Flower lovers get inspired

FLOWER enthusiasts regrouped at Prestbury Flower Club after the Summer break for the club’s September demonstration: ‘Inspiration is all around us’.

Demonstrator Dorothy Monk took her inspiration from both the garden and from fabric for her presentation.

Lesley Stafford, programme secretary, said: “As Dorothy worked she gave some top tips for keeping arrangements in the best condition.

“She suggested that a smaller amount of water in vases stops decomposition and her tip for the ever fickle, but lovely gerberas, was to clean vases scrupulously with kitchen spray and wipe, leaving a smear in the water to fight bacteria as gerberas need cleanliness.”

The creative Dorothy also included a special afternoon tea arrangement in her demonstration with a teapot made from cardboard for the centrepiece.

For her only contemporary design, she used zinnias from her garden and willow for height, draping yellow ‘tangutica clematis’ flowers over the arrangement, true to her ‘messy’ continental style.

And remembering the late well-known flower arranger and lecturer Julia Clements, she also presented a more classic arrangement.

Lesley said: “She created a lovely traditional design adhering to the principle of proportion by ‘leaving room for the butterflies’.”