Wedding Flowers for Less than $50: A Do-It-Yourself Project

Since eco-friendly is the theme these days, let's make some floral decorations for your wedding day. That said, free is also good, and these can be made for next to nothing. If you have a summer wedding you're not going to have wilting bouquets of expensive roses and exotic orchids dying right as you get to the church. The process of organizing flowers for such an occasion is a nightmare for most people, and transporting them to and from your venue can be an adventure all by itself. If your florist delivers, you won't need to worry they will be on time or get lost either...you know it does happen.

We're going to use Shasta Daisies. These little old fashioned gems are the perfect choice since the plants can tolerate heat, and they flower best right in the summer months. It will take a little work ahead of time, so a wedding which is planned for the summer of the following year would be great, if not you may need to make some compromises.

If you don't have Shasta daisies in your own yard, find a nearby home who does. They will be happy to help out, but maybe you can offer them a few dollars since you will need to ask them to allow their daisy bushes to keep growing wild after summer and not trim them back.

Propagating Your Daisies:

-In the middle month of winter, take some cuttings from these larger daisies bushes. By now they'll have craggy long arms sprawling out everywhere which will be top heavy with foliage. Reach all the way in toward the center of the plant and remove the branch from as close to the main stalk as possible. The longer they are the better. Lay them on the ground side by side and cut them to 2ft. 6in.lengths. Bundle them up and take them home.

Don't forget to pay your neighbor and clean up your mess!