About Bracty Beauties

Arrangement # 122

The month of November is very wet in this part of the world. As a result many types of flowering shrubs will not be in their best. Thus it is good to have a mixture of plants that do well in the rainy months as well as the hot and sunny periods when the rains are less frequent. One such species is the heliconias. Today I did not see any good blooms except those of the heliconias. Therefore I scouted for the parrot flowers ( heliconia psittacorum) and found two varieties. One close relative , the heliconia latispatha with its green tips exhibited herself very well and I thought why not? I had the sassy pink twist around the rest of the orange and yellow bracts and finally let the sassy pink terminal bract come out straight from the glass vase while the rest of the company followed in unison. To add more lustre and warmth to the display, I added the Red Ti ( cordyline terminalis) leaves which I rolled back to give a certain artistry to the show. "Wait", cried the the banana terminal bracts of which I had two varieties. One in pink and the other in deep purple. They too joined today's composition as added interest. It is a day of bright colours and hues despite the gloomy overcast of November. Thus the title of today's composition.....Bracty Beauties.