Hopefully Planting Daffodils this Autumn
October 2020 And Its Bulb Planting TimeI am starting with hope, and hope springs eternal.
We may be on the brink of another lockdown in the North West right now but I urge you to plant a few bulbs. You see, I believe in the hope of flowers. Not just any old flowers mind you. Beautiful, nurturing, scented and sustainable flowers no less. Flowers with the power to heal and feed our thriving bees. There will be hireyth here even if I cannot drive to my Welsh homelands.
Our Canalside cutting garden has been our focus and our saving grace. Like many others though, our fierce ethical floral business has needed to change and adapt to remain viable.
Ironically, on the weekend we had planned to hold our Autumn dried floral wreath workshop, we are launching our digital offering - group and 1-2-1 online flower classes. Digital rather than depersonalised. No recorded videos here but an online floral interactive experience recreating the creative community of our village hall classes. We would love to have you join us. Contact me to find out more and book.
In the meantime, come and say hello on Instagram where we post our regularly.
Subscribe
to the fierceblooms newsletterSign up to hear about sustainable floristry and flower growing advice from the originator of Wild Garden Style. Hear about our creative classes using seasonal, scented British grown flowers from our Cheshire canalside cutting garden.
If it matters to you to make a statement on your wedding day that you honour and respect the environment as well as each other, then I'd love to be right there with you.
Fierce Wedding Flowers
Make A Special StatementI create romantic wedding florals using my unique seasonal flowers and foliage grown in our canalside cutting garden.
My wild garden style floral designs include utterly bespoke bouquets, uniquely different flower crowns, beautiful buttonholes and fabulous floral installations for weddings in Cheshire and the surrounding counties.
I am aware that your wedding is a special moment that celebrates your life and love. It can also signal your unique style and aesthetic and be as special in other important ways too. Perhaps you want your wedding flowers to be as lovely to the environment as they are to look at? If so, then I'd love to be right there with you as your wedding floral partner. Enquire to book your consultation.
British flowers are key to my wild garden style floral design for both aesthetic and environmental reasons.
About Fierceblooms
more about MeIam an artisan florist growing British flowers with a design studio and cutting garden nestled beside a historic canal in rural Cheshire.
If sustainability is important to you, if it matters that your flowers are as lovely to the environment as they are to look at, then I am a kindred spirit.
Get in touch to discuss your wedding or event. You can also be inspired and learn what informs my original designs by attending one of my flower classes . Update - 2020 FTF classes in our local village hall have been cancelled due to Covid, but get in touch with me regarding live on-line 1-2-1s.
Follow Me On Instagram
@fierceblooms
There are positives and not so positives to everything…..
.
.
I love our beech tree. In fact I spent quite a bit of time protecting him but that’s another tale. He is big and old and a rather handsome shape. And don't ask me why but he is a he! His amazing branches are collected when blown down and used for many things. Autumn bouquets, pea supports and our wild garden style wreaths to name a few as well as excellent kindling to start our fire.
.
He is cloaked in all his autumn splendour right now. Well, I say all his autumn splendour. An ever increasing carpet of deep yellow and orange is drifting down, hiding the still growing grass. All those leaves are calling to be shredded and added to our composts bins……..whoever said autumn was a quieter time of year I’d like a word with them………our darling beech is keeping us fit though.
.
.
Sign up to our newsletter if you are intersted in what we are up to in our wild garden next to the canal. What’s on your autumnal to do list this weekend?
.
.
.
.
.
Creativity connects, creativity challenges, creativity risks………..
.
.
.
….and right now, for our purpose and our meaning, we’re focusing on our craft and our fierce intent. British grown dried flowers and Autumn dried flower wreaths.
.
.
And, as things are a bit unpredictable in our world at the moment, we’re creating in our live on line virtual classes. Sustainabilty remains at the heart of our creativity. In our autumn wreath class the other night, I shared how to make this wild garden style wreath, why we have decided to grow local flowers in our Cheshire canalside cutting garden, and how creating wreaths is giving us focus at the moment.
