I love arranging wedding flowers and knowing that they will be part of beautiful memories for years to come. One of the things I love most about flowers and plants is how we associate them with people and places.
My lovely mother in law, Joan, has had masses of lily of the valley in her garden for years and two or three years ago I asked if I could dig up a clump to transplant into our garden. Now I have masses of my own and am about to divide them up and share them with my family so they can transplant them into their gardens.
I love them for so many reasons. Firstly they have the most amazing scent - how does nature do it? It is such a tiny flower and yet the scent is so strong. Secondly the flowers are the most beautiful bell-like shape and they hang pendulously from an arched stem. The contrast between the glossy dark green leaves and the whitest of white flowers increase their beauty even more.
They are quite short lived but the secret is, if you want to cut them, seer the bottom few centimetres of the stems in boiling water and they will last for days in water. You only need to pick a few to look simple and beautiful and to fill your room with the sweetest scent.
Sadly as I write this at the end of May the lily of the valley is coming to an end but I look forward to seeing it again next year when I will once again be reminded of Joan and her garden when I look at all the lily of the valley in my own.
Julie x
Get in touch if you're getting married in Lincoln and you'd like to discuss your wedding flowers.
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