 Photo credit Ken Leslie Photography I'm looking for the positives this wet February afternoon. I love Hazel catkins wiggling in a breeze, my Snowdrops are wonderfully long stemmed & my water butts are brimming with rainwater ready for planting out time...
I see Spring slowly arriving - buds on Daffodils & the birds are definitely pairing up. I found two Newts lounging about on my doorstep in the rain overnight so they're on the move. I've not spotted any Frog or Toad spawn yet - Have you? But oh, it's been such a frustrating few weeks hasn't it. I'm itching to get ahead outside, yet it seems to have been too wet, too cold, too windy to work outside consistently, Just snatched hours when I can move a few deckchairs around on the Titanic - or that's how it feels! (And I know here in Galloway we've had much less of a deluge than other areas...) My cutting beds remain unweeded, compost isn't riddled. let alone spread. The polytunnels are still unwashed - other than by the generous downpours! So I've spent unexpected time indoors watching the Winter Olympics instead & am even beginning to understand how Curling matches are scored (I think...is that another positive? Maybe it's good to rest?) Having a plan is key for me to feel progress is still being made. I've a list for dry days & another for wet so I can get on with something most days. This last week I've been in the potting shed pricking out seedlings sown last Autumn. Now I'm getting ready to ramp up sowing this week. Sometimes it's too easy to focus on what I CAN'T do, & overlook what I can. And on the really wet days, I've been catching up with the wedmin. Valentines Day is a popular day for the romantics to pop the question, & so begin their wedding plans. If you know a couple planning to tie the knot, feel free to point them at my Wedding Pages on my website. The most popular Summer dates book quickly & I take on only a few wedding dates each week. We offer options to suit all budgets - from full service, bespoke occasions to 'bloom buckets' of mixed flowers for DIY Weddings. Most popular choices are somewhere in between. Couples choose their package of bouquets & buttonholes to be made up by myself, & order buckets of flowers to decorate the venue tables etc. What Can I Cut in February? At last there are flowers! The first Hellebores are ready to cut now & I adore them. Those luscious plummy pink shades, the delicate greenish whites. And the frills, the speckles...so beautiful! I've pressed a few too this week as they can keep colour well. The scented shrubs such as Daphne, Winter Honeysuckle, Witch Hazel & Viburnums are great to cut just now. I've been cutting colourful Willow, Cornus, Hazel & Alder Catkins, & Pussy Willow, the first stems of the year I have in quantity. Lots of buds on the Primulas & Narcissi too - they'll not be long. This week I bought some gorgeous double Tulips from Lincolnshire & a few Cornish Daffodils to boost my own for events. The colours really shone out together in the workshop. It doesn't take much to lift February spirits with bold colour & need not be expensive. Upcoming Events 2026 We'll be hosting Flower Workshops here at the Flower Farm again this year. As always, there'll be a generous supply of fresh flowers & of course, tea & cake!. Groups will be small (maximum 4 adults) so please don't delay if you're planning to book. (Plan an Escape from the endless World Cup tv coverage perhaps...) The dates are;
Days are lengthening fast now. As soon as it stops raining (it will, eventually, surely) our gardens will change colour to the 'yellow months' full of Daffodils. Until then, keep warm, splash in a few puddles in your wellies perhaps, & look for the glimmers of Spring... Until next time, Rosie Galloway Flowers “February is the shortest month, so if you're having a miserable month, try to schedule it for February' Lemony Snickett.”
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 There aren't many flowers here just now - it makes every stem extra precious.
Yet when I look carefully, there were still plenty of little details to make the buttonholes for this February wedding. The pink Pussy Willow, tiny cone, a stem of blue Muscari & of course, a few stems of pink Heather for a special Scottish touch. I try to reflect the season in every wedding I prepare flowers for. Always hoping it comes as a lovely reminder of a very special day when those flowers bloom in future years.  Over a season I make so many wedding bouquets & just like the wedding couples, every one is different.
I'm not following a strict recipe used every time. Instead, I select locally grown flowers & foliage at their very best here that week, that month. While working on a wedding bouquet, I'm totally absorbed. Selecting stems in chosen colours, varieties & shapes. Taking note of special requests & scents. Moving the bouquet round in my hands to position those stems, checking they're where I want them. Next morning, any final tweaks are made & the ribbon trimmings added. Of course, I love to see those bouquets captured artistically by the talented Photographers attending a wedding. But once the bouquet is ready, few are photographed properly here. Time is of the essence on wedding morning. I must get that bouquet delivered on time! So most are given a quick phone snap in front of my workshop wall or perhaps the hedge. Never mind the poor lighting, dreary backdrop or my not-so-stylishly dressed arm! Unsurprisingly, those quick snaps rarely make it on yo social media. They're lost in my phone, simply an 'aide memoire'. They help me remember a couple, what I made & exactly what was flowering on their wedding day. And this is one of those 'lost' bouquets, I made it for Ruth last July. I rediscovered it when looking for reminders of flower availability. This helps me plan my planting & sowing schedule in 2026. Yes, I keep written cutting lists but a visual record is much more vivid for me. I notice the first scented 'Ispahan' Roses & white Agapanthus. Both very early last Summer. Lavender Sweet Peas. The last of that batch of Corncockle & Nigella. All added into the plan again for this year. Looking forward to cutting them again soon for this years events... Let me know if you or somebody you know would love our locally grown flowers for that special touch too.  Silver Washed Fritillary on Marjoram Last Summer, I saw these butterflies here for the first time at our Flower Farm in Dumfries & Galloway. It's a Silver Washed Fritillary. Instantly recognisable as they have a lovely floaty way of flying.
But I hadn't seen any here before in 10 Summers - not saying they aren't about but certainly not common. Indeed, my 1991 edition of 'Butterflies of Britain & Ireland' book advises these aren't found this far North. (Must see if I can find a more up to date edition...) Perhaps it was the hot Summer down South encouraging them up the country. Or is it just another example of habitat & climate change? Did you see them too? They were always seen around a large bed of wild Marjoram. To put it mildly, Marjoram self seeds generously & I let it. Last year, I had about 8 square metres of it flowering in a big patch. It's fabulous as a cut flower - smells lovely, long stems & lasts well in water too. Flowers can be pink or white. I cut hundreds of scented stems from it over several months. It gives a natural, wildflower look to a bouquet or arrangement. Even if I wasn't growing it for cutting, I would make room for Marjoram. Anything unused provides a 'nectar cafe' for so many pollinators. The patch was always buzzing with life in sunshine. Nothing wasted! As well as Butterflies, it's loved by the Honey Bees, Hoverflies & so much more I can't name. In turn, those creatures will have made a meal for the birds & bats. A simple, tough native plant creating a better habitat for us all. |
AuthorRosie Gray of Galloway Flowers. Cut Flower Grower & Florist near Castle Douglas, in South West Scotland. Using 100% Flowers & Foliage grown in British Isles, all year round. 
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Growing Gorgeous Seasonal Cut Flowers & Foliage in Castle Douglas, Dumfries & Galloway, Scotland
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Flower Farmer Florist Castle Douglas, Flower Farm Scotland, Wedding Flowers Castle Douglas, Florist Castle Douglas, Funeral Flowers Castle Douglas, Sympathy flowers Castle Douglas, wedding florist Dumfries & Galloway, Wedding florist Kirkcudbright, wedding florist Gatehouse of Fleet, natural funeral flowers Dumfries & Galloway, wild wedding flowers Dumfries & Galloway, wedding flowers Ayr, wedding flowers Ayrshire