Should florists use floral foam?

Is floral foam biodegradeable?

I mean, is it “really that bad” for the environment that you should join the #nofloralfoam movement?…

The truth is, it’s complicated! Florists say, “but Oasis is biodegradable!”….but there are some very specific conditions required for foam to biodegrade in a landfill, and most landfills don’t meet those environmental conditions!….and even the company itself doesn’t purport to be “eco-friendly now” so much as they’re letting us know they’re “still working on it”….

I started my wedding season on June 1st and while I was cleaning out my studio in prep for the big start, I found a partial box of floral foam and I thought to myself, “What am I going to do with this?….” So I hopped into my Facebook group to share my thoughts on how to handle the floral foam in my possession!

Click to watch:

Here are a few foam free designs from the weekend that I shared on Instagram (make sure to scroll the images!):

 

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Made this #nofloralfoam semicircle for this afternoon’s ceremony at @trappfamilylodge The hills are alive and this beautiful backdrop just got a foam free boost. Thanks to @passionflowersue for her insights on mechanics ??❤️ #floralpreneur #weddingflorist #floraldesign #realflowerbusiness

A post shared by Alison Ellis (@realflowerbusiness) on Jun 1, 2019 at 2:12pm PDT

And here’s a look as we were breaking down the next day (scroll again!):

 

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The morning after… I got a few questions on the #nofloralfoam ceremony piece from yesterday so here’s another look at it about 24 hours later!…we used no floral foam, but chicken wire and bricks are the main mechanics here!….we water tubed the hydrangea and spirea….the only things things that wilted were the hydrangea and spirea!….larkspur, snapdragons and cremones still look good even without a water source. (Though it rained last night and while we were breaking down!) ☔️ These were 2 pieces put together and as you can tell they’re lightweight! ? You’ll see the back of the arrangement and it’s morning-after condition as ya flip through! ? We covered the bricks with moss and tied them onto the wire with bind wire. #nofloralfoam #floralpreneur #weddingflorist #floraldesign #realflowerbusiness

A post shared by Alison Ellis (@realflowerbusiness) on Jun 2, 2019 at 12:38pm PDT

The moral of the story is simple: Do your best! Be mindful. Be eco-friendly as much as you can in your life AND in your business!

The floral industry is not “eco-friendly” as a general rule, but there’s nothing that says we shouldn’t try!

As always, keep doing beautiful work, floralpreneur®!

With love from me to you,

Alison

Learn more about Alison here!