.
.
For me, beauty still matters though, and caring for our patch of the earth is feeling more important than ever. There is never any compromise on using only British grown ingredients. Swipe left to hear more about this wreath made with flowers grown in our cutting garden.
.
.
DM me now if you’d like further details of our Autumn dried flower wreath class. I’d love you to join me live, on line, and say hello for some floral restorative moments.
.
.
.
.
.
.
#autumnwreath #flowersfromthefarm #helichrysum #sustainableflowers #gatherandcurate #frontdoorwreath #britishflowers #nofloralfoam #flowerwreath #embracingtheseasons #driedflorals #wildgardenstyle #seasonalfloweralliance #autumnwreaths #floralwreath #flowerwreaths #customwreath #underthefloralspell #autumnwreaths #driedflowers
An o’dark hundred start for an autumnal bouquet…...
.
.
….and in other Autumnal news, the kitchen looks like there’s an octopus party in full swing as my ranunculus soak. Thank goodness malva and viola will look lovely together as there’s been a bit of accidental social mixing but all in the pursuit of British flower growing.
.
.
Do sign up to our newsletter if you’d like to hear what else is taking over in our Wharf and the other things that are happening in our canalside cutting garden.
.
.
What’s taking over in your cutting garden today?
.
.
.
#autumnbouquet #sustainableflowers #underthefloralspell
#seasonalfloweralliance
#floralinspiration #floralinspo
#blooooms #dsfloral
#flowersandotherstories #gatherandcurate
#myfloraldays #slowfloralstyle
#bouquetinspiration #justbefloral
#flowerinspiration #floralfix
#wildforflowers #floralstories
#fierceblooms
#wildgardenstyle #britishflowers
# You are on your feet a bit when you grow and arrange your own flowers……
.
.
I am a steel toe cap kind of girl when it comes to boots in our cutting garden but comfortable as they are, these feet have done a bit of walking. It was time for a bit of fancy footwork so my feet took me to @thenantwichclinic.
.
.
…and I wanted to say thank you to them in the only way I know how. A wild garden grown bouquet with the last of the roses and the scent of geranium. A thank you for being there. A thank you for taking care of my feet, right now, when everything is feeling very very precious.
.
.
.
And even though things look a little bit tricky at the moment, if you feel like a moment of floral respite, I’d love to welcome you virtually to our Canalside cutting garden to share every last wild garden style Autumnal floral moment with you.
.
.Who’s on your grateful to list today?
.
.
.
.
.
#sustainableflowers #underthefloralspell
#seasonalfloweralliance
#floralinspiration #floralinspo
#blooooms #dsfloral
#flowersandotherstories #gatherandcurate
#myfloraldays #slowfloralstyle
#bouquetinspiration #justbefloral
#flowerinspiration #floralfix
#wildforflowers #floralstories
#fierceblooms
#wildgardenstyle #britishflowers #autumnbouquet
Honesty is always the best policy……
.
.
…..and once you have honesty, you’re never short of seeds! The flowers are beautiful but that’s not why everyone grows them…..
.
.
….beautiful ethereal discs of transparent white are revealed when the seeds are peeled away and they look beautiful as dried flowers Autumn wreaths.
.
.
Creating an Autumn wreath with dried flowers and seed heads is a bit of a labour of love, but feels uncompromisingly seasonal at this Autumnal moment. If you’d like to know what other garden grown ingredients I have included in this wild garden style wreath, I’d be delighted to have a chat at one of our live online classes. None of your pre recorded videos here. You get the real me in real time from our canalside cutting garden. Will you be joining me?
.
.
.
.
#autumnwreath #flowersfromthefarm #honestyplant #sustainableflowers #gatherandcurate #frontdoorwreath #britishflowers #nofloralfoam #flowerwreath #embracingtheseasons #driedflorals #wildgardenstyle #seasonalfloweralliance #autumnwreaths #floralwreath #flowerwreaths #customwreath #underthefloralspell #autumnwreaths #driedflowers
Growing flowers to make wreaths, or anything else for that matter, you need to know when the storm’s a’coming…..
