Hydrangea Alternatives

JenniferC2010

Hydrangea (real and silk) are out of my budget. I'm looking for alternatives for under $2 a stem (real preferred). My other flowers will be roses, carnations and baby's breath.  What are some options?

Catwoman708

If you want a flower that has a "cluster" of blooms on one stem, you might try alstromerias.  They are abundant, come in a lot of different colors, last well out of water, and are inexpensive.  To get the effct you're going for might want to trim off most of the pointy leaves. 

 

Also, a flower called "stock" can look much like a mini hydrangea when the blooms are fully opened, but you have to cut off the pointy tips to get a more rounded shape. They're kind of cone-shaped, similar to a snapdragon, but have a more delicate, romantic/old fashioned, almost droopy look.  They come mostly in whites, ivory/yellowish, pinks and purples:

 

Snapdragons:

 

Catwoman708

Have you looked at buying in bulk from Sam's or Costco?

Or, I don't know if this is an option or not for you, but if you're getting married at a church, ask them if you can get the flowers through them.  O

Our church has a flower guild, that makes the fresh altar arrangements.  Church members donate money for the altar flowers (which is a tax deductible donation), and the church buys them at a discount from a local wholesale flower market, or Sam's or Costco.  I've done flowers for several weddings, and it's always been under $300, for WP flowers, altar flowers, and simple centerpieces.

JenniferC2010

Thank you for the suggestions. I'm buying bulk flowers for the rest of the wedding but hydrangeas are almost 7 bux a stem and silk flowers at 50% off are 3.50. That just seems insane for a budget wedding.

I've seen carnations for .80 a stem, roses for under 1 dollar. I'll look into the flowers suggested.

Sue-n-Kevin

Not sure if you've checked this website Jennifer, but it was recommended on some post a while ago:

www.californiaflowergrowers.com

Their prices per stem for hydrangeas is much less, $2.35 per stem:

http://californiaflowergrowers.com/product_details.php?pid=88

Their main site has a lot of other flowers you could consider.

Good luck.