A quick note: It’s been challenging to balance sharing posts about coping with the COVID-19 pandemic and also posts that inspire you to try new things. We concepted, photographed, and wrote this post before the outbreak, but decided to share it today in order to help take your mind off things. I always want this blog to be a source of inspiration and information, so I really appreciate you continuing to follow and support Jojotastic during these uncertain times. — Joanna
One of my favorite things about working with Joanna on these floral DIYs is all the crazy ideas she comes up with. A few examples include the peonies overflowing from the window of a vintage BMW and the floral installation we hung from the light fixture in her dining room — both of which took tons of creative vision on her part and were easily two of my favorite floral projects ever. When Joanna shared her idea of a flower arrangement made entirely of spring vegetables, I was pretttty skeptical. I went for it anyways and it was so much fun… and also a creative and practical challenge that I enjoyed tackling. After a bit of trial and error, we were both really pleased with the results!
I initially contemplated using flowers in addition to the spring vegetables in this arrangement, but ultimately decided it would be better to stick with the veggies. Think of this centerpiece as a creative tribute to your springtime farmer’s market!
Since this was my first time making a vegetable arrangement, there was definitely a bit of trial and error involved. I had to fully start over after my first attempt to include carrots as a visual element inside the vase. Let’s just say… it didn’t quite look how I imagined it would. Sometimes that’s just what happens! Eventually, I focused on the leafy green vegetables for the shape and fullness of the arrangement, then accented it with different vegetables. And we scrapped the rainbow carrots, even though they were sooo pretty. The carrot tops made for beautiful foliage though, so we used them.
Learn How to Make a Centerpiece with Spring Vegetables and Foliage:
Materials
- Purple sprouting broccoli
- Lacinato kale
- Dandelion greens
- Green asparagus
- 2 bunches of red radishes
- Rainbow carrots (I didn’t end up using the carrots, but I did use the carrot foliage!)
Tools
- Clear glass cylinder vase
- lower pruners
- Flower pillow from Holly Chapple
- 12″ plant stakes
Directions
To start, prep each element. Cut of the foliage from the radishes and put a stake into each of them with the root on the opposite end of the stake. Remove the leafy parts of the kale from the part of the stem that would be below the lip of the vase. Just like a floral arrangement, any leaves left in the water will shorten the lifespan of the overall piece. Remove the carrot foliage from the carrots and set them aside. Next, clear the broccoli stems of foliage and flower growth. Finally, wash everything. Veggies often have dirt on them and the last thing you want is a dirty kale stem muddying up the water in your clear vase!
Once everything is prepped, place the flower pillow on the surface of the vase. The kale is the sturdiest and fullest ingredient, so I suggest using it to create the shape. Then, fill in the remaining space with carrot foliage, dandelion greens, and purple broccoli (which is so pretty!).
Much like the process with my standard floral designs, I used the greens to create a base and then began adding in my “flowers,” which in this case were the staked radishes, the asparagus, and more of the purple broccoli. I suggest strategically placing each of these veggies, trimming the stems and stakes so that they would land at different places in the arrangement. In some instances, I wanted the asparagus to be taller than it was, but since the stakes tend to split the asparagus stalks, I decided to just wedge them in the flower pillow and not worry about whether they were actually in the water since they hold up for days out of water. The same is true for most of the veggies we used, but the carrot foliage will start wilting if you don’t make sure it’s in the water. Just be aware!
After you’re happy with the number of spring vegetables in your arrangement, continue filling in with a few more greens to make sure all of the flower pillow was covered up.
I love the idea of creating a veggie arrangement for your kitchen since it just feels so fresh and perfect for spring time. Another idea: set up a Bloody Mary bar for your next weekend brunch! Simply remove the fresh produce you need from the arrangement and use in your drinks, including any of the ingredients we used, plus maybe celery, basil, jalapeños and lemons! Yummm.
As always, be sure to tag @jojotastic and @thestemmery on Instagram so we can see how our DIYs turn out for you! Joanna will be sharing them in her Instagram Stories, too. It’s always so fun to see how our tutorials are translated.
Looking for even more spring-inspired DIY ideas and tips? Try these:
- A Spring Nest Centerpiece for Mother’s Day
- A Modern Springtime Centerpiece with Kumquats & Quince
- A Simple, Statement-Making Lilac Bouquet
- How to Style a Simple Spring Tablescape
