Graduation in New Jersey

Graduation in New Jersey: a bouquet for the stadium, a box for home

For Rutgers–New Brunswick and Rutgers Health, graduation in New Jersey means one shared commencement on a Sunday in mid-May at SHI Stadium in New Brunswick. That means two separate gifts are worth planning for: a small bouquet the graduate can actually hold through the day, and something else for the family table back home.

A bouquet to hold on the SHI Stadium field

At SHI Stadium, a graduate holds the diploma in one hand, so a compact, one-palm bouquet is easier to carry across the field and for the photographs that follow.

Lavender reads well against a dark gown. The 11 Lavender Spray Roses bouquet gathers several small heads on each stem into one hand-sized shape.

With a large family group waiting outside the stands, it's often easier to hand it over after the graduate leaves the field, rather than trying to find each other mid-ceremony.

Field-grown peonies in the Northeast open from late May into early June, so a ceremony on a Sunday in mid-May lands roughly a fortnight before the local crop is ready. Dutch growers cut peonies from late April, and those imported stems can still reach New Jersey in time for commencement if the order calls for peonies.

Where the real flower isn't an option, a peony-shaped rose is the usual stand-in: florists mostly reach for English roses bred by David Austin and similar varieties, whose outer petals fold into the same dense cup as a peony. The 15 Peony Lavender Roses bouquet takes that shape in the same lavender that works against a dark gown, while an actual cut peony holds for five to seven days once it's home in a vase.

Roses for the week, chrysanthemums for three

Once the ceremony is over, the bouquet goes from the stadium into a vase, where a rose lasts about a week and chrysanthemums or carnations closer to three.

In the US the chrysanthemum generally reads as a cheerful flower rather than a sombre one, which makes it an easy choice for a graduate's bouquet. Its leaves tend to yellow before the flower itself fades, so it helps to strip them off as they turn.

Either way, the care is the same: cut the stems at an angle and change the water every day or two.

Graduation flower delivery in New Jersey for the table at home

For relatives who can't be at the stadium, graduation in New Jersey still calls for something on the family table. A box or a flower basket stands on its own without a vase, which suits a table that's already set for a meal, and the 25 Mixed Roses in a Box is one such option. A balloon or something sweet can go alongside it with no extra trouble, and the card itself is free.

If the celebration is at a restaurant, we agree the time with the restaurant manager and bring the flowers for dessert or the toast.

JFLOO photographs the finished bouquet before the courier leaves, and most orders in New Jersey are handed over the same day they're placed. Without an address, the recipient's phone number is enough. Delivery is free in the centre, and other districts have a fixed price for each zone, with delivery terms and zones listed separately.