Reference
Master chart: what to do ahead vs. day-of
Every task in the course, sorted by how early it can be done. Filter by timing or search. Print it and tape it to the cool-room door.
| Task | Timing | Detail | Module |
|---|---|---|---|
| Build chicken wire domes for every bowl and compote | Months ahead | Fold edges in, 2–3 layers, sized to rise 1 in above the rim. Store nested in a bin, labeled by vessel. | 3 |
| Cut liners, fill weight bags, label every outer vessel | Months ahead | Painted and PVC vessels are never the water container. Weight for wind. | 3 |
| Water-test every painted vessel with a liner for 48 h | Months ahead | On the dining table, then carried to the car and back. | 3 |
| Putty pin frogs into their bowls | Months ahead | Dry vessel; twist a quarter turn. | 3 |
| Build faux and dried pieces: aisle meadow inserts, grass planter inners, station bases, bar garland | Months ahead | Moss over all mechanics; hair spray anything that sheds; store upright and covered. Photograph outdoors at 4:30 p.m. | 6 |
| Dry a batch of antique hydrangea for station pieces | Weeks ahead | Cut at the papery stage, 2 in of water allowed to evaporate, dark room, 1–2 weeks. A few weeks before the event, and a test batch during practice. | 2 |
| Write recipe cards and station index cards | Weeks ahead | Per piece type, with the sample photo. Counts come from the dress rehearsal. | 7 |
| Order flowers | 6–8 weeks ahead | Online bulk for Wednesday T-3 delivery; farm orders confirmed in writing; florist add-on if available. | 7 |
| Buy consumables: holding solution, quick dip, Crowning Glory, tubes, tape, wire, towels, bags | Weeks ahead | Kit them into build, setup, personal-flowers and strike kits. | 8 |
| Cut ribbon, count pins, label personal-flowers boxes by name | Weeks ahead | Into the personal-flowers kit. | 4 |
| Label crates by destination; print layout photos and the move map | 2 weeks ahead | "Run 1–5," "Bar," "Cigar," "Charcuterie," "Aisle," "Cocktail." Two copies of the map. | 8 |
| Confirm helpers, movers, strike crew with dates and times | 2 weeks ahead | Run sheet to everyone. | 8 |
| Clear and chill the fridges; remove all produce | T-5 / T-4 | 36–40°F. Ethylene from fruit ruins personal flowers. | 2 |
| Set up the processing station and the cool room | T-5 / T-4 | Scrubbed buckets with holding solution pre-mixed; labels; towels; snips. | 2 |
| Buy hardy foliage locally if not shipped | T-5 to T-3 | Eucalyptus, olive, bay last 1–3 weeks conditioned. | 2 |
| Receive and process shipped flowers | T-3 | Unbox within 15 min; strip, cut, dip, holding solution, cool and dark 12+ h. Roses and lisianthus to a warmer spot to open. | 2 |
| Cut the first wave of garden material (hydrangea: alum, deep water) | T-3 | Early morning, mature heads, into water in the garden, strip, alum, deep water. | 2 |
| Cut the second wave of garden material | T-2 dawn | Second wave; spreads bucket load. | 2 |
| Build hardy station pieces (bar, buffet, welcome, escort) | T-2 | Hydrangea, foliage, grasses hold 3+ days. Crate and cool. | 5 |
| Fill water tubes; bunch and label fresh stems for any faux-and-fresh hybrids | T-2 | Tubes stand in a bucket so caps stay wet. Do not insert into the hybrids yet. | 3, 6 |
| Make fresh garland (if any) | T-2 | Hardy greens, paddle wire, misted, bagged, cool. | 6 |
| Pre-fill bud vases with solution in their crates | T-2 or T-1 | To 1 in below the rim. | 5 |
| Farm pickup (dahlias, grasses) | T-2 | Dahlias last 3–5 days; T-2 is the latest safe day to condition them. | 7 |
| Cut the last wave of garden material | T-1 dawn | Third wave; alum; 2+ hours in deep water before building. | 2 |
| Production line: low centerpieces | T-1 morning | Three people, sample on display, index cards at stations, crate and cool as finished. | 5 |
| Bud vases | T-1 afternoon | Scrap bucket plus airy stems; one helper; 1–3 stems each. | 5 |
| Hand-tied bouquets (if making any) | T-1 afternoon | Bind, trim, stems bare, in 2–3 in of water, cold, tented. No ribbon. | 4 |
| Boutonnieres, corsages, crowns | T-1 evening | Crowning Glory, dry, damp-towel box, fridge, 24 h max. | 4 |
| Inspect every bucket and crate; top up; mist hydrangea; change cloudy water | T-1 evening | Then stop working. | 8 |
| Ribbon wrap bouquets | Morning | Re-cut, dry stems, wrap, pin, back in water until hand-off. | 4 |
| Pull personal flowers from the fridge | 1 h before pinning | Inspect, re-tape, deliver to the getting-ready location in the box. | 4 |
| Insert fresh stems into any hybrids | Morning | Tubed stems through the moss; mist. | 6 |
| Tape grids (if any vessel uses one) | Build morning | Dry glass only. | 3 |
| Final top-up of every vessel; load last-placed first | Morning | Floor of the vehicle, AC on, no stops. | 8 |
| Setup: tables, stations, then ceremony pieces last | Venue access to 1 p.m. | Crew works from photos; you walk once and leave. | 8 |
| Cake flowers to the baker in a labeled hydration box | Per baker's schedule | Food-safe stems only, taped and in picks. | 5 |
| Water top-ups at 3:30 and 6:00 | Named helper | Watering can and spare bucket handed over. | 8 |
| Ceremony-to-reception moves | After ceremony, named movers | Ceremony pieces to their reception positions from the photo map; bouquet into its vase. | 6 |
| Strike | Next morning | Compost, save dried heads, rinse, bin the mechanics, leave nothing. | 8 |
The three sentences to remember
Mechanics, faux and dried are done months ahead. Flowers arrive T-3 and the hardy pieces are built T-2. Everything fresh that people will look at closely is built T-1, and the day-of is only ribbon, tubes, water and placement.