 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.
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 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.  Starting another batch of Sweet Peas ... after such a wet day yesterday, I decided it was time to cheer myself up by getting a few more going.
There's debate about whether soaking Sweet Pea seed helps or hinders their germination. If you search the internet you'll find many posts on the 'best' way to grow such a popular flower. To be honest, I don't think there's only one way, many methods work. Just do it in a way that's easy & successful in your growing conditions. What seems to make the biggest difference to mine (just my humble opinion & experience) is using fresh seed & actually sowing them. Buying seed is great fun & very easy to do, especially late at night on the internet after a glass of wine. But Sweet Peas don't grow well inside the packets. Yes, I've been guilty of losing seed, buying far too many or simply never quite getting around to sowing! Please tell me it isn't just me who does that... So I soak Sweet Pea seed for about an hour, that's it. Just enough to soften the coat, not enough to rot them. Seems to work for me so here we go again- we'll be cutting buckets full of scented beauty in no time. For more practical insights on growing beautiful cut flowers in your flower patch, join me on my 'Cut Flowers From Your Garden' workshop. All the details & online booking Here  To be frank, our flower farm in Dumfries & Galloway looks a tad messy just now after a January-full of relentless wind & rain. But I have to start somewhere.
The last of the Tulips are in finally & so time for a bit of tidying. The wind seems to have blown pots all over the place! These Agapanthus are tucked up snug in the tiny greenhouse just now, & will be strutting their stuff again in July. With an acre of flowers, there's always something lovely to cut from April to late September. It's becoming trickier to predict timings as climate change is already throwing away the rule book. There's always something lovely though - just might be a bit earlier or later than it used to be! This month I've been cutting Pussy Willow, colourful Willow stems & contorted Hazel - interesting shapes to admire in a vase. And I began cutting Pussy Willow in mid-December to include in our Christmas bouquets - a full 2 weeks ahead of last year. Mad.  Aquilegia are a Spring favourite of mine - I love the way those frilly flowers flounce about in the breeze, or dance above everything else in a bouquet.
And they hybridise shamelessly, creating new favourites & surprises each year. This dear little blue & white one came from seed in a precious envelope from a gardening friend. Sown last year, it's opening for the first time this weekend. I'm going to exercise great restraint with the snips (probably...) & collect seed to sow again. It might not come true but a whole row of these would be a lovely thing, wouldn't it?  Tulip 'Merlot' Tulips doing their thing...
Too full blown to include in a Customer bouquet, yet still rather fabulous in my kitchen. I don't think I can ever so much 'arrange' Tulips as set them free. Just let them twist & dance as they please. They'll always be facing a different way when I come down in the morning anyway! These are lily-flowered Tulip 'Merlot' - a deep, rich burgundy colour - placed simply in a classic green Sylvac vase.  Photo Credit Colin Carpenter Photography It makes my day when a set of wedding photo's arrives in my inbox from our wedding couples. And these did just that! Here's Judith & Ben at their Gretna Green wedding ceremony in late February. Couples still travel from across the world to the traditional venue for it's timeless appeal. The wedding couple stayed @Buittle_Castle (near Dalbeattie) with Family & friends before their wedding so it was an easy delivery of flowers for me. All travelled to Gretna & then back to Buittle for the party. Judith messaged to say; A HUMONGOUS thank you for the flowers you made for us that were more beautiful than I could ever have imagined. Thank you, thank you, thank you for them all - they were so unbelievably stunning and admired by all. In Judith's dusky pink & white Bridal Bouquet, I used frilly Lincolnshire Hellebores & Tulips, Isle of Scillies Narcissi & Cornish Eucalyptus. Everything else - Pink Heather, Pieris, Viburnum, Ivy, Pink Pussy Willow - we grew here at our Flower Farm in Galloway. So even in late February it's possible to have 100% British-grown wedding flowers with the lowest possible carbon footprint.  Thank you Judith & Ben for sharing the lovely photo with us.
Photo credit; Colin Carpenter Photography Florist; Galloway Flowers  Waiting for collection last week...
A fluffy giant foliage wreath made to welcome guests as they arrive at a 40th birthday party. It'll be easy to spot the house where the fun is happening! I included in tiny lemon Viola plants, Blue Muscari & Narcissi Tete A Tete bulbs to give a continuing pop of colour. Wreaths are definitely not just for Christmas, imho.  Thanks a bunch!
