Flowers and fruits can create delicious compositions; this one has a tropical flavor.

Floral design, text and photography by Nita Robertson, AIFD, CFD

Fresh fruits and/or vegetables always add great textural interest, form and color to floral designs. This analogous-hued arrangement features a fresh pineapple and yellow dragon fruits, which add dramatic textures and a tropical vibe, but experiment with a variety of produce to create specific aesthetics for whatever theme, occasion or holiday you are designing. Ensure that the size and weight of the chosen produce items are appropriately proportional to the flowers and the volume of the finished design. As an additional design element, leave sections of the OASIS® Midnight Floral Foam Maxlife exposed, if you choose.

STEP BY STEP

Step 1

Soak one and one-third bricks of “black” floral foam in flower nutrient solution until fully saturated. Place the full brick in the center of a 12-inch-long clear glass rectangle vase. Next cut the one-third brick in half, and place the two pieces into the container, on both sides of the full brick, to create a snug and secure fit.

step 1

Step 2

Insert four 6-inch wood picks approximately 2 inches into the bottom of a fresh pineapple.

step 2

Step 3

Position the pineapple atop the floral foam, slightly off-center, with the wood picks piercing into the floral foam.

step 3

Step 4

Arrange Magnolia leaves around the side edges of the container, alternately positioning them so that the green fronts of some leaves and the brown suede-like backs of other leaves face upward or forward.

step 4

Step 5

Arrange hybrid tea roses at varying lengths around the base of pineapple, on the left side, to create a curved line of roses that extends from the front to the back of the container.

add roses

Step 6

Insert a 6-inch wood pick into the bottom of each of two yellow dragon fruits.

insert wood pick into fruit

Step 7

Arrange the two yellow dragon fruits on the left side of the arrangement, grouping the pair.

add fruit to design

Step 8

Arrange a few stems of ‘Green Trick’ Dianthus throughout the base of the design where needed to cover the floral foam, as well as several stems of bells-of-Ireland, to create height and dynamic curving lines. Finally, arrange rattan sticks, artfully formed, to incorporate additional curving lines, dimension and color.

Materials

BOTANICALS

• Rosa spp. (hybrid tea rose)

• Dianthus barbatus ‘Green Trick’ (hybrid nonflowering sweet William)

• Moluccella laevis (bells of-Ireland, shellflower, molucca balm)

• Magnolia grandiflora, leaves (bull bay, Southern Magnolia)

• Ananas comosus (pineapple)

• Selenicereus megalanthus/Hylocereus megalanthus (yellow dragon fruit, pitahaya, pitaya)

• Calamus rotang, sticks (rattan cane)

Photo: 

HARD GOODS

• Clear glass rectangle vase (12” x 4” x 4”)

• OASIS® Midnight Floral Foam Maxlife

• Wood picks (6”)