New This Easter:We've had so much fun lately with the new cube arrangements, we decided to give Easter a cubular look. Who says you must use a basket for your Easter gift? The cubes work just fine, and, again, it's something different.To see examples of these arrangements, go to www.harkinsneworleans.com and click on Easter.More Historical Notes:As alluded to earlier, 1601 Magazine has had a checkered past to say the least. It's miraculous that it was a jewel of a restoration when we moved in late in 1984. Not long before it had been at a real low point as Miss Pauline's Bar with a flophouse upstairs. It changed hands in an odd way. A guy discovered one day that he had unlimited overdraft privileges at one of our major banks. No matter how big a check he wrote, it sailed right through. He thus decided to go on a buying spree picking up many pieces of property, 1601 Magazine included.Eventually the bank caught on and took possession of the properties. 1601 was in such bad shape the bank loaned the next owner the funds to do a complete restoration. It was a major project. Some engineers said it couldn't be done. Steel cables were attached around the building to hold it together, but, even so, it almost fell forward one afternoon and Magazine Street had to be closed.My wife, who does First Amendment law, won't let me give the gory details of the next few years. Let's just say 1601 again became the albatross of the bank. The bank desperately wanted to unload its (dare we say?) toxic assets,and good fortune smiled on us. While we protested the negatives of the building, negotiations brought the price lower and lower. Chief among the problem was major infestation of termites. I shall never forget the day long time friend and attorney Ron Purcell and I met with the bankers upstairs. It was soon after swarming season, and when the men stood up from the couch they were covered with termite wings. Ever the gentleman, Ron, who is now chief of staff of City Council, made quite a production of dusting the wings from the black suits.So a deal was cut, and, with payments less than we had paid in rent, the loan was paid off in six years. And 1601 has been our "Home, Sweet Home" ever since.
Flower Care and Handling
- IRIS –
Let’s talk about its origins… or it’s just mythology?
From ancient times the stately Iris stood as a symbol of power and majesty. This flower was dedicated to Juno. Interestingly, it is thought that it was the origin of the scepter. The Egyptians placed it on the brow of the Sphinx and on the scepter of their kings, the three leaves of its blossoms typifying faith, wisdom and courage.
The Iris was named after the Goddess of the rainbow because of its many colors. It also was the favorite For the Moslems and they took it to Spain after the conquest in the 8th century. Among the duties of the Greek Goddess Iris was that of leading the souls of dead women to the Elysian Fields. In token of that faith the Greeks planted purple Iris on the graves of women. Iris was the messenger of the gods and the personification of the Rainbow. After all, it should be no surprise that the kings of France selected Bearded Iris (Iris Germanic) as their emblem, the fleur-de-lis.
Now let’s focus on the features and benefits:
The Iris show three petals called “The standards”, these are upright. And three outer petal-like sepals called “the falls” because they droop down and away from the rest of the flower.
Irises are coming in countless species and varieties; however we can classify the Iris in two big families: the Rhizome Irises and the Bulbous Irises.
The Rhizome Irises are thickened stems that grow horizontally, either underground of partially underground producing roots along its lower surface.
The bulbous Irises emerge from the basal plate of the bulb when it is actively growing. The purpose of the bulb structure is to act as a storage organ.
Irises have a vase life of about a week. Commercially, Dutch irises are available year-round and come in a range of colors, including various blues, purples, and yellows as well as white.
Care and Handling:
Be sure and keep the vase topped off with water. Dutch iris doesn’t like to run low on moisture. For best results, keep the floral arrangements out of direct sun as this can damage Dutch iris blooms. The stems will also last longer if they are kept in cooler, draft-free rooms.
Don't Forget....
We don't want to inundate you with newsletters this month, so we want to mention, here, that Administrative Professional's Week is coming up in just a couple of weeks. April 20th through the 24th. Don't forget!!!
We hope you all enjoy the wonderful spring weather we've been having lately, the gardens are looking great! We also hope you'll be trying your hand at making the cube arrangements we showcased in our Design 101 section of last month's newsletter. We'll be showing you a few more tricks in the months to come, so stay tuned.
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