Ageratum - my go-to blue for summer and fall

Now that we are into August, one of my favorites - Ageratum - is hitting the bouquets big-time. I just love this soft, powdery grey-blue gem. What a heart it has! Keeps on blooming until frost, but makes a very immediate departure at that time. My mother used to grow Ageratum. Every summer, to complement her beautiful perennial beds and rock garden, she also planted an annual garden around our grass courtyards.  Every summer she went with a red, white and blue theme, using the low-growing white Alyssum, the medium-sized blue Ageratum, and the taller spikes of red salvia. Lots of planting. Lots of summer color. No mulch. At the time, mulch was not used nearly so much as it is today.  I cringe at the thought, but she was from Iowa, and whoever mulches their acres of corn?

The Ageratum I grow is hardly my mother's Ageratum. While puffy mounds of color were perfect for her garden beds, what I am looking for is far greater height.

My varieties of choice are either 'Blue Horizon' or 'Blue Planet.'

Every year I have roughly 300 Ageratum plants, from which i cut thousands of gorgeous stems of flowers. The touch of blue is a wonderful accent for the many bright summer - blooming flowers, but also goes beautifully with the softer tones, such as the rose, peach, and white zinnias.  It looks equally nice with some lime green zinnias.

As we move later into August, and on into September, Ageratum adds a lovely touch to many dahlia-centric arrangements and bouqets.

It looks fabulous with white, lavender, peach, and almost any color at all.

Come fall, when we find the gardens moving into the more bronzy tones, I find Ageratum continues to shine.  It so very often adds just the right touch of contrasting color to make everything else really pop to life. From October Dahlia bouquets and arrangements into November Chrysanthemum presentations, Ageratum makes a welcome splash. While this gathering of autumn color would be marvelous on its own, doesn't it gain from the little hints of blue afforded by a sprig or lavender statice and some of that powdery blue Ageraturm?

No, dear, those aren't wildflowers

I am happy to share the following, which appeared in the national Field To Vase website, for which I am proud to be a guest contributor. Field to Vase is dedicated to helping the public better understand "Slow Flowers", or the growing movement of localizing the flower industry. 

Please view the website at http://fieldtovase.com/  and see the June 6, 2014 blog posting.

Early spring bouquet of daffodils, andromeda and magnolia.

I hear it all the time - “Wow, I love how natural your bouquets look with all those wildflowers in them,” and I think to myself, “Ah, the sorcery!”

While it might look like this farmer just goes out and grabs whatever she finds, and in a sense I do, it is only there for the taking through very careful planning and planting.  Ready to find out more about how YOUR “wildflower bouquet” came to be? 

In the suburban area where I farm, my biggest limitation is space.  I know a good number of local, small-scale flower farmers, and every winter, as we assess the previous year and look forward to a new growing season, we face the same daunting task: how do we fit everything we need, for each and every bouquet or wedding piece needed for every week of the growing season, into our growing space? If I need a specific flower, or more like twenty or so specific flowers and greens for YOUR bouquet on June 24th and your best friend’s bouquet on September 15th, I had better have them planted so I can cut them when needed.  Step 1 of your bouquet is called PLANNING.

When I say planning, I mean mega-planning. Spreadsheets like you wouldn’t believe.  How many of each flower needed for a bouquet? Make that every bouquet. How many seeds to plant?  Is it a sunflower or lily that gives me one bloom each? A snapdragon that might give me two? Ageratum, dahlias or zinnias that give me even more, but won’t bring their blooms until a bit later in the season? How many square feet needed per plant? How many plants and how much space needed for an expected bouquet count? Now let’s talk timing and color. How long from seed to flower, or seed to seedpod if I choose to use some of our other botanical elements? Am I planting for some pastel beauties or some amazing “summer brights” as I call them?  Do you want bright red in June, or would you prefer peachy tones, pink, dusky rose?  What matches terrifically, and what is a near muddy miss?

