Mother’s Day
It’s Mother’s Day in the UK and to celebrate, we’re gathering for afternoon tea at the home of our eldest daughter.
I set out with my bucket and secateurs to forage for whatever I can find, to create hand-tied posies to celebrate the joy of motherhood and brighten the tea table.
It’s too early in the year to pick from the cutting garden but the ivy hedge is a generous giver and there are daffodils aplenty. I am richly rewarded with arching stems of budding willow, delicately blossomed wild cherry and twisted willow twigs gathered after the last storms. These create an airy framework for the daffodils and scented narcissi and to finish the look, variegated, trailing ivy and a few anemones make an elegant mix, to brighten the tea table.
My flower arranging skills are limited but have developed along with my cutting garden and having an abundance of flowers, at certain times of the year, has provided me with the materials to practise and the desire to learn. My plan after all is to supply you with beautiful bouquets brimming with interest.
Growing flowers has sparked my curiosity and opened a door into floral design, so I turn to my flower heroes for inspiration.
Georgie Newbery of Common Farm Flowers creates generous bouquets and I follow her lead and use twigs or small branches to create a structure to support the flowers, making the use of floral foam unnecessary.
Joseph Massie has a wonderful Masterclass on mechanics using natural materials and
Philippa Craddock creates large scale installations with such ease and grace, she makes it all look so doable. Maybe one day ……
Creating a pretty bouquet is about balancing the star of the show with the supporting act. Large blooms enhanced with smaller ones and foliage to create texture and depth, making it interesting.
A bit like society really. With so much emphasis on diversity and inclusion in the workplace, I relate it back to the flowers in front of me. How a blend of different varieties of flowers – large and small, straight and curved, different colours – light and dark, bright and muted and different elements introduced by the foliage – bold and wispy, dense and loose, all make the whole so much more interesting.
The thing with foliage is, there’s never enough. If you’re planning a garden, plant loads and plant early. Have a word with your nurseryman to discuss shape and form and most important, right plant, right place.
My favourites:
- Spirea, with its delicate arching branches and mini white flowers, would make a beautiful bridal bouquet all on its own
- Viburnum tinus, dark glossy leaves with clusters of small flowers in pink and white, add density
- Clematis, lovely long tendrils that reach out and pull you into the arrangement
- Grasses like panicum frosted explosion and briza maxima add whimsy and movement