Lavender Pansies and Blue Muscari Add a Special Touch for Springtime Wedding Flowers

What happened to spring!!! Last week I was picking anemones, pansies and muscari and this week we're hitting 90's!!! Not the best weather for flowers that like it cool...

Well back to muscari and pansies. Both of these flowers have been featured several times this year on the blog in some springtime designs. A few weeks back I wrote about adding three new types of muscari (also known as grape hyacinth) to the garden borders. Well this is the last of the three- Saffier. It is taller than the other varieties that I am presently growing. Some stems are about 9 inches in length, and French blue with pale green overtones is very striking. You can find these bulbs at John Scheepers .

 As the season warms up the pansies began to stretch, and by May they are also providing longer stems, so I thought this would be a good time to work them up in a design.

This elegant centerpiece also features Spanish bluebells, white and purple anemones, white ranunculus and soft green viburnum heads. 

Look for these flowers from Springwell Gardens from late March through early May!

Blue and Purple Muscari for Springtime Weddings

Muscari or grape hyacinths begin showing up at Springwell Gardens usually by mid March. This year they came on a little later.

They are short stemmed fragrant flowers that come in shades of purple, blue and also white.

I purchase my bulbs in the late summer-early fall from John Scheepers. They have a great selection to choose from, (as well as lots of other springtime flowering bulbs). Muscari go into the ground in early November and usually bloom for about 3-4 weeks in the spring. Which makes  these great flowers to use for mid March through mid April weddings.

This year I added Valerie Finnis, a soft pale blue, and White Magic to the traditional purple flowers. I also added another interesting variety not pictured called Saffier, (more about these later).

Because of their short stems they need a separate water source when used in bouquet work, or they may be wired into the design. Oh but they are worth the effort!
Here they are in a bouquet with white ranunculus, black-eyed anemones and white fringe tulips- just beautiful.

Another great feature about muscari is that they multiply in the garden every year. So once you plant them  you will be rewarded with more and more as the years go by!

Blue Anemones, Hellebore and Muscari for Allison and Kevin

 Spring is here and it's a joy to watch all of nature wake up from winter!

The cooler temperatures in March have made this one of the most beautiful springs in years! Really!!! And I am so happy for couples like Allison and Kevin who chose this time of year to get married!

My first meeting with Allison was January. She wanted a rich color palette for their wedding day- deep purples and plums and brightly hued greens punctuated with soft lavenders.

As April approached, it was exciting to see the garden flowers cooperating! Plum colored hellebore, dark purple muscari and blue-purple anemones, peacock blue-green cerinthe tipped with purple bells, and bright chartreuse euphorbia. These garden flowers were paired with lavender Ocean Song roses and violet stock.

The centerpiece designs made a lovely statement at Caffe Luna. Other flowers included green Jade roses, purple larkspur and lisianthus, and various shades of purple and lavender Florigene carnations with such names as Moonvista and Moonshade,

It's been a little over a week since their wedding day... and now come the days of being newlyweds!

Praying God's blessing for you two as you begin your lives together!

Beautiful Blue Anemone and Muscari for Springtime Weddings

We have been blessed with a very cool start to springtime this year, and all the spring bulb-type flowers have LOVED it. The blue muscari and anemones have been blooming for several weeks. And it has been great using them in springtime wedding designs.

The color of the anemones runs from a dark blue to a deep purple blue, and the same is true for the muscari. My pictures are a little deceiving- in real life this color has more of a purple hue. They are pictured here in a bouquet of other spring beauties- rose colored anemones,  Bridal Crown Daffodils, ranunculus,  pansies, viburnum and vinca vine.

 When the temperatures are on the cool side, each flower will put on a show in the garden that lasts for about a week. But start adding a little heat- like upper 70's and low 80's and they will melt out quickly. My advice is to pick them so you can enjoy them for five to seven days inside your home!!!

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.

Something Blue for Springtime Wedding Flowers

Looking for blue flowers for your springtime wedding? Check out these sweet lovelies- Spanish Bluebells (hyacinthoides) and Grape Hyacinths (muscari). Both are fall planted bulbs (or corms) that bloom in the South from mid March through mid April.

 They pair wonderfully with other spring bloomers such as leucojum and ranunculus, and look great in bouquets and centerpiece designs. Spanish Bluebells and Grape Hyacinths also come in whites and pinks, but shades of blue are the most common color. The Grape Hyacinths also have a pleasing delicate fragrance.

An added bonus is that you can purchase your own bulbs in the fall after your wedding, and grow these as a yearly reminder of  your special day. Once they are planted they will continue to come back each spring and multiply year after year....

Spring Wedding Flowers- Blue Muscari!