Dissecting your bouquet a bit, we will likely find one focal flower.  It’s the one that I usually put facing you in the center of the bouquet – a sunflower, lily, peony or hydrangea, for example.  It is often the largest, but sometimes it is not the single flower that truly grabs your attention. More on those little goodies in a bit.  For now, think a minute about you as a gardener. Spring comes. You excitedly plant a few sunflower seeds, which, in time, move into your garden. Each gives you one dazzling sunflower. All is great. Not so for me. 

Because of its one flower limitation, and because I cut the flowers, when it comes to finding that focal flower for your bouquet, as a matter of course, I must plant several varieties of sunflowers, lilies and the likes every few weeks from spring to midsummer, say mid-July.  To make life more efficient for myself, I often plant two or three different varieties at once, but I plant varieties, which take slightly more or less time to bloom.  If all goes to plan, a one-time planting will eventually supply focal flowers, in succession, for two or three weeks. Seeing the beauty of spreadsheets now, are we?  So, Step 2 of your bouquet, as just described, is called SUCCESSION PLANTING. It’s making sure I have the flowers I need when I need them, each and every week. 

In each bouquet, I next add a handful of secondary blooms, such as zinnias, dahlias, black-eyed-Susans, phlox or daisies, for example.  These give unlimited combinations of substance, texture and color. For some of these I’ll succession plant. For others I rely on plants that come up every year but might flower in a particular window of time. Many of these blooms have their own particular cultural needs. Where I live, for example, dahlias do not quite survive the winter. So, every fall, after frost, I dig the dahlia tubers out of the ground, cut them, clean them and store them for the winter. Come spring, planting the dahlias is just another task that goes into making your bouquet.  Anemones thrive in the cool season and love water, but watch out so they don’t rot. Perennial plants, such as phlox, black-eyed-Susans and daisies eventually need to be dug up and divided. Just another task and how many do I have for which weeks? Stock likes to grow in cooler conditions; let’s cue the succession planting to give me soft bronzy colors for my fall bouquets. So, Step 3 might be called INDIVIDUALIZED CULTURAL CARE for the tremendous number of plant types I use to make different and interesting bouquets from April to November.  Translate “seasonally fresh” into “ever-changing, well-planned, and a lot of juggling and individualized work.” 

A mixed bouquet benefits from a little height for interest.  Here’s where the delphinium, snapdragons, plumed celosias and the likes come into play.  As with the other flowers, planning and succession planting are critical.  Step 3 – individual cultural care- is paramount with many of the spiky flowers.  Adding support netting to some of these stars, like snapdragons and delphinium, is crucial.  Without it, they love to bend over. The thing about snaps is, even if they start to bend over, as the tips of the plants continue to grow, the tips grow upward again.  Sometimes a curved stem is an absolute dream come true for design work, but not in your mixed bouquet.  For you, I’d like a straight stem.

Lots of varieties of scented geraniums have wonderful foliage.

Greens, or foliage, are unspoken heroes of your bouquet.  They add volume and offer fabulous color contrast to strengthen the colors of the blooms.  Foliage also offers astounding variations in texture, color and growth habit, holding its own in the desirable design elements category. It is also a treat to work with scented foliage. Sigh. This highlights Step 4 of your bouquet -VARIETY.  Local flower farmers offer an ever-changing variety of bouquets.  The offerings are seasonal.  They have many unusual blooms and leaves.  Some of the blooms are unique farm to farm.  Some are grown by many, but might not ship well and are therefore not common in the general flower markets. When I put together a mixed bouquet, I commonly have six or seven types of flowers and greens. 

