Gerbera - Flower of the Month - April

Gerbera in the April Flower Agenda

In April, we mark Easter and the arrival of new life: the perfect occasion for a colourful flower. With its cheerful appearance, the gerbera is the ideal candidate to make celebrations extra special this month. Consumers can read all about this versatile flower at Funnyhowflowersdothat.co.uk. 
 

Origin of the gerbera
The gerbera is an unscented flower which is part of the Asteraceae family. It originates from South Africa, Asia, South America and Tasmania. Some 900 million gerberas a year are produced in the Netherlands with 600 different varieties of colour, shape and size. She’s a very popular lady!

The gerbera’s colours and shapes 
If you think of gerberas, you think of colour! The gerbera’s basic colours are white, red, yellow, pink, purple, orange and green. The flower is also available bicoloured, multi-coloured, and in various colours derived from basic primary colours. The flower’s beautiful heart can be black or green. In other words: there’s plenty of choice when it comes to colour! The shape is always cheerful: single and double flowered, pom-pom and spider shapes. Have you noticed that when a child draws a flower, it’s always in the shape of a gerbera?

Caring for gerberas 

• Trim the stem diagonally with a sharp knife.
• Use a clean (glass) vase and fill it with approx. 7 cm of tap water at room temperature. Use cut flower food for a mixed bouquet.
• Ensure the right ambient temperature (max. 20 °C).
• Do not place gerberas in a draught, in full sun or near central heating.
• Regularly top the vase up with tap water. 

Symbolism of the gerbera 
The gerbera has no symbolic meaning, but why should that matter? With its colourful and sunny appearance it instantly makes your home a cheerful and welcoming place. Its presence means: you make everything more beautiful!

A few questions we get asked a lot about these gorgeous flowers

Question 1: Gerberas come in all sorts of colours, but how many different colours are there actually?

Gosh, there are so many you can't even count them… Gerberas really do come in hundreds of different colours. They can be single-coloured, but also multi-coloured. The gerbera's heart is also colourful; it can be green or black. The most popular colours are orange, yellow, red, purple, salmon, white, pink and bi-coloured.

Question 2: Gerberas can get quite large. What makes a gerbera 'standard' or 'mini'?

First some background: gerberas are part of the plant family Asteraceae and come in three types. These are: large-flowered varieties (standard gerbera), small-flowered varieties (mini gerbera) and specialties. If a gerbera has a diameter of between 6 and 8 cm, it is classified as a mini gerbera. A standard gerbera ranges between 9.5 and 13cm. There are also gerberas with a diameter of some 15cm, incidentally!

Question 3: My gerberas’ heads are drooping a bit. What can I do?

Let us give you the golden tip for perking them up!

• Start by cleaning your vase thoroughly. Use bleach for this.
• Put fresh water in the vase, but be careful: too much water is not good, since the stems can then start to rot.
• Cut another piece off the bottom of the stems and then return the gerberas to the vase. They will be radiant again soon!

Question 4: Sometimes you see a box of gerberas stored upside down at the florist. Why is that?

Gerberas love light. If the light is coming from the right, they will grow to the right. If the light is coming from the left then… well, you can guess the rest. The end result is bent stems. Upside down in the box the gerberas are unable to grow towards the light. In this way your florist is preventing the gerbera stems from growing crooked. Gerberas with bent stems are difficult to use in bouquets or floral work.

Question 5: With which other flowers do gerberas combine well?

Gerberas like to flirt with Fritillaria meleagris (also known as snake's head fritillary), asparagus, lilacs and roses. Another good combination is gerberas with freesias, chrysanthemums and Chaenomeles japonica. Need more inspiration? Ask your florist for advice on which flowers to use to make your own bouquet, or ask them to create an arrangement for you.

Question 6: In the past you saw gerberas with a wire in the stem. Why do you hardly see that nowadays?

That answer is easy: there’s no need any more! The wire was used to strengthen the stem. Nowadays the quality of gerberas is so good that this is no longer necessary. The gerbera remains nice and straight on its own.

Question 7: Gerberas are often used in bouquets. But can I also use them on their own, and if so how?

It's no surprise that gerberas are often used in bouquets. Their colour and shape simply means that they work well in conjunction with other flowers. But the gerbera is also very beautiful on its own. Try putting together a number of bottles, each containing a single gerbera .... guaranteed to provide a colourful spectacle!

Question 8: Are there gerbera plants?

There certainly are! There are gerbera plants for use both indoors and outdoors. You can even enjoy gerberas in the winter, thanks to the hardy garden gerbera.

Question 9: Can they be used for wedding flowers?

Absolutely!! They are our second most popular flowers (after roses). Many florists won't use them, there is a little bit of snobbery when it comes to these flowers, but we will!! And more importantly we love them!!

If you are looking for a bright and bold flower for your bouquet then gerberas are definitely a great choice. Ask us for more details or book a consultation to go through your options.

With thanks to Flower Council of Holland and Funny How Flowers Do That for content.

Sandra x