The Dirt - August Issue

The 2010 Dos Gringos Autumn Collection of handcrafted Bouquets were created for the celebration of the fall season. The colors are warm and rich and each bouquet has a texture and story all its own.

No matter what part of the country you are in, seasonal changes are exciting. Change is good! Beyond fall leaves, beyond pumpkins and crisp air, it reminds most of us of time together inside warm and cozy surroundings, gathered around a fireplace, good food, good wine (or even better, tequila) and great friends.

Enjoy and Hasta Luego,
Jason Levin
Chief Gringo



Hot Apple Cider Bouquet
Mention hot apple cider and people smile! Add to that a bouquet by that name and you will double the pleasure. The uniquely Dos Gringos two-tone orange Sunsplash Sunflower is hot enough by itself but we’ve added rust Poms, Eucalyptus, field grasses and some rust foliage to round it out.






Moroccan Spice Bouquet
Moroccan Spice highlights the exotic colors of far away places. This bouquet ties in nicely with global elements in current home design trends. Deep black/purple ornamental grasses and greens are mixed with matching centered Sunflowers. Different indeed!






Wildflower Honey Bouquet
Sunsplash is one of the latest novelty cut sunflower varieties on the market in California and its’ golden honey color is the basis for this ensemble of California Wild Flowers, just picked from the fields. The French Marigolds further enhance this multi-branched bouquet.




Country Casual Bouquet
Country casual doesn’t just apply to jeans anymore! Flowers now too come in the incredibly popular style of relaxed, natural and color correct design. This rich collection features deep orange red novelty Asiatic Lilies, Rust Mums, Strawflowers and just the right mix of other country flowers to make you want to take it home!





Dusk Bouquet
Intense is what most people call this bouquet. Only Dos Gringos offers this variety of Sunflower, which at the time of printing was not named yet. Let’s just say it has a deep reddish purple center which we carried as a theme with the rest of the materials like purple baby blue Eucalyptus, purple Ruscus and some yellow Straw Flowers to lighten it up a bit.




Spicy Hot Bouquet
The elements in this outstanding combination of super long lasting floral materials are the ever-trendy Ornamental Peppers, red Ruscus, red Solidaster, and other spicy hot orange red flowers. Did I mention the orange red Sunflower? It is truly spicy hot, and good enough to serve with any Mexican dish…just don’t eat the peppers!

Gabriela Mercado, a Dos Gringos Team Member, and Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Sarah Radel, help unload about 5,000 Sunflowers off a truck a couple weeks back on July 21st at the Naval Hospital on Camp Pendleton. We donated the flowers to the hospital to give to patients, staff and visitors as a thank-you for their service.

See the North County Times Article

- JAMIE SCOTT LYTLE | jlytle@nctimes.com




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The Dirt - July Issue

Hola,

The Dirt for this month at DG is all about our new and improved www.dosgringos.com website. It’s been a fun three month process that I was personally involved in. As you may know one of our five core values is “constant improvement.” We try to get just a little bit better every day. When we decided to make our website better we wanted the highest intent of the new site to be educating our customers, clients, and the consumers about our flowers and about Dos Gringos. We have completely revamped the site to do just that.

New additions to the site that we have included are:

Sunflower 101’s, Care and Handling Information and Information on Cut Stages.




You can also find past issues of The Dirt (the page you are on now) on the site and take a tour of our flower factory. Lastly, we’ve created a brand new DG video which further explains how we make it our daily goal to bring smiles to millions.




Enjoy and Hasta Luego,

Jason Levin
Chief Gringo

June Gold Award Winners! Congratulations to Angeles and Eric!







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Cut Stages

Stage 1) Cut at this stage in the field to decrease petal damage. This is the first stage of the Sunflower, which we call "Tight."

- When received at this cut stage the most important action is to re-cut the Sunflower and put the flower in a vase/bucket that has at least 5 inches of fresh water.

- Takes approx. 2-3 days to go from Stage 1 to Stage 2.





Stage 2) This is the second stage of the Sunflower cut which we refer to as the "Opening Stage." Be prepared to have stems within the bunch open inconsistently.

- When received at this cut stage the most important action is to make sure the vase/bucket has fresh water (must be changed every 2 days) and is maintained at a consistent temperature (between 55º - 70º F).

- Takes approx. 2-3 days to go from Stage 2 to Stage 3.




Stage 3) Ideal Stage for Sunflowers as they should have a more uniform cup-stage appearance. This third stage is known as the "Blooming Stage."

- Make sure water has been replaced from initial uptake (Stage 2) and re-cut to accelerate opening stage.

- Takes approx. 5-7 days to go from Stage 3 to Stage 4.





Stage 4) This is the fourth and final stage of the Sunflower and is subsequently named the "Open Stage." Once it reaches the full blown state, petals will begin to fall off.

- When Sunflowers reach this stage, they should be kept in low to moderate temperature (55º - 70º F), so they last longer and age less quickly.

- Takes approx. 2-3 days before petals start falling off.

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In the Field

Here are some of the varieties of fresh Sunflowers we offer:

Care & Handling

1) Remove bottom leaves if present, recut stems under water and place into a fresh flower food solution or plain tap water. Or, place into a bleach solution (6-8 drops per quart).

2) Change water every 3 days for longevity and outward appearance.

3) Try to find an area in the house, office or room that is less then 80º F, otherwise Sunflowers will open too quickly (jeopardizing life span) and petals will begin to fall/wilt.

4) Customers receiving flowers in stage 3-4 under normal domestic conditions should expect vase life of 6-8 days.

In the Home

The Dirt - June Issue

Our booth at this month’s trade show formerly known as SuperFloral will be all about the half pallet.

One of our first innovations, this instant-impact display is a great example of listening to and collaborating with customers to meet a bottom-line business needs. Now 11 years old, the Dos Gringos half pallet still delivers on the promise of low cost, low labor and high impact. That’s 38,000 half pallet displays and 267 semi loads from the first shipment in 1999! It’s a great success story, and we hope you’ll join us in Booth #1925 to celebrate the spirit of creativity and teamwork that brought it to life.

This innovation works. In fact it works so well we decided to make a booth out of it. What better way to showcase the hard work and creativity that have gone into our patented half pallet than to make a booth out of the stuff? Walls, seating, display tables – all made of the material you know and love, the anchor that helps you show and sell the freshest Sunflowers, a host of California favorites and the fun and funky greens you’ll only find at Dos Gringos.

The pictures in this issue tell the story of our preparation for the International Floriculture Expo. We love this year’s theme, of course, because “Seed to Shelf” is what we’re all about. We’re excited to see you in person and to share the newest things we’re doing to bring you the freshest, longest-lasting flowers faster than anyone else out there. Come and see our fall 2010 line featuring several new bouquets and a half pallet display with brand new graphics. Get a preview of new Sunflowers under development. And catch up with team members Jason Levin, René Van Rems, Marco Rivera, Jenny Butterfass and Giustina Shaha.

Nos vemos en Florida!-









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