why am I drawn to Shades of green?
From as far back as I can remember I have always LOVED green flowers (all flowers but perhaps green flowers most especially!) Green in all it’s shades evokes in me a fresh, calming, organic and vibrant yet restful sense. Green is the color of spring, of new life, calmness, and is many times associated with health too (think leafy green vegetables good for our minds and bodies). As a cooler secondary colour (a mix of blue and yellow) it might be thought of oftentimes in art as primarily a background colour. The background of a traditional painting, for example, is often green and blue while the object of interest in the forefront is painted with warmer colors like reds or oranges. In saying this however, there are very vibrant and bright greens which truly stand out in spite of them being from a cooler colour pallette.
Branding research tells us that the truth of the matter is that colour is too dependent on personal experiences to be universally translated to specific feelings. But as someone who loves nature and has been blessed to live in countries where the natural world is so very ‘green’ I definitely have positive emotional associations to the colour. I am even living in a country where it’s the national colour!
Green Flower varieties
Whilst not an exhaustive list here is a great taster of the tremendous selection of green flowers that are available to flower arrangers.
So Many Textures!
For me perhaps the greatest thing about the family of green flowers is the wealth of texture that is available. These different textures can help to enforce certain themes you may be considering. It’s amazing the visual interest that can be created naturally by a variety of green flowers simply grouped next to one another. Here are a selection of images of bouquets and arrangements that demonstrate the outstanding verdant textural nature of green flowers….
Green flowers can be soft, fluffy and variegated…
Green flowers can be waxy and shiny…
They can be spiky and curly….
Feathered, furry or rounded….
Knobbly, pointed or sharp and just plain interesting!
So beautiful and prized can green flowers be that they can form a bridal bouquet.
Colour Psychology: The Colour Green
Whilst the colour green may not mean the same thing for everyone, generally speaking colour theorists do tell us that colours can symbolise a range of things and are characterised by popular meanings. I have found that there are some excellent colour meaning charts such as the one below (for the colour green) on an excellent Art Therapy Blog. The link is featured below the chart.
http://www.arttherapyblog.com/resources/color-meanings-symbolism-charts/#.VtVs0pyLTcs
Green Has An Irish Connection
Back in March 2015 I designed an arrangement with the title “An Irish Connection” to exhibit in my flower club’s competition. In it I used nearly all green flowers and foliage aside from some white pieris. “Bells of Ireland” flowers were used to ‘connect’ three floral groupings which varied in height above a gold circular pot filled with moss. Curled green Midellino canes represented shamrocks at each level and green “Shamrock” chrysanthemums as well as button “Kermit” chrysanthemums were also a part of this design. The Bells of Ireland created wonderful ‘movement’ throughout the design which won me a first placing in the competition.
Bells of Ireland Moluccella laevis, is a perennial evergreen or in cold climates an annual, used as a fragrant ornamental plant. It can grow in mediterranean, subtropic or temperate climates. Leaves coloured green are a round shape and are arranged in circular tufts around tall spiked stems. Tiny white flowers form in the centre of the round leaves.
Despite the common name, this plant from the mint family (Lamiaceae) is not from Ireland – The Emerald Isle, but is native to western Asia, around Turkey, Syria and the Caucasus.
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