The flower is Alstroemeria (Common names: alstroemeria, Peruvian lily, Inca lily). This is one of the longest lasting cut flowers I have used in arrangements. It has been over 11 days now and they still look fresh! This is the same flower as picture at Olive Barn in the beautiful large slanted pitcher vase. These flowers are perfect for that display. I love the slanted pitcher and at our last party – it was a hit! Now everyone wants one.

Okay, now back to the flowers. Alstroemeria stems can be 2 to 3 feet long. They branch into four to six short pedicels; each holding two to four flower buds. Beautiful flowers with some speckles and colors include yellow, apricot, orange, salmon, pink, red, mauve, lavender, purple, cream, white and bi-colors. Whether you want one single color bunch or want to mix it up – these look spectacular. Alstroemeria typically last one to two weeks as cut flowers. Change water daily to keep it fresh and trim the bottoms of each stem periodically to allow better uptake of water.

Where to find these cut flowers? Most florists and grocery stores. Our Kroger in Houston had a large display of these during the past two weeks starting at $3.99 a bunch. What a great deal.

viva bene! (live well in Italian)