Valentine’s Day and red roses go hand in hand – or at least, that’s what we’ve been told. But if you’re looking for flowers that are actually in season in the UK in February, the classic bouquet of red roses just isn’t it.
Most supermarket and high street bouquets come from far-flung places like Kenya and South America, clocking up huge air miles before they even land in your hands.
So, what should a seasonal Valentine’s bouquet look like? And what are the best options if you want flowers that are both beautiful and genuinely sustainable? I asked British flower farmers and florists from across the UK to share their thoughts – and their alternatives to imported blooms.
Choose seasonal British flowers for your Spring Wedding
It’s British Flowers Week 2024 and I am hoping to inspire you throughout this week to choose seasonal British flowers for your wedding – whatever the season (yes, even Winter!).
I’ll be doing a feature on each season, starting today with Spring Weddings. For the purpose of this feature, Spring is consider March, April and May.
All of the wedding bouquets and floral arrangements you see created from British flowers. What’s apparent to me is just how diverse a seasonal Spring wedding bouquet can look, it’s not just got to be pastel shades.
Don’t forget to check out the Wedding Flowers category of our eco wedding directory to find our recommended suppliers.
Why should you choose seasonal British spring wedding flowers?
Tread lightly on the planet – flowers are grown mainly outdoors without need for additional light and heat; no chemicals needed to extend the flowers life once cut; and the flower farmers care and enrich the soil and land they grow on.
Reduce flower miles – flowers grown in the UK travel much shorter distances than those coming from abroad by boat or plane, some coming from as far as South America, Africa and Asia.
Character and charm – British flower farmers grow small quantities of lots of different varieties, and sometimes that aren’t uniformly straight, but this gives interest and uniqueness to the arrangements they create.
Buy local – support your local economy and community!
Bring the outdoors in – seasonal flowers really capture a moment in the British seasonal year and for a wedding I think that’s pretty special.
Because you’re a flower lover – this is about a love for flowers that look AND smell divine, something you will struggle to find in the commercial flower supply chain.
Important things to remember about seasonal British spring wedding flowers
Each of the bouquets and arrangements featured comes from a flower farmer or florist from all over the UK. It’s important to remember that different places will have different flowers available in season – what’s growing in Cornwall in spring will be different to what’s growing in Scotland.
There are also seasonal variations year to year depending on the weather. When choosing British flowers you need to release some of your expectations and be open to going with whatever is blooming best when you get married.
This photoshoot is inspired by an eco luxe elopement wedding held against the stunning backdrop of River Cottage. The photoshoot team wanted to embrace as much as possible the ethos of being eco whilst staying in harmony with the wedding venue. It also features a number of our TNWC Recommended Suppliers – you’ll find all the details at the bottom of the post.
As Laura, photographer at Freeformimage Photography, told us, “A wedding a River Cottage will always inspire and enchant.”
Today we are looking at our Favourite Natural Seasonal Weddings in the sixth part of our Real Wedding Favourites series. You can find all the previous posts here or individual links at the bottom of this post – they are full of wedding inspiration!
We like to champion seasonal weddings so it’s been fun looking back through our archives for some spectacular seasonal weddings to share. There are so many we could have chosen, but we’ve chosen six of our favourites to feature here. You’ll notice we haven’t featured any winter weddings in this post as we haven’t really featured any yet.
Caroline and Gareth’s spring wedding on their farm holds a soft spot for me because they got married at the end of May, just like I did. This time of year is one of my favourites, and their wedding captures spring in the countryside, with cow parsley and a lovely palette of pastels pinks and purples.
They used seasonal flowers for the bouquets, aisle decorations, and I love the little pots of cowslips displaying the table names – all named after cows as they live on a working dairy farm. The whole feel of their wedding is so reflective of an English spring, making it my favourite spring wedding that we’ve featured.
Charlie’s favourite spring wedding is Caroline and Gareth’s spring wedding on their farm (part one and part two). Photography by Milestones Photography.
This spring photoshoot is full of natural organic wedding inspiration with hints of peach, pale blue and copper. The team were inspired by vintage reclamation and the organic and natural colours and textures of oxidised copper. From the exquisite handpainted botanical cakes to the vintage wedding dresses (the rose pink one!) and touches of foraged blossom, this photoshoot is brimming with inspiration.
I have no doubt that today’s bluebell wood wedding inspiration shoot will absolutely blow you away. It certainly had me Googling the nearest bluebell wood to dance among. And you’ll be pleased to know that this stunning location could be the magical setting for your big day.
Beth and Robert’s spring Devon farm wedding is overflowing with many of my wedding “favourites”. Favourites such as…getting married in May, spring wildflowers, and yurts. Captured by our friend Jennie Hill Photography, this down-to-earth wedding is a real family affair, with a sprinkling of handmade details and pretty touches.
Although the wedding was held at the family farm in Devon, it is dotted with elements that share the couples love of Scotland. As we sit here in March with hints of warmer weather and spring flowers starting to bloom, I’m certain this spring Devon farm wedding is going to get you dreaming of spring.
This week’s modern spring woodland wedding is incredibly beautiful. There are mismatched chairs under waxed scaffold-board tables, gold-dipped feathers, vintage candlestick holders and garlands of greenery. Every single element of this wedding is carefully planned yet natural and organic. It’s a strong contender for my favourite Real Wedding so far (and it’s the final one of 2016) and I just love that they did it all themselves.
We first met Chloe and Sam when the gorgeous couple featured in this rainy romantic Cornish wedding shoot back in March. I think we all knew then that their wedding would be a beauty and it certainly hasn’t disappointed.
Bride Chloe tells us more about their modern spring woodland wedding…
I don’t think I will ever, ever tire of a flower crown, a bold statement I know but if you take a look at today’s beautiful bohemian hellebore wedding inspiration and the to-die-for spring flower crown I think you would agree that regardless of fashion trends they are pretty timeless.
Today’s inspiration shoot was lovingly curated by Beamsley Blooms and shot by Phase 2 Photography to showcase the possibilities of using seasonal British flowers for Spring brides and grooms, offering a stunning alternative to the more traditional Spring associated blooms. Clare from Phase 2 Photography explains, “The aim of the shoot was to let the pure, natural beauty of the flowers speak for themselves and give brides an idea of what can be achieved with these stunning flowers.”
Susanne from Beamsley Blooms goes on to give us a little more information about the inspiration behind the shoot for us…
Today’s wedding is just making me long for those lush spring days when the English countryside is covered in cow parsley and buttercups. Hanna and Guy were inspired by childhood storybook’s and fairytales, with fun details dotted throughout their wedding, which took place in a beautiful family garden.
We adore this kind of wedding, with its down-to-earth feel, involvement by family and friends, and those magical moments – in this case a marching band leading the bride and groom through a field of cow parsley (see below). This wedding was beautifully captured by our friend Joanna Ornowska of Images for Life, one of our TNWC Recommended Suppliers. Over to Hanna to tell you more about her whimsical storybook garden wedding…
A back garden wedding inspired by childhood stories
I liked the idea of having a wedding that was as tailored to our personalities and values as possible, and so the idea of using a venue that was licensed for civil ceremonies and had already hosted countless big days was immediately dismissed. Instead, we decided to have a humanist blessing in Guy’s mum’s glorious two-acre back garden, which is somewhat incongruously hidden away behind a suburban bungalow in rural Cambridgeshire.
We’re both passionate about traditional children’s stories and so we chose to follow a loose ‘storybook’ theme, transforming the garden into a magical fairytale land that we jokingly called ‘Ermine Island’.
Charlie