.
.
…and in probably more ways than just the weather at the moment but I am sticking to the weather and floral wreaths for this missive……
So when our clock started running at random minutes behind and ahead of the hour I decided to kill two birds with one stone and purchase a mechanical barometer that told me the time and the weather, one that whirred and clicked and looked beautiful. After all, anyone growing flowers knows we are constantly checking the weather. Do we put the plants out? Do we tuck them up? You can imagine the decisions.
.
.
I can happily report the daily excitement on hearing the mechanism change. I can also report that although the barometric clock has been with us for a few months now in our Cheshire canalside cutting garden, up in the North of England, it has yet to turn to “very dry”…… and if you want to hear more about our antics here, sign up to our brand new newsletter where we're talking about our live on line classes, a very different offering.....
.
.
How do you keep track of the weather?
.
.
.
#autumnwreath #flowersfromthefarm #helichrysum #sustainableflowers #gatherandcurate #frontdoorwreath #britishflowers #nofloralfoam #flowerwreath #embracingtheseasons #thefloralseasons #wildgardenstyle #seasonalfloweralliance #eucalyptuswreath #floralwreath #flowerwreaths #customwreath #underthefloralspell #autumnwreaths #wreathlove
“Which way up do these daffodils go?”
.
.
…..was the question from the Scot, wrapped up in more layers than he would care to admit to his fellow countrymen, that prompted the decision not to let the daffodil bulb planting proceed any further unsupervised.....
.
.
Swipe left and music on to see the planting. We are almost through the third sack and then some in our very British canalisde cutting garden. And this year more than any other, my feeling is that hope does literally spring eternal from planting daffodils. The spring bulbs that start as unpromising papery brown things and burst into their bright bright yellow life just when I suspect we will at the point of needing them most.
.
.
There’s too many daffodil varieties to list here but I have listed my favourite daffodils in our newly published newsletter. Sign up now in my profile to find out, but suffice it to say, there is more thalia.
.
.
What bulb varieties are you planting?
.
.
.
.
.
.
.#daffodils #bulbplanting #sustainableflowers #underthefloralspell
#seasonalfloweralliance
#growyourownflowers #localblooms
#gardengathered #fieldtovase
#flowersfromthefarm #grownnotflown
#cutflowergarden #cuttinggarden
#cutflowers #floralinspiration
#locallygrownflowers #springbulbs #aflowerfilledlife
#fierceblooms
#wildgardenstyle #Britishflowers
Autumn has arrived with rather a damp splash up North……
.
.
....and my newly forming crocus lawn looks like several moles have had an all night party…….socially distanced of course......
.
.
But the real moles are in residence in our paddock. When it was “topped”, that is cut to you or I, the vintage tractor and its driver were not happy. “Blunts the blades” I was told in no uncertain terms.
.
.
Perhaps I am too sentimental about our moles but I will give them the winter. And the wreath on the door? Well, I am getting rather sentimental about them too. Just because no one may be coming to your or my front door this winter, other then the postman that is, I for one will be creating them. Sustainably. Seasonaly.
.
.
Will you be creating a wreath for your postman?
.
.
.#autumnwreath #flowersfromthefarm #honestyplant #sustainableflowers #gatherandcurate #frontdoorwreath #britishflowers #nofloralfoam #flowerwreath #embracingtheseasons #thefloralseasons #wildgardenstyle #seasonalfloweralliance #eucalyptuswreath #floralwreath #flowerwreaths #customwreath #underthefloralspell #autumnwreaths #wreathlove
2020 is the year I learned.....
.
.
......how to wash my hands properly, and then, like everyone, got far too much practice……..
.
.
