Rose Parade

What happens

The Tournament of Roses has sent a parade down Colorado Boulevard in Pasadena, California, on New Year's Day since 1890. The rule that makes it special is simple: every visible surface of a float must be covered with flowers or other plant material, such as seeds, bark and leaves. Volunteers glue on the dry material first and add the fresh roses, each in its own water vial, in the last days of December. When 1 January falls on a Sunday the parade moves to 2 January.

The flowers

RoseTens of thousands on a single float, each stem in its own vial of water.ChrysanthemumPetals are pulled apart and glued on to make broad areas of colour.OrchidUsed for fine detail on the most elaborate floats.CarnationCarnations, a hard-wearing flower for covering large surfaces.