This brings me to Step 5 of your bouquet – FINAL TOUCHES AND ACCENTS.  This is what, in my mind, transforms your bouquet from present day to “vintage, old-fashioned wildflower feel” and is what I believe is the biggest reason people must wonder if I am pilfering wildflowers from my entire neighborhood!  It only takes a little – even one bloom of millet, one sprig of grass, or a few green goldenrod branches (yes there are cultivated varieties) arching out in multiple directions to lend a totally different look and feel to your bouquet. Back to spreadsheet central.  Back to space planning to provide the room and plants needed to make this happen and set YOUR bouquet apart from the rest. Back to local flower farming.

Finally, we land at Step 6- MASTERFUL DESIGN. Here we circle back to the ‘little goodies” mentioned above. Although the sunflower in your bouquet is noticeable and noteworthy, sometimes it is the deep purple aster that I use as an even more noticeable accent to YOUR sunflower that implores you to take these particular flowers home as YOURS.  Sometimes, it is the single stem of sorghum you have never seen before that calls to you.  Maybe it is holding five stems of dahlias, each with different but complementary colors or a couple of tuberose tucked in with alluring fragrance, which many say reminds them of Hawaii.  You see, your wildflower bouquet is no willy-nilly hodgepodge of growth. Far from it. In fact, when I say, “masterful design” let’s do the drum roll for the double entendre because I speak not only of the actual crafting and construction of the finished bouquet you hold in YOUR hands and make YOUR OWN, but also the masterful design that was put into motion mid-January and followed throughout the growing season, which allowed the actual crafting when the time came to make YOUR bouquet.  Even though YOUR “wildflower” bouquet was never created on a whim, it was, by design, my plan all along to make you think it was.

Taken together, this is what makes local flower farming so exciting. Having, at my fingertips, an absolutely amazing supply of plants with which to work and create on a daily basis and to share with you in YOUR bouquet is Heaven. As to the other steps that go into your bouquet, I figure you might already be familiar with them if you have done any bit of gardening.  Need I mention weeds, water, compost, and mulch? There is that, too, on a daily basis, but I must say the joy of flowers is worth it every second of the growing season AND the offseason!

Summer means Sunflowers

My grand dog is proud of her gorgeous bunches of sunflowers.

Summer is here.  

It is sunny and hot (sort of).

The beach gear is ready.  

You are turning your sights to summer entertaining.

All you want to see is a sunflower! 

For many, sunflowers are the go-to summer flower.

With their bright yellow flower heads, they brighten your day in an instant.

In the early summer, and for nice contrast in the fall bouquets, the light-centered sunflowers are quite popular.  In the heat of the summer, in July and August, the dark-centered suns are a favorite year after year.

I sow sunflowers from spring to about mid-summer to ensure I have them available from about July to almost up to frost. Different varieties have different light requirements for optimal growth, so I change varieties as the season progresses.

This week I had both dark-centered suns and light-centered suns. They were grown with the goal of having large heads for sunflower-only bunches. For bouquets, I like to grow smaller-sized sunflowers instead.

Here's a nice close-up of a couple of light-centered suns...

... and here is one of the dark-centered varieties.

This one I'll leave in the field.  

Once a bee pollinates a sunflower, I leave it to develop seeds for birds and little ground critters, and that's just fine by me. 

As a general rule, I strive to cut sunflowers before they are fully open to ensure the longest vase life. 

For bouquets and arrangements, my goal is to grow smaller sunflowers, rather than larger ones. They seem to work better because they do not take over the whole bouquet. Don't these look great in this bouquet of bright summer colors?

To help keep sunflowers on the smaller size, I grow them closer together.  It's like having a single tree growing near an old stonewall, soaking up all the sun, water, nutrients and having room to spread out versus a group of trees growing closer together, which have to share all the good stuff and tend to grow upward, but not as much outward.

Cutting sunflowers and prepping them for your bouquets and arrangements takes a bit of effort. By the time you see them, I have removed many large leaves from the length of the stem. I usually try to strip the stems in the field as natural compost.

At the end of the day, a nap is usually in order for my number one helper.

