Fresh Choices BY KATIE VINCENT For designers who have worked with alstroemeria for decades, the


specialty varieties are a reminder that even familiar flowers can continue to evolve. Joyce Mason-Monheim, AAF, AIFD, AzMF, PFCI, an award-winning


freelance designer and educator in Tucson, Arizona, remembers when alstroemeria first arrived on the U.S. market in the early 1980s. “I first used it in my little sister’s wedding,” recalls Mason-Monheim,


the 2014 recipient of the Tommy Bright Award and the 2015 winner of the Sylvia Cup Design Competition. “The only way I could remember the name was to associate it with ‘I’ll still marry you.’” Today, she enjoys watching breeders reinvent a flower designers use


every day. “These new varieties of alstroemeria offer floral designers a fresh


option for adding texture, definition and focal interest to arrangements,” Mason-Monheim says. “With Astronova and Fashionista, with their fuller petal count, each bloom presents a more defined shape, allowing it to stand out clearly within a design.” She also sees Florinca and Charmelia as practical alternatives to


familiar wedding flowers. Their versatility and exceptional vase life make them strong substitutes for spray roses, Sweet William, freesia, tulips and even anemones when designers want blooms that combine structure, softness and reliable design impact.


Katie Vincent is the senior contributing editor of Floral Management.


‘WHITE PEARLS’ FLORINCA Könst


‘PINK PARADISO’ FLORINCA Könst


CHARMELIA Royal Van Zanten


20 FLORAL MANAGEMENT | September/October 2026 | WWW.SAFNOW.ORG


‘MARSCARPONE’ FLORINCA Könst


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