A bouquet of dried flowers & foliage collected by a Customer last week to cheer up a friend. All natural colours, no dyes or bleach used to preserve & dried by myself here in Galloway. The Dahlias keep their colour particularly well. Dried flowers last a long time & particularly welcome while there are still few colourful flowers to cut here in Scotland. We dry a good supply of flowers each year & make bouquets., wreaths, posies & other arrangements to order. If you would simply like a mixed bunch of dried flowers to use in your own craft projects, I'm happy to make up a bunch. Send a message about your requirements, & I'll be delighted to help. Contact  Colourful cottage garden flowers bring a fresh, relaxed vibe to a marquee wedding at Dabton House, Thornhill last Summer. I love the way the vintage glass vases sparkled in the afternoon sunshine. Using vintage vases brings a unique look to the tables. It's a very sustainable option too, as they can be reused again & again. I've a large collection of vintage vases to arrange flowers in, & they're available to our Bespoke wedding couples to use. And of course, the flowers were all locally grown & arranged without any floral foam. All practical steps to keep the 'flower miles' & carbon footprint of a wedding low, without compromising on the beauty.   For a flower farmer, the year rolls through many seasons....
Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter obviously but there are more subtle distinctions to focus & priorities. There's seed sowing, propagation & planting season. (Actually Spring & Autumn primarily) The wedding season. Autumn season of mists & mellow fruitfulness. Or the 'muddy season' as I think of October & November. Dahlia lifting & storing plus planting out new stock for next year. Festive season, of course - with the delicious blend of pine, scented candles & hand cream in the workshop. And these quiet days of January & February, I think of as 'List Season', (I think I got that phrase from Miriam Osler & it sums it up well). There are some tasks outside, farewell flowers & wedding consultations to do. The Tax return of course. But mostly this is about planning & making lists. I'm poring over my notes from past years - what did I grow, what thrived & was highly productive? What was not? Which flowers & colours were most desired by Customers, every stem precious - & what was left uncut? What requests have been made by this years wedding couples? From this, I begin the process of deciding what to grow more of, less of or just the same. What can I fit in? An acre may sound like a lot of flowers but it's easily filled. I'm designing bouquets & arrangements in my head - what goes with what, what's out at the same time, spotting the gaps to fill. And making lists. Lots of lists. Seeds, tubers, bulbs, new plants to buy or propagate from my stock. The Armchair shopping is well underway...  A few pale pink favourites growing at the Flower Farm near Castle Douglas, Dumfries & Galloway in September 2024.
 Soft, vintage tones on a willow wreath of dried flowers. This was a commission for a special birthday gift, the colours chosen to suit the lounge decor.
All the materials are natural, 100% grown in the British Isles (much of it here) & all dried by myself in Galloway. No filters, no dyes, no bleaches used - just Mother Nature's own colours. There might not be much to cut from our flower field this month, but still plenty of colour to brighten our homes. Naturally dried flowers like this can last for years if cared for & ultimately, are completely compostable.  Making the ordinary... Extraordinary.
Hoar frost on Marjoram seedheads, sparkling in bright sunshine this morning. I leave these stems uncut until February usually as shelter for the little beasties, Many birds enjoy the seeds too (& that's why seedlings pop up all over the flower farm!) The big tidy up for Spring will start soon enough, no rush this month.  One for the Birds... After 12th night, I hang my Christmas Door wreath on my workshop door for Wrens to roost in. As they're so tiny, Wrens are particularly vulnerable in cold weather & this extra protection helps them get through Winter. The tiny Birds snuggle up together, warm & dry behind the foliage, in between the straw base & oak door. I've known 8 Wrens to roost in a single wreath, as on opening the door, they flew into the workshop one stormy wet night! Who knows how many could fit in behind this one? With plummeting temperatures forecast for us in South West Scotland this week, I made this wreath quickly this afternoon from leftover bits - really bushy & overlapping like thatch, plus a few leftover Teasels & seedheads for the Goldfinches. Even a few Holly berries - I'm sure something will find them for a quick snack. There are already 3 wreaths on the other workshop door (from my front door, an unfinished demo & a small table wreath on the door handle - picture below.) In the past week, I've several times shushed Wrens out of the workshop when opening the door at dusk. They had already settled in for the night & resented being disturbed. I hung the wreath just before dusk - I wonder how many found comfort & safety last night? The Wreaths will stay looking green well into March, then foliage dries to golden tones.   Autumn details to celebrate the season & Kerry's wedding at Auchen Castle, Dumfries & Galloway, Scotland in late September... Dahlias, grasses, bracken, hops, seedheads, Pheasant feathers, conkers... my workbench looked like a 'nature table' as I collected all items together in the days beforehand. So many textures to add to the rich flower colours. The Bridal Bouquet included rich Dahlias, Hydrangea , grasses & berries plus feathers too. All flowers & foliage grown here at our Flower Farm in Galloway, except the Hops from Kent. Arranged sustainably without floral foam. Wedding venue @AuchenCastle Wedding flowers @GallowayFlowers    The colours of the Hydrangeas seem to be particularly lovely this year.