Summer Bouquets

Ah, the colors!  Soft pastels of spring are transforming into summer's brighter hues.  One of the things I love most about working with flowers from the gardens is they are always changing. Lilies are a staple of the Butternut Gardens flowers throughout the growing season, but I mix things up by growing different colors and types from March to October.  This golden yellow sure sparkles with some of our early summer beauties.  

Here we see a wonderful double white shasta daisy, along with bright pink dianthus and the beautiful deep purple drumstick allium nestled against the lily. Peachy yarrow, stock and snapdragon add filler and spiky accents respectively, while several of the early zinnias lend a nice accent. 

Here's another view.

Can't you just imagine all those bright green lily buds popping open!

The snapdragon variety in the foreground is called 'Apple blossom.' A real winner with its perfect white and pink bicolor florets!

One of the best parts of early summer is being able to combine some of the best of the late spring pastels, like the feathery soft pink astilbe in this one, with the magnificent summer flowers such as this soft, periwinkle blue ageratum and this stunning green-eyed Black-eyed Susan, called 'Prairie Sun.'  This year seems to be a particularly good year for both.  

In this close-up you can also spot the bright pink dianthus and the peachy yarrow again. The Ageratum will continue to bloom its heart out well past summer, all the way to frost.  Oh the bouquets it will make! At the end of the season, I'll give you the numbers on how many cuts I got.  For now, I am just trying to keep up!

Lovely summer colors at the Farmers' Market.

So, what do you think of this lineup at the New Canaan, CT Farmers' Market?

It is such fun seeing all the colors of the seasonally-changing bouquets en masse.  

Boy, do I feel spoiled getting to play with all these beauties every day.  

Hard work?  Of course!

So, these seem to be perfect flowers for mason jars and weddings looking for summer elegance on the farm tables.

I thought you might like to see "splendor in the grass" with these lovelies.  So fun to have a few of those striking blue delphinium to add a spark here and there.

And I bet you would love to join the party when they hit the table.

Mason jars full of gorgeous blossoms look great on burlap or on linens with burlap runners.

Setting up for an outdoor rustic chic summer event.  These beauties add such a perfect touch.  

Colorful.

Beautiful.

Distinctly interesting.

So many different blossoms to catch your interest while you are dining and conversing.

Swedish Midsommar Wedding at Tarrywile

Making final adjustments!  Photo by Ed Marshall Photography NYC

With Betsy's Swedish ancestry, she and Steve wished to exchange vows on our summer solstice, or longest day of the year and follow in the tradition of the Swedish Midsommar Festivals, which showcase wonderful collections of wildflowers. Striking blue bachelor buttons, white daisies, and native clovers were key elements of all floral pieces.  In Sweden, red anemone would have been used aplenty, but, alas, we were a bit late for those here, even with our cooler spring temperatures. We found excellent substitutes in red dianthus and bee balm, among others.

Floral wreaths are important to the traditional Midsommar celebrations. Betsy's mother, Anna, created an absolutely lovely headwreath for Betsy using Butternut Gardens flowers.  What a gorgeous heartfelt gift for the day.  

Fabulous colors in the tie and the boutonniere.

Steve's boutonniere carried the same wildflower sentiments as Betsy's floral headwreath.  Bachelor Button, Coronation Gold yellow yarrow, white clover, and red Dianthus made for a striking combination.  Grass seeds leant a natural feel to the finished boutonniere.  How about Steve's tie? Fabulous choice for the occasion.  Paired beautifully with the floral color palette.

Such a striking couple!  The ceremony and reception both took place at wonderful Tarrywile in Danbury, CT. An absolutely gorgeous wide grape arbor, which allows seating underneath, enclosed the couple and guests as they exchanged vows. Then, it was up to the beautiful mansion for the reception. 

Congratulations Betsy and Steve on your special day.  Photo by Ed Marshall Photography, NYC.

Loose gatherings of flowers give a natural look to all arrangements.

