Black-Eyed Susans for Summer Weddings

January is seed sowing time for Rudbeckia or Black-Eyed Susan. This sunflower look-alike is quite easy to grow,

and will reward you with several months of golden yellow blooms that can really stand up to summer heat.

I grow them for the bride who wants truly garden-inspired designs that feature rich bold colors. My favorite variety is Indian Summer, but I also grow a green-eyed variety called Prairie Sun, (there's a few in the lower right corner of the picture above).

Black-Eyed Susan commands attention in mixed color bouquets such as the one above that also features Foxglove and Zinnias.

 And it also works well in a more analogous color palette as the one above that features golden Sunflowers, Spray Roses and Gerber Daisies.
Seeds can be ordered from Johnny's Selected Seeds.
This January batch should start blooming late May to early June. I will sow seeds again in March for blooms in mid- July. If you keep the flowers cut, plants should continue to bloom for about 2 1/2 to 3 months.

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Yellow for Springtime Weddings

There is nothing like the color yellow to brighten up your springtime wedding flowers!

Great flower choices for this rich saturated color are tulips, ranunculus and daffodils...

 And don't forget pansies! Yes, they have short stems, but they can be added at the last minute if given a separate water source. Small plants can be used for centerpiece designs- securely wrap the roots with some of the potting material in plastic wrap and tuck into the design.

These flowers will begin to make an appearance at Springwell Gardens starting in mid February through early April.You can go bold with oranges and hot pinks, or set them off against blues and whites. It's a color that can certainly brighten your special day!

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Summery Yellows for Sara and Christopher's mid July Wedding

If I could color the months, I would color July yellow. It's smack in the middle of summertime. Yellow like lemonade and fireflies and of course- lovely flowers.

Sara must have thought so too... Or maybe she chose yellow because it would look stunning against the royal blue of her bridesmaids' dresses.
We met in April and over the next few weeks exchanged emails about flower choices, and while some of the details for her flowers changed a little- the color never did!

 For her bridal bouquet, Sara wanted to mix in white with the yellow. She decided on white lisianthus and larkspur... And feverfew, if it was still blooming.  The whites played well against yellow spray roses, freesia and calla lilies, and yellow zinnias from the garden.

Bridesmaids carried bouquets that featured frothy clusters of bupleurum with yellow spray roses and Gerber daisies.

Boutonnieres for the men were twined wrapped Billy Balls,

And the mothers carried posies filled with white larkspur, lisianthus and white and yellow spray roses accented with fragrant leaves from mountain mint and scented geraniums.
Can't wait to see the incredible pictures I'm sure that Cole Gorman of Blest Photography has coming up!!!

Sara and Christopher, praying God's blessing as you begin your lives together as husband and wife....

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Blue Muscari and Yellow Daffodil Centerpiece for Spring

The muscari are in bloom now at Springwell Gardens. 

These charming blue flowers have a delightful "grape-like" fragrance and are so lovely for centerpiece and bouquet designs. Here they are featured with miniature daffodils called "Tete a tete", and purple and yellow face pansies.

 The first greens of the spring season include small leaves of lambs' ear, lime green Angelina sedum, Fairy rosebush sprigs and heuchera.

 The floating candles nestled among the floral elements in this wooden box complete this unique garden style centerpiece.

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Late Winter and Springtime Weddings and Daffodils

Daffodils are just perfect for February and March weddings in the South.

  In Raleigh, NC, you can spot some varieties of daffodils blooming as early as January. Ice Follies and February Gold usually make an appearance in February. 

 The picture above features Ice Follies and early trumpet daffodils picked last week just in time for a February snow picture. The picture below (from 2011) also features Ice Follies and early yellow trumpet daffodils with white hydrangea and yellow ranunculus.

March brings on many more daffodil and narcissus blooms. In my gardens I grow the orange cupped Barrett Browning, the cream colored White Lion, the fragrant double flowered Bridal Crown, and  the large trumpet King Alfred.

The bouquets above (from 2012) feature Paperwhite narcissi, Barrett Browning, and King Alfred daffodils. .
Good sources for daffodil and narcissi are Eden Brothers and John Scheepers. Bulbs should be purchased in the fall and planted in November through December.
Why grow your own??? Daffodils and other narcissi are very low maintenance and will come back year after year. You have a wide selection of flowers to choose from. And....
 for your anniversary in the years to come you will be able to enjoy your special flowers again and again!!!

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Daffodil and Pansy Bouquet for Winter and Spring

The daffodils have started blooming at Springwell Gardens. Just a scattering for now, but more are on the way.

So here's a bouquet that features Ice Follies Daffodils and an unnamed  yellow trumpet variety along with some beautiful purple and yellow pansies nestled in a white hydrangea.

These flowers are truly the harbingers of spring!!!!

They exude such a lovely fragrance, especially the pansies.

 Vase life for this bouquet is just a few days... just enough time for your wedding day!!!

So how can you have daffodils for your springtime (or winter in the South) wedding... I'll explore that in the next post.

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Sunny Yellows for Springtime Weddings

Yellow flowers are always cheery no matter what the season.

