Preface
Principles of Floral Design: An Illustrated Guide has been designed for a new generation of
students who want to explore career opportunities in fl oral design or simply want to learn
the basics to use fl oral design as an outlet for their creativity. With hundreds of full-color
illustrations, this text covers topics essential for the beginning designer and clearly conveys
the theory and practice of fl oral design to guide students on their way to creating beautiful
arrangements of their own.
The authors wrote Principles of Floral Design to meet the need for a new textbook that
is well-illustrated, practical, and technically accurate. Moreover, the authors recognized
the need for new designers to be thoroughly informed on the basics of every aspect of the
industry. The textbook was also written with a key goal to support the American Institute
of Floral Designers’ (AIFD) initiative to engage a younger audience of potential fl oral
designers.
Dozens of Step-by-Step photo sequences have been created for this text by horticulture
instructor Janet Gallagher, AIFD. These illustrated procedures are both an effective teaching
and learning tool, and form the cornerstone of our highly visual approach. These sequences
allow fl oral design students to learn by doing, creating fl oral arrangements using commonly
available, low-cost materials.
Special care has been taken to introduce topics in Principles of Floral Design in a logical,
building-block fashion using simple language. Chapter 1
discusses the basis of fl oral design and the careers people fi nd
in, and supporting, this industry. Chapter 2 is a brief history
of fl oral design, revealing how societies have used fl owers
from ancient times to the modern era.
Chapters 3 to 5 provide additional foundational
knowledge. The material covered includes everything
from tools and containers, plant structure and functions, to
postharvest practices. Chapters 6 and 7 introduce and explain
the principles and elements that are basic to not only fl oral
design, but design in general.
Chapters 8 and 9 provide the background needed to
select fl owers and foliage with confi dence and with artistic
ends in mind. These chapters also include full-color glossaries
containing hundreds of images of cut fl owers and cut foliage
used in fl oral design. Students participating in FFA Career
Development Events (CDE) fl oriculture competitions will fi nd
these glossaries to be an excellent study aid when preparing
for plant and fl ower identifi cation tests.
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