Yellow Flowers

Okay, so I’m well aware that many people have an intense dislike of yellow flowers. I do understand this dislike but I think it stems from an historical poor use of yellow in flower arrangements and the fact that yellow was off trend for many years.

Not any more though as yellow is currently enjoying its moment in the sun and for the last few seasons has been on trend in both fashion and home furnishings. With the proliferation of dark walls in interiors and dark backgrounds in print design a pop of yellow can look fabulous.

Here are a few of my favourite seasonal yellow flowers for February. 

Mimosa

Witch hazel

Mimosa wreath

Gorse

Witch Hazel, mimosa and lilac

Autumnal florals, ferns and grasses

I thought I'd share this little arrangement that I gathered for the house last weekend. It's a gorgeous palette and contains everything I love about autumn; grasses, bronze and pink tinged foliage, horse chestnuts, poppy seed heads, sanguisorbia, browning ferns to name just a few. Mixed with a few pale pink chrysanthemums (yes there are some really beautiful ones) and a few appropriately coloured roses in mustard yellow and apricot; I think it's a really lovely combination.

I made the little footed teracotta vase on a pottery wheel and the colours co-ordinate beautifully with the embroidery I made back in 1991. Hand thrown, hand sewn,...! 

Autumn Heather Wreaths

Autumn wreaths are now incredibly popular and this week we've been making lots of gorgeous autumnal heather wreaths for orders. Our red and orange wreaths decorated with seasonal foliage, rose hips, physalis and seed heads are still popular but the demand for our pink, red and chocolate wreaths, inspired by the heather woods where I live in Midhurst, West Sussex, has been very high indeed. We've also been making some beautiful dried wreaths which will last throughout the year. I love making the dried wreaths and they look beautiful propped on the mantelpiece or hanging on doors around the house.

This will be the last week for our autumn wreaths as we've been working on our Christmas collection which we'll launch at Cowdray Farm Shop on Saturday 2nd December when they're holding their Christmas tasting day. 

If you'd like to order a wreath for collection or delivery do get in touch!

April Flowers and the Tasty Woodland Treats

What an amazingly sunny April we've had so far, the garden is in full bloom and the sun has been shining, although I hear that there may be some frost next week which I don't think we're prepared for!

I'm writing this whilst looking through the window into the garden and it's filled with lilac, clematis montana, apple blossom, viburnum opulus, bluebells, whitebells and unfurling ferns.

I live next door to the woods so the wild garlic which lines the path into the woods has also found its way into the garden and spread under a tree. It's in full flower and I've been looking at recipes for pickling the flower heads and making pesto from the leaves.

While I'm on the subject of food (for free) I've just passed a patch of wild stawberries in flower and the wild bilberries are now a gorgeous pink colour so it won't be long before the crop is ready. Living next to the woods and walking through them each day with the dogs is such a bonus!

It's so exciting to see the English bluebells all over the garden and the white bells are incredibly pretty with the unfurling bright green ferns catching the light.

The peonies are on the way soon......happy days indeed!

Whitebells and ferns

Apple blossom

Bluebells, whitebells and ferns

Unfurling ferns and bluebells

Wild garlic  

Whitebells and bluebells

Wild strawberries

Hellebore Heaven

Whether as a garden plant or a cut flower the hellebore is simply incredible. 

From Dec to April these little plants brighten up our gardens with the most exquisite flowers  often when few other plants are in flower.

Plant some today so that you'll have beautiful flowers next winter, you won't be dissapointed!

Magnolia Heaven

Who doesn't love be a magnolia tree in full bloom? 

The Magnolia in our garden is spectacular and makes my heart sing every day when I drive through the gate. 

Magnolia branches are sensational in a vase and I've been selling pink and white branches at Cowdray Farm Shop this week . They're not from my garden though as I couldn't bear to pick them!

Seasonal Spring Flowers for Cowdray Farm Shop

There are so many incredible, beautiful, seasonal, native flowers around in the Spring.

Keeping it strictly seasonal in floristry is so easy in the Springtime and we're absolutely spoilt for choice. 

Here are just a few of the fabulous home grown ingredients I've been using this week in my bunches at Cowdray Farm Shop.

Hellebores, forget me nots and muscari

Frittilaries, ranunculus, hellebores, paperwhite narcissi

Snowflake snowdrop

Green Iris

Extraordinary Tulips

I'm spoilt for choice with tulips!

I'm so lucky to have lots of customers who appreciate the fringed, striped, parrot and French long stemmed varieties and appreciated that they cost more than the run of the mill varieties but are worth every penny.

These tulips were historically the highly prized varieties that sold for a lot more than their weight in gold during the tulipamania era and I understand that the stripes on these very special tulips were caused by a virus, hence their historical rarity. 

Tulips, in my opinion, are at their very best when they are fully open and curving every which way. The inside of the tulip flower is often stunning and well worth studying!

Frittilaria Meleagris

It's an exciting week when the fabulous fritillaries make an appearance.

They are one of my all time favourite flowers; sculptural, curving, nodding heads.

Wild, seasonal and sublime. I'll be tying them with dark red ranunculus and deep burgundy tulips for Valentines bunches. They tick all the boxes!

Autumn Wreath

It's been another great week for our Autumn wreaths and flowers generally.

With half term happening this week and Halloween on Monday our customers seem to be entertaining at home and decorating their doors and homes to welcome in their visitors.

The wreath below is welcoming in visitors at The Cowdray Farm Shop Cafe in Midhurst this week and it's prompted people to ask us about wreath making workshops. We'll be organising wreath making workshops in early December at Cowdray Hall in Easebourne, Midhurst, West Sussex and if you're interested in joining us then please do get in touch.

Autumn Wreath at Cowdray Cafe