I am bidding farewell to a flower from my Blanchetiana Bromeliad that has served me well. It opened at the end of November, I enjoyed if for a couple of weeks, then used part of it to create a wreath for Christmas. On Saturday, I cut the rest to use as part of a talk I gave about Bromeliads in the Garden.
The wreath is still on my door and has dried to a nice brown, I am still mulling whether to get rid of it
The frond in the arrangement is from a Chinese Fan Palm (Livingstonia chinensis) seedling that popped up between me and my neighbor. It gives a really tropical vibe to the area, so I left it. I figure I will long gone before it reaches full size (60 feet!) Odd for winter in South Florida, it has been raining since yesterday afternoon. The vase holds about half of the frond, I went out in the pouring rain with Loppers in search of a bold bit of foliage to contrast with the Blanchetiana flower (at least 3 feet tall). Upon lopping the frond, I spied a wasp nest in the other half. For whatever reason, the wasps were not bothered by me and I left the other half of the frond where I found it, ensuring no homeless wasps and hoping for beneficial wasps. I cut the frond in half again – one quarter is hanging over the edge and the rest is in the vase upright.
Farewell, fine Flower.
The Shrub Queen 
That’s a great bit of repurposing. I love that wreath.
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Thanks Christina. Reuse,recycle, repurpose, right? Hope you are dentally happier.
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I really love that wreath. I am lucky to get one flower stalk off a bromeliad.
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Thanks, I think you are a few hundred miles too far north..come on down.
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Lovely, Queen.
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Thank you, not Bromeliad Flower.
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Ha. I put in a comma…but you are lovely, too.
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Yet another comma fault in my life. My English 101 teacher threatened to flunk me if I made another comma fault – I stuck to semicolons.
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Since we grow most bromeliads as houseplants, your bounty of blooms is a thrill to northern eyes. Love the wreath and your arrangement is stunning. Glad you had good luck with the wasps!
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Thank you , Peter. The Bromeliad flowers continue to amaze me. LOved your vase today. The google blogs I don’t quite get.
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Loved the way you found ways of using the bromeliad to the max……
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thank you, Noelle. I think I squeezed the life out of it.
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Great title! Well, your plants just keep on giving and you very cleverly harness their exuberance – thank you for sharing it all with us too!
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You’ve certainly had your money’s worth out of that bromeliad, how enterprising. I love the wreath. I can’t imagine having palm trees popping up in the garden, how wonderful. The title made me chuckle.
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Thanks, Liz. Errant palms are kind of a drag. Probably like oak seedlings in your garden, hard to pull out. I leave a few around to cut for vases.
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I’m always impressed by those bromeliad flowers, especially as I’ve never seen flowers like that on my plants or anyone else’s here. Are you saying farewell to the plant entirely or just the last of the flowers for this season?
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I wish you could see the flowers in real life, they are huge, I probably cut off half to make the wreath. Not saying farewell to the plant, just the flower.
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That flower has served you well! The red/yellow bracts reminding me of colored rice hulls and they really stand out well against the green frond.
Glad you discovered the wasps before they discovered you. 😉
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Thanks, Eliza. They are about twice the size of rice hulls and losing their color. I think the wasps must not be aggressive, I see them around and they look scary, but haven’t bothered me.
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The wreath looks lovely and has surely made the most of the bromeliad flower. I wonder how long you could keep it and if it would start to disintegrate. I have had a dried hops wreath for about ten years now… it’s a bit dusty but still looks like new!
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Thanks, well, the wreath has shrunk a bit from drying and is flaking, so I am not sure…
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