Flowers Under $10

Ordering flowers online is expensive. Even discount flower delivery websites tack on enough fees to drive up the price of a $19.99 flower arrangement to well over $35. Online flower delivery is convenient, and as with any convenience purchase you end up paying more for the privilege.

Buying flowers or ordering a flower delivery from your local flower shop is usually much cheaper than ordering flowers for delivery online. The biggest way you save when ordering from a retail flower shop is avoiding the middle man cost tacked on to every online flower order. You rarely have to spend more for flower delivery than the price you’re quoted for the flowers you’re sending.

Here are some other ways to find flowers under $10 at your local flower shop. Saving on flower delivery is easy when you deal with your friendly neighborhood florist.

Roses Under $10

Gifts of roses are a traditional way to say I Love You. There are roses for sending to a lover, roses for friends, and arrangements of roses that are perfect for Mother’s Day and anniversary gifts. Believe it or not, there are roses for under $10.

The cheapest roses you can find are miniature rose bushes. Your local florist can point you toward the perfect miniature rose bush for the occasion. Though a gift of a rose bush is not the traditional single-stem rose presentation or bouquet of roses that your lover or friend may be expecting, miniature rose bushes make a unique gift of love. Miniature roses are inexpensive, as little as $5 or $6 per miniature bush.

Miniature rose bushes are anywhere from six inches to two feet tall and come in all varieties and colors. Because miniature roses are a specialty item, your neighborhood florist may only have a few varieties to choose from, but if you have time to wait for a shipment, you can probably order any kind of miniature rose bush that the florist’s wholesaler has access to.

Discount Flowers

Many florists keep inexpensive flowers around for customers looking to deliver flowers at a lower cost. Walk into a flower shop and let the florist know you don’t have much to spend and he or she will be happy to direct you toward their less expensive flowers.

Often, single stems of flowers are available for much less than $10. You can pick and choose from your florist’s discounted flower stems to make an inexpensive arrangement of your own. A simple gift of a few single stem flowers will brighten the gift recipient’s day as much as a more expensive arrangement, and often a presentation of a single flower is far more romantic than a big boisterous presentation of a bouquet of roses.

The least expensive flowers at retail shops tend to be single stems. If you’re not shopping during February (when prices go up for Valentine’s Day) you can usually find roses around $2 per stem. Hydrangeas are another beautiful and relatively inexpensive flower, around $5 or $6 for a single stem which contains a large number of small but colorful blossoms on one stem. Gerbera daisies, mini Calla lilies, and various carnation varieties are also less expensive but still beautiful flowers.

Buy Flowers From a Wholesaler

If you’re lucky, there’s a flower wholesaler in your town. Buying from a wholesaler offers huge discounts on flower and even pre-fabricated arrangements, but you have to buy in bulk.

One year at Christmas, I made up my mind to send gifts of flowers to my entire Christmas gift list. People aren’t expecting flowers at Christmas, so it was a nice surprise. I bought boxes of different flowers from an online wholesaler and made my own simple arrangements. People who live nearby got hand-made arrangements in nice vases that I also picked up at the wholesaler for a discount. People in faraway towns got the flowers in a box–I made them tabletop arrangements for their Christmas dinner or New Year’s celebration.

Flower wholesaler’s prices vary, but here are some examples from the wholesaler in my hometown:

• 8 mixed mini Calla lily bouquets for $99
• 10 bunches of pink daisies for $89
• 1 wedding rose pack for $100 (includes 25 roses, 3 bunches of filler flowers, 1 bunch of tree fern)

Not everyone has a flower wholesaler in their area, so ordering from an online flower wholesaler is your only option. Generally, the prices of online floral wholesalers is higher than wholesalers with retail storefronts, but you still get great deals on bulk flowers.

Order Unusual Flowers

The next time you’re considering a $40 or $50 gift of roses, consider looking for rose alternatives that cost much less and leave as good of an impression.

Florists in my area are big on what are called desert roses–these are actually relatives of the plumeria plant, and not related to roses, though they look similar. Desert roses are available in many colors, and since they thrive on little water and lots of sun, are perfect gifts for people who aren’t very good with flowers. My florist sells bunches of desert roses for around $10.

Another alternative to the more expensive red roses are what are known as rainbow rose bouquets. These are made up of a small number of red roses filled in with other colors of rose. Red roses are more expensive around Valentine’s Day and other holidays because they’re in high demand. When red roses are in demand, other colors of rose are cheaper. That’s why a bouquet of rainbow roses is much more affordable than a bouquet of all red roses. My florist sometimes hooks me up with a half-size bouquet of rainbow roses for $10-$12.

Buy Flowers in Season

In America, we’re used to getting produce and flowers that we want regardless of the growing season. This is thanks in part to expanded farming in South America (why do you think we can get tomatoes year-round?) and improved storage and warehousing techniques here in the States. But all that specialized growing and storage costs money.

Buying flowers when they’re in season makes them cheaper. The easiest way to buy in season flowers is to send wildflowers. Wildflowers are beautiful and they’re always in season. Otherwise, ask your florist what’s currently in season and you can take your pick of cheaper flowers.