Muscari is such a charming spring time bloomer. The grape-blue flower heads start pushing up in early March and are found throughout my garden beds until mid April (usually).
The individual stems are rather short- about 6-8 inches, so I have to supply a separate water source in larger arrangements or bouquets. But they are definitely worth the effort.
They look great massed together as in these tiny handmade vases (or schapps glasses)...
And I love to add them to other petite designs of mixed flowers such as these white creamers that are filled with ranunculus, pansies, bridal wreath spirea and lamb's ear.
This year muscari started blooming early, and have already finished their spring time show...
They were wonderful while they lasted!!!
 Want to grow your own??? Muscari are grown from small corms or bulbs that you plant in the fall. Be prepared- these little guys multiply fast, but that's OK- you'll just have a lot more flowers each year! A good source for these bulbs is John Scheepers, or locally (in Cary, NC) you can purchase at Garden Supply Company.

Yellow Tulips and White Ranunculus for Spring Weddings

Last week I was so anticipating these beauties!!!They are early blooming tulips called Monte Carlo. I used some of these tulips last year for CeCe and Lee's late March wedding. But with the temps sailing past the 70's and into the 80's this week, these flowers exploded open very early!!!

I have picked them and used them in a few arrangements... Here are some pictures that show the fruit of my labor.
The design above features Monte Carlo tulips, muscari, hellebore and euphorbia from the garden along with Majolica spray roses. All of these garden flowers are ideal for early springtime wedding designs.
This spring bouquet is also a garden design of Monte Carlo tulips and white ranunculus with white snap dragons.
And here is another shot of the first design. Monte Carlo tulips are a lovely clear yellow. The flowers are double petaled (more petals than a regular tulip). The other yellow flowers peaking out from this design are pansies. Pansies have a short vase life (only about three days), and short stems, so I provide a hidden water source that allows me to place them where I want them in the design and take them out when they look faded.
Monte Carlo tulips or any other tulip are suitable for spring time weddings with moderate temperatures. If using them when the weather is warmer than normal be sure to keep them in a cool place!

Great Flowers for Springtime Weddings

With weather like this, spring is just around the corner.

Now you might be saying, but it's still cold. Yes, I agree it has been a bit nippy, but we haven't dipped into the teens yet. In fact, it's only been below 25 degrees a couple of times this whole winter season. So nature is waking up.
Hellebore flowers are starting to open up- I would say about two-three weeks early...
And I am seeing daffodils just on the verge of bloom, and my hyacinthoides (bluebells) also have green tops up about three to four inches.
There is even a lone hyacintth showing its bright green spears- I am sad to say that I just didn't get around to planting hyacinths last fall so this one is all alone.
The dainty blue muscari are being more patient though (the picture below is from last year)- it looks like it will be a few more weeks before they start showing their flower heads.
There will soon be Bridal Crown and White Lion and Ice Follies daffodils and narcissus blooming. I am watching and waiting, and when the flowers start to bloom again, I will be there ready to gather them up!
All of them are perfect for springtime weddings. This little bouquet from last spring is a sweet reminder of what is soon to come!

Wedding Flowers from the Garden- Tulips Part l

What do you think? I am so excited to have tulips blooming now... well actually my tulips are coming to an end, but it has been wonderful these past few weeks to go to the garden and pick big, beautiful blooms in such luscious colors. And then there are the other spring flowers- muscari, euphorbia and pieris, not to mention hellebores which have been going strong for over a month. I am working hard to have a variety of blooms for my March and April brides- so if you are planning a wedding for spring of 2012- think Springwell Gardens!
These tulips are known as Triumph tulips, a cross between Darwin tulips and Early Tulips that produce nice fat blooms. This year they started their blooms a little early because of the record high temps. Normally they bloom around the last week of March into early April. Tulip bulbs are available to purchase from catalog vendors in late summer and they are shipped in late September. The key to having great tulips in the South is prechilling your bulbs for about ten to twelve weeks. So I usually plant my bulbs in late November through mid December.
The lovely dark blue flowers in the bouquet are known as muscari. These flowers come from small bulbs that are also planted in the late fall. These guys will multiply in the garden and are a wonderful welcome sight from mid to late March. They are not fussy like tulips. The lime green flowers that light up this bouquet are euphorbia. They came to my garden from my great friend, Karen (who is also responsible for the darling Love In A Puff pods that I use in my summer and fall designs).
So much is happening in the garden now. This week I have been planting summer seedlings in the garden beds: zinnias, gomphrena, celosia, Snow on The Mountain, craspedia, and a whole lot more. I can't wait to post pictures of these flowers in bouquets when they start to bloom.
Next week look for Tulips Part II- the lovely Peony Flowering Tulip known as Angelique.