Floral-foam free flower arrangements at St Paul’s Napier
Photo from Helen Morgan.
In line with their commitment to being an eco church, St Paul’s Presbyterian Church in Napier have recently made a commitment to making their flower arranging more eco-friendly. Eco Church team member Helen McClymont explains the importance of flowers at St Paul’s: “Flower arrangements play an important role in beautifying and welcoming people to the church. St Paul’s usually has a beautiful arrangement in the foyer, and two large arrangements in the church sanctuary. They are a talking point, and a reminder of God's creation, and the four seasons.”
Floral arrangements have long been an important expression in many churches, but in recent years, there has been an increase in using materials and techniques that contribute to waste, such as floral foam, plastic packaging, and chemically treated plants. Knowing that floral foam bricks take time to decompose, the florists from St Paul’s Presbyterian in Napier were keen to look at alternatives. Led by eco-florist and church member Kerin Greville, St Paul’s has returned to using natural products and old fashion netting with their floral arrangements instead of the green floral foam - and they’re keen to encourage other churches to do the same. Kerin says: “I’ve been working with Marian (one of our flower arrangers) to invite local churches to come to a workshop on eco-friendly church flower arranging. We’re going to show people the mechanics we’ve set up in the St Paul's vases and demonstrate a large oasis-free (floral-foam-free) arrangements.”
St Paul’s hope that this small step on their eco church journey will have a significant impact. As Helen comments, “Small changes to our everyday activities can remind us of the story of the mustard seed in Matthew 13 - the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown, it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.”
Floral foam facts
Floral foam is a single-use plastic made from phenol-formaldehyde.
It is non-biodegradable and can break into microplastics.