

Scientifically known as Amaranthus caudatus, this bloom features long rope-like tassels in a rich wine-red shade. This flowering plant’s distinctive blooms that spill towards the ground never fail to catch attention.  As a cut flower, this bloom can instantly elevate the style and appeal of any vase arrangement. They look best when paired with bright yellow flowers like sunflowers. This distinctive blossom lasts 7-10 days in the vase.  Love Lies Bleeding also looks striking when preserved for dried arrangements although the vibrant colour will fade.

True to being unique and versatile, this flower is admired for being both an attractive ornamental and a flavourful edible. In Indonesia, India, and Malaysia, the leaves are used for sautéing and for adding flavour to soups. The seeds are cooked or ground into powder for use in baking.

Blue Himalayan Poppy

As dazzling as her inner and outer beauty is the blue hue of Meconopsis grandis.  The Himalayan Poppy features blue umbrella-like petals that shelter a fuzzy, yellow centre. This flower is said to represent one’s dreams and potential, imagination, and creative pursuits. It’s a flower match for International Women’s Day as it delivers an empowering message to challenge one’s self and realize her potential.

Lily of the Nile

Also known as the African lily and Agapanthus, this flower symbolizes love and beauty. It features large globe-shaped clusters of blooms at the end of a long and lean stem. African lilies come in shades of purplish blue. The Agapanthus makes a terrific cut flower as it has a vase life of 6 to 12 days. You’ll notice individual florets blooming continuously throughout their vase life.

This flower, with its tall and slender stem and showy blooms, is perfect for recognizing women who stood up for their beliefs.

Bells of Ireland

This flower is undeniably unique; as one-of-a-kind as the lady you admire. Unlike other flowers that come in pretty rainbow colours, this bloom comes in pale green to emerald green shade. They’re in the same colour family as foliage but they still stand out, literally and figuratively, given their vertical stalks, funnel-shaped blooms, longevity, and citrus-minty scent. This bloom lasts between 7 and 10 days in the vase.

Blazing Star

A distinctive flower for the free-spirited, for the non-conformist. The Blazing Star, or Liatris spicata, features tall, spiky flowers and grass-like leaves. The flowers come in a striking electric purple hue that attracts bees, butterflies, and birds. As if its appearance isn’t unique enough, this plant’s flower also has an odd habit of blooming from the top down rather than the other way around as most flowers do.

This dramatic flower is often paired with exotic blooms for truly out-of-the-ordinary flower arrangements. The Blazing Star Liatris has a vase life of 7-10 days. Dried Liatris also makes for an interesting pick for dried flower arrangements.