The Tarrywile Mansion exudes warmth and charm, with its breathtaking veranda, welcoming foyer, multiple cozy dining rooms, and indoor atrium. In following with the Midsommar wildflower theme, cocktail high tops received unique bud vases and votives.

The last of the season's lady's mantle flows softly in all directions. Red hot poker provides a bright highlight.

Wild and wonderful, and stunning against the white table linens.

Table centerpieces pulled together natural and ornamental elements in a pleasing medley of color.  Bachelor button remained a focal flower in these dear arrangements. Here, Love-in-the-mist looks like a gorgeous star. White canturbury bells, peachy yarrow, deep blue salvia, yellow tickseed and early zinnias provide quite a burst of celebratory color. Pink clovers provide a wild, wandering exclamation point.

I will always consider a dandelion flower worthy of inclusion.

One last look at the centerpieces, to point out a fun insert, and ask, "Why do we so vehemently object to dandelion flowers?" Can you spot that yellow beauty sitting front and center?  Wouldn't change it for anything. I say it looks perfectly dashing nestled amongst the lady's mantle foliage and "backlighted" by a crown of red bee balm. Absolutely perfect!

Congratulations to Betsy and Steve and families.  It was a real treat for me to work with you to create your Midsommar Celebration at Tarrywile. As I left the venue, I thought to myself, how wonderful to have every last minute of daylight on this gorgeous evening! What a wonderful day for a wedding." Thank you to Ed Marshall Photography of NYC for sharing beautiful photos of the day. It was also a pleasure to work with Chris Angione of Carriage House Events and Catering to get the flowers and votives just right.

A Wedding with Coral Peonies and Sherbet Palette

Coral peonies, vibrant tulips, and soft astilbe make a smashing bouquet.

One of the first questions Danya asked was, "Do you grow coral peonies?'

Coral was going to be her color. Then, coral metamorphosed into sherbet colors, and, wow, what a fabulous combination it became.  

Nearly a year later, coral and sherbet were absolutely smashing.  

Pew flowers add a beautiful touch.

Congratulations Danya and Steve. I loved working with you and your families, watching your wedding plans evolve into a lovely ceremony at Greens Farms Congregational Church and a heavenly reception in your Westport home. Every detail was driven by love for a very happy occasion.

Pew flowers graced several of the pew ends along the church's two aisles. Yes, two aisles.  It is quite an interesting and beautiful church. The church grounds are absolutely stunning as well.

From the start, the big question was, "How will coral blend (or not blend) with the red fabric seating and carpeting?"

I'd say it worked quite nicely!

Two aisles, of course, necessitated two matching altar pieces.

Both lovely.

Flowers arriving at a reception create such an overwhelming and awesome blossom of color!

Wow!

Here are Danya's and Steve's flowers making their grand entrance. 

Mercury pedestal vases and mercury juleps were an awesome combination.

Just love the elegance of mercury glass! Did anyone say, "Sherbet?" Yum.

Mercury glass pedestal vases looked great.

Can't imagine anything nicer than working with all of these amazingly beautiful blooms. 

And, did I tell you, stock has the most amazing fragrance?

Mercury glass juleps paired wonderfully with the pedestal vases.

A lovely setting for a late May wedding.

Now, the finished look. Gorgeous with a beautiful, delicate, white runner gracing the farm tables, and light linens atop the round tables. 

Couldn't have been nicer.

Here's a look at a pedestal on the round tables from overhead.

Love the choice of table runners and linens.

If I were the bride, this is where I would like to sit!

Of course, the groom would have to sit very close by!

Every wedding is so personal and unique. When people say, " It is your special day," there is great truth in the words.  

Do flowers make the cake?

New to me was working flowers into a "deconstructed" cake - three separated layers and using 'cake vases" on each of the cakes.  Thank you, Danya, for introducing me to something new.  Instead of inserting flowers directly into the cakes, or into frosting on the cakes, a cake vase sits atop the cake and one inserts flowers into the plastic vase.  

