This is how I enjoyed its short but gorgeous bloom
It’s been a while since I last wrote about the 64th Annual Exhibition of our Ikebana International Seattle Chapter 19. Did the wisteria flowers last throughout the exhibition? The trick is to dip the cut stem in alcohol for a while. Did it work?
Well, not quite. It got unusually hot on that weekend. The air condition didn’t work in the venue somehow. I ended up making a different arrangement every day, using wisteria flowers.
On Friday morning I cut a curvy branch of wisteria and place it in a square container with wavy design. I liked the combination very much, and was hoping that the arrangement would last through Sunday.
On Saturday morning I cut out a long branch of wisteria and brought a matching long-neck container to the exhibition venue, just in case. Well, that just in case became the reality. The wisteria flowers of the previous arrangement wilted quickly over night. I had to replace it with my new arrangement.
On the final day, I ended up arranging a new one again. I had no more long branches of wisteria flowers. Short stems were all I had left. To counter act the shor and bulky wisteria flowers, I chose a longer branch of rhododendron and placed it on the opposite side.
The vase needed to be tall enough so that the wisteria flowers would touch the table surface. I chose this vintage bamboo container with lacqerware.
I learned that wisteria flowers, no matter how careful you treat them, have short lives once they bloom. Rather than trying to prolong them forcefully, why not enjoy the short but gorgeous peak to the full?
Thank you, wisteria, for your company. See you again next year!