MAKE IMPRESSIVE GIFTS WITH TROPICAL FLOWERS
Tropical flowers make an exciting change from the traditional floral gifts such as roses. These flowers are very beautiful and exotic and their colours vibrant, can really add a splash of colour to your room and life. They are impressive gifts for anniversaries, Mother’s day and the more famous occasion of Valentine’s Day.
Tropical flowers are found in almost all the rain forests region of the world and more specifically in South Asia, Central and South America and in islands of the Pacific Ocean and Hawaii. However with modern shipping methods they have come to be available world wide.
Tropical flowers make for exotic floral arrangement and can brighten up your life or an office. They are hardier flowers, having a longer shelf life if properly cared for. Most tropical flowers can last anywhere between 7 to 14 days if proper care is taken. In case the flowers have been out of water for a considerable length of time, submerge them in a tub of water for half an hour before you place them in a vase. The stem should be cut off a little – about an inch from the bottom at about 45deg. Angle so as to ensure that the plant will take in maximum amount of water.
The flower head of the Heliconia Red Caribaea which can grow to 20 inches and more is the largest tropical flower and also very colourful. Other Heliconias such as the Bihais, Ortutricas vary in length and the flowers are medium to large. The smaller blooms such as the pssitacorum, Guadalupe, the tropic fleur and sassy are often only about 3 to 5 inches. Gingers found in Hawaii are a species of exotic tropical flowers that seem to have originated from the Indo-Malaysia tropics. These flowers are in the shape of layered cones, footballs, or rose-like. The common colours are red and pinks, however, the Beehive Ginger is of a golden colour. Yet another tropical flower found in Hawaii and in parts of South Africa is the Protea. As cut flowers Protea will last a long time without any special preparation to the water – often two to three weeks by trimming off the end of the stem every few days when changing the water.
One of the most popular evergreen magnolias of the tropical region is the Magnolia Champaca. These tropical flowers bear a large number of small orange to yellow blooms over the entire period during the spring and summer months. It produces its flowers from short shoots along the main branches and not just at the ends.