Mother’s Day Flower Tips: The Best Buds to Buy

Mothers, like flowers, come in various sizes, shapes and colours. And honouring “mom”—a category that includes grandmothers, stepmothers, mothers-in-law and friends as close as a mother—seems now a universal celebration. But no matter the history or local tradition, be it card, gift or breakfast in bed, the bottom line for a celebration seems the same.

“It’s all about keeping it personal and sentimental,” says Jeff Leatham, Artistic Director of the Four Seasons Hotel George V Paris, who invariably sets the lobby abloom whatever the occasion. “Maybe stay simple for Mom,” he advises. “A single spectacular magnolia blossom or small cluster of fragrant gardenias . . . this is, after all, a day to say ‘thank you’ with something special.”

For Mother’s Day at the George V, Leatham fills the public spaces mostly with purple and yellow-hued blooms—“energetic and happy colours,” he calls them. He also drapes dozens of vanda orchids over the first floor.

Other eye-catching bloomers sure to gladden the hearts of mothers everywhere include proteas, lilacs, ranunculus, anthuriums and other species with particularly spectacular outlines like eremuris, lycoris or big blowsy hydrangeas.

Bloom selecting and combining is often a personal joy. But it’s wise, too, to consider both room colour and table size where your arrangement may ultimately be placed. A bedroom dresser has less space than a living room coffee table, while a white kitchen will be a simpler backdrop than a wallpapered dining room.

Internet flower-ordering is easy. But for serious do-it-yourselfers, nothing beats wandering through florists, selecting blooms that personally appeal, and browsing antique shops for a quirky container to present them in—and not necessarily in that order.

If you are going to present your flowers in person, take time to recut the stems at an angle, fill the container with slightly warm water, and add a packet of preservative that florists routinely stock.

Now suppose you must admit to mixed feelings—let’s say, for example, about your mother-in-law. You still want to give her something, but what?

“Save the really expensive stems for someone you really care for,” says Leatham. “And for those others, maybe best stick with a less costly, seasonal plant.”