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DESIGN |
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In the same way as Nature varies her arrangement of petals in flowers, so can we vary our use of flowers, not only for many purposes, but in diverse ways for each purpose. It is the effect gained that matters, and not the material used or the method adopted in arriving at that effect.
The more beautiful the integral parts of a floral arrangement, the easier it is to achieve a pleasing effect, but good arrangement of poorer material can often surpass less artistic handling of perfect specimen blooms. This is the real test of a floral artist Design is the basis of all beauty in floral art, and so each arrangement can be called "formal", if you will. Whether the artist realizes it or not, he or she has some preconceived plan for each floral effect attempted. In bowls or table decorations one frequently sees the "pudding-basin" or "grave-mound" effect. Though stilted and unimaginative, they can be very beautiful, especially if done with mechanical precision but without too much solidity. Lighter and less symmetrical arrangements give more scope for individuality, but need more skill in both conception and execution. Balance is essential, but balance and symmetry are not synonymous terms. Almost all flowers are grown for their beauty either in our gardens or for our homes; roses can fulfil all our requirements in either sphere. Any beautiful rose is desirable, and the main factors contributing to its beauty are colour, freshness, freedom from damage, size, perfume, erect carriage, and pleasing form. Staleness and extensive damage rule any bloom out of consideration. Form without freshness and its accompanying sheen can be almost repulsive. Freshness and colour, including white, can make attractive a bloom of poor form. Chateau de Clos Vougeot, Christopher Stone, Brazier, Contrast, McGredy's Sunset (Plate 59), Mme Edouard Herriot, and many others are outstandingly beautiful but are not specimen-bloom types. A bowl of any one of them is much more attractive than one of blooms of a heavier type such as Mrs Charles Lamplough, Malar Ros (Plate 39), or even the more commonly used Dame Edith Helen (Plate 13). Beautiful as our loose varieties are, it is inconceivable that any hybridist would not be proud to raise a Mme Henri Guil-lot, fitoile de Hollande, McGredy's Sunset, Guinde, or Con-desa de Sastago with more spiral form. Roses are beautiful in every phase of their bloom from the time the sepals separate and show us a mere line of colour until the petals fall. Spiral types are at their greatest beauty when half or three-quarters open, but they are handsome even as full-blown blooms. If it were not that we know of the more beautiful stage of their development, we would, undoubtedly, grow them for their beauty in this stage and not refer to them as full-blown, implying that they are not worthy of any further admiration. Full-blown roses have most perfume, and it is always worth while leaving them in a room until the last possible moment-long after fresh blooms have been arranged and set in place. |