This is actually the smallest of the cakes, and the cake vase certainly allowed for a wonderful display of blossoms and color.

At the end of the day, I must say, I loved sitting in the kitchen and talking flowers with out-of-town family members while putting the flowers on the cakes.  I loved creating a floral wreath for the little one in the family. I loved working coral peonies into an awesome sherbet palette. 

Congratulations Danya and Steve. A beautiful wedding it was! I thoroughly enjoyed working with you and your families. Love always!

Spring Weddings....sigh

Peonies, of course, are superstars in spring weddings. Stock and Iris make them shine. Congratulations to Lis and Russell. Thanks for trusting me with your flowers on your special day at Fox Hill Inn.  I sure had fun putting them all together!

Photo Mike Evans of CT Photo Group

Loved the simple elegance of the bridal bouquet, with long string of pearls.  

Photo Mike Evans of CT Photo Group

Attendants carried posies individualized for the amazingly beautiful hues of each gown.

Photo Mike Evans of CT Photo Group

Two rows of shepherds hooks framed the ceremony. Soft pink peonies, lavender, cream, and pink stock, and lovely purple iris shined.

A very dear way to showcase the ceremony, which took place in front of Fox Hill Inn's dramatic fountain. Rose petals lined the outdoor aisle.

Photo Mike Evans of CT Photo Group

A wrought iron urn graced with peonies welcomed guest into the Inn. Feathery Astilbe added a dreamy softness.

Curly willow branches leant their artistic magic. Dusty rose petals and votives graced the mosaic table.

Dining tables also showcased the lovely spring palette of dusty rose, heavenly pink, irresistible lavender and soft creamy yellow.

Centerpieces in mercury glass pedestal vases were spectacular to create.

Lily of the Valley offered a fragrant finishing touch.

Loved the wine bottles the bridal party used for numbering the tables.

All in all a very nice evening for a wonderful couple and their families and friends.

Thanks to Lis and Peggie, for sharing a lovely cup of tea together and making floral planning such a fun, exciting, and pleasant experience.  Thanks also to Patty Finnigan, General Manager of Fox Hill Inn and to Ewa Ojarovska, Event and Hospitality Consultant extraordinaire of Epicurean Worldwide. Love your photos, Mike Evans, of CT Photo Group.

Slow Flowers are catching on

Slow flowers?  What the heck are those?  Do they take longer to grow?  Are they slow to bloom, or slow to fade? Actually, Slow Flowers refers to a movement to bring locally grown flowers back to our floral trade. Across the country, local flower farmers are working hard to put homegrown flowers in your hands. Several organizations, websites and blogsites now provide significant information on locally-grown flowers and resources to help you find local flower farmers. Butternut Gardens is proud to be a member of the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers, a professional organization dedicated to helping flower farmers grow better flowers. At the ASCFG website, you will find a resource list of local flower growers across the country. So, if you are looking for locally grown flowers for your daily decorating needs or for wedding or other event, the ASCFG website can help. Find the ASCFG website here: http://www.ascfg.org/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1

Butternut Gardens is also a contributor to the relatively new Field to Vase blog, which can be accessed here: http://fieldtovase.com/blog/  This is a fun resource for learning a bit more about local flower farmers and farmer florists, and the ins and outs of what it means to grow cut flowers and design with local blooms.  As a matter of fact, my first blog post for Field to Vase went live in early June.  I'd love it if you read it.  It's all about what goes into the making of YOUR bouquet!  Find it here:  http://fieldtovase.com/butternut-gardens-making-bouquet/

For more extensive reading on slow flowers and local flower farming, I also recommend the following books: The 50 Mile Bouquet: Seasonal, Local and Sustainable Flowers by Debra Prinzing and Fresh from the Field Wedding Flowers by Lynn Byczynski and Erin Benzakein.