Caring for your Love Struck Centerpiece

Orchids drink slowly and dislike sudden change, so keep Desert Oasis in a cool spot away from direct sun, draughts, and the ethylene given off by ripening fruit. Their stems are slender and slightly fleshy, so cut them cleanly at an angle with a sharp blade rather than crushing them, and refresh the water before it clouds. A light mist over the petals every couple of days suits these blooms, since orchids take in moisture through the flower as well as the stem and respond well to gentle humidity. Handle the open blossoms as little as possible; they bruise where they are touched, and left undisturbed they will stay crisp and sculptural for the full life of the arrangement.

A note on your specific blooms

  • Orchid — Keep orchid stems in cool, clean water away from ripening fruit, whose ethylene gas makes the blooms drop early.

How long your flowers last

Built entirely from orchids, Desert Oasis is one of the longer-lasting arrangements in the Amicis collection, holding beautifully for 2–3 weeks in the right conditions. Because there is a single bloom type here, the display ages evenly rather than having one flower fade ahead of the rest; the lowest blossoms on each stem tend to soften first, while the upper buds open and carry the arrangement through its final week. Orchids are remarkably patient cut flowers, rewarding steady care over dramatic intervention. The single most useful habit is to top up with clean, room-temperature water every two days and trim a few millimetres from each stem at the same time, which keeps the channels open and the petals firm.

The story behind these flowers

A closer look at the blooms gathered into this arrangement.

Orchid

Origin

Tropical regions worldwide

Cultivated since

Prized in Asia for centuries; carried to Europe across the 18th and 19th centuries

Fragrance

Most cut varieties virtually scentless

Symbolises

Refinement, luxury & rare beauty

Among the largest plant families on earth, orchids took root across the tropics of Asia and the Americas, cultivated in Asia long before reaching the West. Victorian collectors then chased them across the globe, fuelling a famous European craze. Their arched stems and sculptural blooms bring quiet architecture to an arrangement, holding their form for weeks where softer flowers fade.