What’s in season (May & June)?

peonies

what to have with your peonies? Why even MORE peonies of course!

The early varieties in deep reds and coral give way to the biggest, fluffiest most scented contestants with new varieties every year.

While Sarah Bernhardt is a favourite staple, we love Gardenia or Duchess for its incredible scent. Even a slightly scruffy supermarket find will elevate your kitchen table.

Don’t be put off by sticky buds and the occasional ant, just give the blooms a good wipe with a damp cloth, trim their stems and place in room temperature water. If you have a few stubborn buds, you can gently peel the outer skin and place a carrier bag over them to speed up the popping process.

As with all flowers, regular trimming of the stems and water change is the key to longevity.

sweet peas

These little butterfly-like buds are close to my heart: there are certain scents that teleport you right back in time and, for me it is these beauties.

My Grandfather was a keen gardener and as a toddler he used to wheel me through the veg patch in one of those wicker basket shopping trollies. Passing fresh peas in their pods to nibble on (sometimes a gooseberry to keep me on my toes) and handfuls of the most heady scented sweet peas imaginable in the softest pastel shades.

Well, Gramps is long gone but we do have our wonderful David! David wobbles in to our Haywards Heath store on his bike laden with competition-standard home grown sweet peas! He is quite literally every florists perfect vision! We never quite know when David is popping by but during sweet pea season we keep him busy! Best of all, David donates every penny from the sale of his beautiful flowers to our brilliant friends at St James & St Peter’s Hospice.

So it’s a win-win! Pick up a little posy of the most perfect buds, lovingly grown by an actual legend and all for THE best cause.

delphinium

We love a blue flower! They are actually a bit of a rarity but not in June and July!

The magical blue spires of the delphinium transform a vase or urn arrangement and epitomise summer in a seasonal bouquet along with camomile, peonies and grasses.

Our field bouquet (available in our shop) is a great example, always showcasing the season’s best available English flowers. Delphiniums come in lots of wonderful shades from deepest grape purple through to pink and white and, if you see the really enormous ones, don’t be put off by the price tag… Three stems stop traffic!