Flower District/Market in NYC?

Hi Ladies,

Does anyone know about this? Can anyone just go there and buy flowers inexpensively? Where is it? How much for a dozen roses? The reason I ask is regarding a pic that SoontobeMrsZ put up before:
http://www.liweddings.com/chat/p/1335837_1.jpg

I was thinking of doing something simple like this on my own for my engagement party centerpieces...but definitely don't want to spend a fortune on the blooms...

Any other suggestions would be great too:):)

TIA!

The flower district is what is now Chelsea. The flower district is getting smaller, but above 23rd street to 34th street is where there are still several shops. I think from 5th west.

There are all kinds of delis in NYC that sell beautiful flowers for a great price.

Most of the shops in the flower district require you to be a wholesaler from what i understand but a few of them will allow you to buy direct for cash. I think finding out which ones is more trial and error than anything as it seems to change depending on the way the wind is blowing. Also you have to get up really early and soak the flowers for a day beforehand, etc..

An alternative (and what i plan to do for my friends shower I think) is use the deli near my office (which is not far from the flower district and im sure they get their flowers from there). They will order anything I want from the flower district and they are charging me $5 for a dozen roses!

Stef,

Soak the flowers the day before? Can you explain this to me? Oh my this is a lot more complicated than I thought!!!

So where is this deli? I am in the city too...I also know there is a 'flower mart' on Fulton Street that sells a dozen for $7 or so....

I pretty much work in the flower district. A lot of it is whole sale.
if you walk on 28th street between 7th & 6th there ar a lot of stores- a few a retial. Most of them have floral suplies & plants, not flowers.
I have purchased a bonzai, & grape vine wreaths fromthere. Usualy people take the flowres frmt eh trash & sell them on teh street, near the subway stations! I aev bought some there when I just wanted some in my living room for no reason.

Walmart's website used to have bulk roses, but now it is different, and they just have arangements.

From what i understand, flowers from a wholesaler come with thorns and leaves, etc.. You have to do all the work yourself and then need to soak them in water to get the buds to bloom.

My friends shower is not until October so that might be too late for your party.

The deli im using is on 24th and Park..but there are several others in the area that have a very large flower selection that you could work a deal with.

I lived right in the heart of it for a year! (I miss it... ) One of the best streets to go down in 28th street between 6th & 7th Ave. You will run into some people who only sell to wholsalers but there are some who are really frindly to the public. Make sure you let them know exactly what you want & that it's for a WEDDING. A lot of the vendors sell their older stock to the public at cheaper prices. That might be great for your house but not for your wedding.

As for prep - it's alot. It used to take me about 30 min after I brought 2 dozen roses home. You have to strip the thorns, pluck the outer layr of petals, give them a fresh cut on a bias while under water & then soak them so they open up. They typically sell them as VERY tight buds.

Just be prepared that the stores are not floral shops. They are usually a little dirty and always messy with leaves & cuttings everywhere. Also, they do want you to know what you want - they are not there to sell you on their products.

Sory, I know it was long but it's not as easy to shop there as one might think. I've heard some of the online growers are easier because they need a few hours in water & are already plucked & thorned.

If you live on LI, you can go to Cosco and get 2 dozen roses for $10-15. I think if you call ahead and tell them what you want they will make sure that they have them for you for pick up.

I am sure BJ's also has flowers.

I am going to order from this website for the engagement party and attempt to arrange them myself. I bought cobalt blue vases and going to fill them with white roses and blue hydrangea and anything else that is blue and white.

http://www.onlinewholesaleflowers.com/

Also when you say soak them how do you go about doing that? The whole flower goes into water. Put it in a bucket? Sorry I have no clue here!

Kim

Kim,

I am with you on that one...how do you soak?? For how long? Imagine you buy all those flowers and then they get ruined!

You soak them (the stems) in big buckets. Like what you would see them in at the deli or in a florist.

Keep in mind that there are different grades of flowers. I dont remember the names but there is a certain grade that good florist use for weddings and special occassions that tend to be bigger/longer lasting/more fragrant, etc.. The ones you can buy at BJs or Costcos and many delis (the delis tend to get the leftovers so its hit or miss in that case) are not going to be the highest grade.

Not to say that you can do an beautiful arrangement with the lower grade flowers but there will probably be a significant difference in the final product because of the flower grade.

I cant afford to go to a florist to decorate my friends shower...so its either that or no flowers at all. But you may want to do a few test runs if this is for a wedding since the flowers will have to last all day long.