Florist Helps Holidays Bloom : * Something Special extends wholesale prices throughout the week. Flowers are not arranged in bouquets or in containers.

Fresh flowers, a welcome addition to your home at any time of year, make an especially festive addition to holiday decor, and host esses always appreciate the guest who arrives with a fresh bouquet. Here’s the bargain way to buy fresh flowers without going to the Flower Mart in downtown Los Angeles at the crack of dawn.

For more than two years, Something Special has offered blossoms at wholesale prices on weekends only. But recently, they extended this bargain to throughout the week. Be aware that at these prices, the flowers are not arranged in a bouquet or in a container, but rather are wrapped in cellophane and generally contain a filler of some type, such as Monte Casino or Queen Anne’s lace.

With some flowers, of course, no filler is required. Tulips need none, are in season now and make a charming bouquet.

In grading tulips, there are three basic types, named by their place of origin: California, Holland and France. California tulips generally have the smallest head and the shortest stem (15 to 18 inches). France exports tulips that have the largest heads and the longest stem (24 to 36 inches). The Dutch tulip falls somewhere in the middle, with stems 18 to 24 inches, with generous, full heads.

Something Special has a bargain price on the Dutch tulips: $8.99 for 10 stems.

Comparison shopping shows that an equal number of Dutch tulips are being sold for from $12 to $20 and more at other florists around town. At the beginning of the season, which was about the first of the month, some florists were asking (and getting) $4 per blossom for the Dutch tulip.

Oh-so-exquisite Casablanca lilies, now selling for $15 to $20 per stem elsewhere, are $8.50 at Something Special. Irises and fragrant freesias are $1.25 per stem, instead of the $2.50 to $3 that many florists charge.

Always near the top of the list for gift giving are roses, and the smart shopper should know that they come in six stem lengths: short (12 inches maximum), medium, long, fancy, extra fancy and choice (36 to 40 inches long).

Forget choice. They are very expensive ($75 a dozen), and you would probably have to cut the stems to fit them into a vase.

Fancy is a good choice, with stems 22 to 26 inches long. At Something Special, a dozen fancy roses in any color is $12.99. But remember; you do the arranging yourself.

For competitive (not wholesale) prices, Something Special is also a full-service florist, with delivery every day.

Geri Cook’s Bargains column runs every Friday in Valley Life! Geri Cook can be heard from 9 to 10 a.m. Saturdays on KIEV 870-AM.

WHERE TO SHOP

What: Something Special.

Location: 14303 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks.

Hours: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays. (Closed Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.)

Cards: American Express, Carte Blanche, Diner’s, Discover, MasterCard, Visa.

Call: (818) 905-8664.