viburnum spring bouquet
This viburnum spring bouquet really stands out with the hot pink contrasting against the bright lime green of the orchids.
Viburnum is actually a shrub - not a flower grown on it's own stalk. It is very water loving and will wilt easily if you don't provide a constant water source. It is wonderful used as a mass flower to fill in bridal bouquets and centerpieces.
The laterals are soft stemmed and grown off a main woody branch, so you must wire and give additional support if you plan to use it in bridal bouquets.
First cut the lateral off the main branch as close to the trunk as possible. Remove the leaves if you don't wish for them to be a part of your design.
Gently insert a 22 Gauge wire up the stem, in among the tiny clusters of viburnum blooms.
Bend the top of the wire into a hairpin hook, slide down and catch the hook in among the laterals of the blooms.
Tape with florist's tape down the entire stem, beginning at the top right under the flower clusters. Stretch and pull the tape as you wind it around the stem, causing the tape to stick to itself.
Do NOT tape over the cut end of the flower. You don't want to restrict the ability of the flower to draw water up it's stem.
For additional support, I generally attach a Cowee pick. This is a slender shaft of green wood with a wire attached to one end. It swells once in the wet foam, causing it to stay tightly in place.
I've used viburnum in this wedding bouquet for this purpose. It's light green color contrasts beautifully with the hot pinks of the roses and gerbera daisies, plus enhances the cool green of the cymbidium orchids. It's snowball shape rather reminds me of a miniature version of hydrangeas.
This is a rather large bridal bouquet and the bride did not desire any greenery to be used. So mass flowers are helpful in hiding the mechanics of the design. The soft head of viburnum tucks in nicely against the underside of the other focal flowers.
You can see from a top view that this flower works nicely, filling in large spaces quickly, hiding the other stems, wooden picks and Oasis foam in the bouquet holder.
I space it out, tucking it here and their among the other blooms.
You may want to vary the depth a little, adding interest to the bouquet. Be sure the cut end of the viburnum stem reaches the Oasis, since this flower wilts quickly without a water source.
I've used six stems of Viburnum, clustered around the center focal flowers of Cymbidium orchids. Don't feel that you have to "perfectly space" everything. A little asymmetrical look is nice in a bridal bouquet design.
