March 01 2025
J o y s o f a c u t t i n g g a r d e n…
Every winter I sit in my kitchen, drinking coffee (lots of it as I have two small children) planning and plotting what I am going to grow this year.
Some ideas are the same, year in, year out, such as; cosmos, dahlia’s and sweet peas. Then some years, thanks for my trusty notebook I check through my random notes and think where that new plant will find its new home.
Being a florist means a lot of my choices are governed by what I want to use in my work. However I love a cottage garden feel so I do grow lots of herbs, some vegetables and fruit. I love using fruit foliage in my arrangements as it smells wonderful and as someone who believes in using British wherever possible they’re always a great addition. I also think it adds a unique element to a wedding which couples love.
For me a garden needs to have lots of colours, heights and textures. It needs to be an overload of the senses and an escape. My garden is my paradise, it’s what led me to floristry. I’d love more time to grow but with a full household I am taking a step back and being mindful of my time. So my mission is to have a cutting patch which is fully functional and over flowing but not overwhelming.
Easier said than done as anyone who grows know Mother Nature can scupper ones plans with one late frost however, the aim is a variation of colour. On the list new to grow is; Ammi Majus, Snap dragons, Phlox, sweet Annie and amaranthus caudate’s. All flowers I use and have become slowly in love with. Mainly because of what I call their dance. I really love movement in a flower and in the height of summer our garden is filled with those types of flowers.
I wanted to write a blog post to encourage anyone reading this to get outside. Grow something this year that you will enjoy, cut and put in a vase or even eat! Anyone who attends knows how much I enjoy running one of my workshops and time and time again I have clients who say they don’t have a green finger or they’re not creative. This just isn’t true. Firstly, they’ve come which means there’s interest and secondly I truly believe everyone has a connection to nature. We hear time and time again that being with nature is not only beneficial to our mental health but also our physical health. So, even if it’s just one packet of seeds of something you like there really is nothing more fascinating than popping some seeds in compost and slowly watching this little seedling grow into something rather magical. Take tomatoes for instance or cosmos! Once cut they just keep coming back for more all summer long and if the weathers right through autumn.
Thanks for reading.
Charlotte x