These run from deep plum through bright pinks, to teal, soft blues & lighter greens. Two flower heads joined linked on one stem, on the same bush. I've no idea what variety it is. It grows unnoticed for most of the year in a shady, weedy corner, & to be honest it's a rather shabby little bush. And then it does this colour change! Like Cinderella going to the ball, several stems have appeared in wedding bouquets this month. Such a useful flower to link other colour flowers together in a bouquet, vase or wreath. It's roots are deep under paving so it would be difficult to move without damage. But I'm going to have a go at rooting some cuttings. A row of these growing in a better spot would be a thing of beauty & a Florists delight in Autumn... I need more Hydrangeas in my life.  Scanning my recent posts, it looks as if I grew only 'Autumn coloured' flowers this year!
The rusty coppers, peaches & golds have dominated flowers posted - probably because I've felt so cold & Autumnal since early August... In reality, the flowers I actually grew, cut & arranged for weddings has been very different. It's time to catch up on photo's from this Summers weddings. So to begin, here's Deborah's bouquet for her wedding at Gretna Green from early September. This quick snap was taken before making final tweaks & adding the ribbons. (Flowers in bouquets always seem to move a bit overnight as they settle so I find this check helpful) No Autumn shades in sight here - just plenty of soft pinky-purples, lavender & lashings of white froth. I included Dahlias, Daisies, Phlox, Cosmos, Scabious & Nigella. 100% grown in Scotland, for a low carbon footprint. More information on our wedding packages can be found here  Autumn Glory...
A simple arrangement in a glass vase, bursting with colour.  Saturday leftovers...
After arranging wedding flowers in bright sunshine (such luxury!) these few stems were last in the bucket, looking a bit tired & floppy. Back home, I recut the stems & popped them into cool water. Magically, they soon revived. A quick burst of mindful flower plonking into a favourite old jug revived me too after an early start. (A quantity of strong coffee helped too...) Not good enough for the party, but good enough to grace my kitchen this weekend.  Dahlia 'Negroni Sunset' Possibly my new favourite Dahlia this year...'Negroni Sunset'
First few blooms opened last week & now being tested for vase life in the kitchen. What do you think? A keeper to grow more of?  Large Vase for the Font A Summers day at Urr Parish Church, near Castle Douglas, Dumfries & Galloway - a lovely setting for a country wedding. The dainty, meadowy flowers of late Summer including sweetly scented Sweet Peas, Honeysuckle & Acidanthera. Every single stem grown & cut by us at the Flower Farm a few miles away. Then arranged naturally in a reusable glass vase with water for a low carbon footprint. When the flowers fade, they can safely be added to the compost heap. The vase will be washed & stored ready for next time. What could be simpler & more sustainable than that?   Photo credit Rose and Julien Emma LOVES pink... The brief for her May wedding bouquet was 'pink, pink & more pink!' So I selected a mix of deep pink Peonies, pink Aquilegia, pinky hued acer leaves & some lacy Orlaya as the key flowers in her bouquet. Emma brought her own choice of velvet ribbon to add & it turned out to be just the perfect colour. Couples come from all over the World to marry at Gretna Green. Emma, Dan & their young family made a road trip out of the occasion. Travelling all the way to me in their camper van to collect flowers, & then on to Gretna for their special ceremony. Thank you Emma & Dan for sharing the lovely photo - it was a pleasure to work with a real flower enthusiast! Photo credit www.roseandjulien.com  Photo credit Rose and Julien  September Bridal Bouquet Some of my favourite flowers are in this romantic wedding bouquet from last September. Peachy Dahlias, Soft pink Roses, Daisies & a few stems of beautifully scented Honeysuckle. A few stems of Gypsophila from Lincolnshire (by September I had cut all mine), every other stem grown here in Galloway by myself.
As our flowers are grown naturally, availability of specific varieties changes as we move through the flower season. No two weddings are ever exactly the same as I cut the best flowers available to your wedding colour theme. And our Bride Megan told me; 'thank you - the flowers just made the day and all the photos so perfect! They were really beautiful and just the right colours for the late summers day we had. Thanks so much for all the thought you put into creating the perfect bouquets!' If you're looking for memorable flowers for your wedding in Dumfries & Galloway, let's talk soon.  Rose 'Ispahan' The scent of Garden Roses... What could be more Summery than that?
This is a favourite 'Ispahan' - recommended to me years ago by a Lady who bought my Flowers when I took them to Loch Arthur Farm Shop on Fridays. So grateful for the recommendation. It's a good 'un. Prolific flowers for a few weeks, the true Rose scent is one of the best. It earns it's spot in any garden I create from now on... |
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