Caring for your Wildfire Waltz

Astilbe is a thirsty bloom that drinks quickly and wilts fast if the vase runs low, so check the water level daily and keep it topped up well above the lower stems. Anthurium prefers a clean, room-temperature drink and resents cold drafts, so set the arrangement away from air-conditioning vents and direct sun, both of which dull its glossy spathes. When you trim, cut the stems at an angle with a sharp blade rather than crushing them, and wipe the Anthurium spathes gently with a soft damp cloth if they lose their shine. Change the water fully every couple of days, as the Astilbe in particular clouds it faster than most stems.

A note on your specific blooms

  • Anthurium — Anthurium prefers warmth — keep it away from the cold and wipe the leaf gently.
  • Astilbe — Astilbe drinks heavily and wilts fast out of water, so keep the vase topped up to at least mid-stem and refresh it daily.

How long your flowers last

This pairing of Anthurium and Astilbe holds beautifully for roughly 5–7 days, with the two flowers ageing on quite different timelines. The feathery Astilbe plumes are the more delicate element and tend to soften and fade first, usually within 4–7 days, while the waxy Anthurium spathes are the long-distance performers, often staying crisp and sculptural for 2–3 weeks. That contrast is part of the arrangement's character: the Astilbe carries the early softness, the Anthurium keeps the architecture once the plumes have passed. If you keep just one habit, refresh the water every two days and trim a little from the stems each time, which is the single most reliable way to extend an Amicis arrangement.

The story behind these flowers

A closer look at the blooms gathered into this arrangement.

Anthurium

Origin

Rainforests of Colombia & Ecuador

Documented

By botanists in the 1870s

Fragrance

Virtually scentless

Symbolises

Hospitality, confidence & beauty

The anthurium's glossy, sculptural 'bloom' is in fact a modified leaf, with a poised tropical architecture few flowers can match. It lends Amicis designs a clean, modern edge — and one of the longest vase lives in the bouquet.

Astilbe

Origin

East Asia and North America

In European gardens since

Introduced from East Asia in the 1800s

Fragrance

Faint to almost scentless

Symbolises

Patience, devotion & dedication

Astilbe carries its tiny blooms in feathery plumes that rise like soft smoke from woodland shade, a texture prized by gardeners since it reached Europe from East Asia in the 1800s. In an Amicis arrangement it works as movement rather than focal point, lending air and a hazed, painterly softness around firmer roses and peonies.