  From  soft creamy hues to deep rich golden shades, yellow  is a color that commands attention.
 Some favorite yellow flowers for springtime weddings are trumpet daffodils (narcissi), tulips and ranunculus. Below are some pictures of bouquets from last spring's garden beds.

Daffodils (Narcissi) just shout spring! They are absolutely gorgeous gathered as a bouquet of a single variety or mixed with other forms as this bouquet below of large yellow trumpet daffodils, dainty paperwhites and orange-cupped Barrett Browning.
Narcissi also look great combined with other flowers such as spirea, pussy willow and roses.

 Daffodils and other forms of narcissi are bulbs that are planted in the fall for springtime blooms. Some varieties will start blooming as early as mid January or February, other forms will bloom in March and April.Care should be taken when placing them together with other flowers in bouquets- be sure to cut the stems of narcissi, and let them condition separately in a container of water for eight-ten hours before mixing with other flowers.
Tulips come in several forms such as the classic single type or double (more petals), fringed, parrot (scalloped petals) and peony (an even fuller petal type). A favorite at Springwell Gardens is the double form called Monte Carlo.

 It's featured in the bouquet below with single white tulips and blue muscari (grape hyacinth)

and another bouquet white snap dragons and white ranunculus.

Ranunculus are flowers just chocked full of delicate petals. The yellow ranunculus and tulips flash against the different shades of pink and the chartreuse leaves of spirea in the design below.

New bouquets of yellow springtime flowers will be coming soon!

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Summer Flowers- Bright Corals and Yellows with a Touch of Blue

The warm hues of summer flowers are cranking up in the garden- There are two varieties of Black-eyed Susan- Indian Summers and Goldilocks, coral and red zinnias, and some late flushes of feverfew.
There are still lateral stems of foxglove and Ammi blooming as well, and a small crop of Mountain Mint. I thought this arrangement looked so cheery, but afterwards I found some Delphinium stems I had meant to include as well...
So here is the same design with punches of blue... it really changes it up a bit, don't you think?
Next year there will be more Mountain Mint. It's a plant that I have loved for years, but lost a few seasons ago. I was thrilled to find it last year at the Farmer's Market in Raleigh. The botanical name is Pycnanthemum spp. To read more about it go: Beautiful Wildlife Garden
I love this soft green filler! It looks beautiful in floral design work and smells wonderful too!

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Sunflowers for Katie and David's Wedding

Time... it has this funny habit of rushing and rushing and rushing by... Sometimes I wish I could stop it
or at least slow it down. Yesterdays add up, and before you know it babies grow up, and before you know it, little girls are all grown up and getting married...
I have known Katie all of her life. And now this sweet, bubbly little girl is a young MARRIED woman!!!
I considered it such a privilege to be asked to design the flowers for her and David's wedding day!
Summery flowers- golden yellow roses, yarrow, sunflowers and petite Viking mums were mixed with cream colored stock and splashes of white Queen Ann's Lace and feverfew for the bridesmaid and bridal bouquets.
Boutonnieres for the fathers were created with Viking mums- I love how they look just like mini sunflowers.
The comb for Katie's hair was embellished with white stock, yellow Babe spray roses, ivy and Viking mums.
The ceremony arrangements were also a cheery mix of yellow and white.

The finishing touch for Katie's bouquet was a lovely cascade of English ivy embellished with tendrils of Viking mums. Just loved the look on her face when she saw her flowers, and so thrilled she let me capture this shot of her holding her bouquet!
Praying God's blessing for David and you as you two begin your lives together as husband and wife!!!

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Yellow Poppies and Blue Nigella for Katie's Bridal Shower

In just three weeks, Katie will be getting married. It's hard to believe!

Another little girl that I have had the privilege of watching grow up into a beautiful young woman. And I am so happy for her as she gets ready for her special day.
so yesterday was her bridal shower...
And the perfect opportunity to put together this springtime centerpiece from the garden. While the color palette for her wedding will have bolder shades, I thought these softer hues would be lovely for her shower- silvery Lamb's Ear and Dusty Miller, Green Spice Heuchera, blue Love-in-a-Mist (Nigella), pale yellow poppies, yarrow, and ivory Foxglove.

And in a few more weeks it will be time to do the wedding flowers!

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Daffodil Love!

This has been quite the year for daffodils. The first blooms started in mid February (see February 27th post- They're Back).
And while the season is winding down because of the above normal temperatures this spring- there's still about a week to ten days left... maybe.
Some new additions to the daffodil collection included some old favorites: King Alfred (actually a look alike of the renown heirloom) that produced gigantic blooms this year, Barrett Browning- a lovely narcissus with white petals and a dainty orange cup, and a large double narcissus called White Lion, (more about that one later).
So here are some two very different daffodil bouquets for weddings in March or early April.
I just love this all yellow bouquet above!!! These King Alfred blooms were HUGE this year and looked stunning with the black and white striped ribbon.
The next bouquet featured King Alfred daffodils, Paperwhites, Bridal Crown narcissi and Barret Browning- the fragrance was heavenly.
Vase life for flowers in the narcissi family is about five days... the cooler the temperatures the longer these flowers will last in a vase and in the garden.

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