What I don’t think you can ever have far too much practice at though is any creative endeavour. In our cutting garden, new beds have been created and are blooming this Autumn. Frankly, I had literally a captive audience! And the flowers? Well they have been as plentiful as the rain. Any while real weddings have been in short supply, sharing how I create my wild garden style bouquets virtually is the one thing I have loved doing. Frankly, it is the one thing that has kept us sane. The verb “to zoom” is one I anticipate entering the Oxford English dictionary this year. Who would have thought?
.
.
What’s keeping you sane this year?
.
.
.#autumnbouquet #weddingbouquetideas #wildflowerbouquet #flowersfromthefarm #bridalbouquets #rusticweddingbouquet #britishflowers #bridesbouquet #wildgardenstyle #floralinspiration #bouquetinspiration #britishgrownflowers #gatherandcurate #rusticbouquet #bridalbouquet #bouquetinspo #weddingbouquets #embracingtheseasons #grownnotflown #fierceblooms
A gathering.......
.
.
……of the last helichrysum grown for drying this year, grown for our autumn wreaths in our very very damp Cheshire cutting garden happened today.
.
.
And frankly, I am thinking that is likely to be the last of any sort gathering in the North West of England for this year at least………
.
.
That’s why we’re digitising our Autumn wreath classes. Digitising but never depersonalising. Cheshire and the world may have become a more risky prospect for gathering this year, but our Wharf has been returned to its former warehouse status for drying so we can share our autumnal bounty with in our home with you in the safety of your home.
.
.
If you have half decent internet and a desire for a floral on line experience that still has you talking to a real person, this grower and fierce florist would love to talk to you about how to create a sustainable autumnal wreath in the community of like minded others. DM me for further details.
.
.
.
.
.
#autumnwreath #flowersfromthefarm #helichrysum #sustainableflowers #gatherandcurate #frontdoorwreath #britishflowers #nofloralfoam #flowerwreath #embracingtheseasons #thefloralseasons #wildgardenstyle #seasonalfloweralliance #driedflorals #floralwreath #flowerwreaths #customwreath #underthefloralspell #autumnwreaths #driedflowers
The last hurrah for my dahlias and roses.....
.
.
.....and the thought for today is that life is precious whatever the circumstances.......
.
.
I have been labelling my dahlias and cutting my roses and daring to hope that there will be late Cheshire frost this Autumn.
.
.
.
Have you labelled your dahlias yet?
.
.
.
#dahlias #dahliabouquet #dahlialove #dahliaseason #inmygardentoday #cutflowergarden #floralfix #floralinspiration
#blooooms #gatherandcurate
#myfloraldays #blooooms #flowersfrommygarden
#gardengathered #fierceblooms
#wildgardenstyle #dahliaflower #britishflowers #sustainableflowers #dahlia #cuttinggarden
And all of a sudden it is Autumn......
.
.
........days with dahlias, steaming tea and the crackle of wood.....
.
.
Things have been a wee bit quiet of late but we’ve been busy in our canalside cutting garden. So before we find ourselves by that fireside idyl, there are a few things we’d like to share.....
.
.
Cutting flowers for our “live” on line classes with like minded floral enthusiasts around our beautiful world has been our sanity and inspiration. In these isolating times, having a real time conversation is something I have cherished and felt grateful for. That’s why our Autumn and Christmas classes will be the same. Virtual for us doesn’t mean sharing a video. Virtually for us means a nurturing connection where you can ask me a question right there and then. It will be me live not some prerecorded floral video. As you can imagine, to get it right takes time and a bit of technical development.
.
.
When the dahlias are labelled, and they are almost labelled, we’ll be finalising the live classes. I’d be delighted to see you. DM me now for further details x
Would you love a Tulip Bridal bouquet in August?
.
.
Now if you are in the southern hemisphere, with the tulips emerging from their winter slumber, then this tulip bridal bouquet is scented seasonal and sustainable.
.
.
You may be pondering why am I even thinking of tulips in August? Well, just like back in March, when the world shifted, I thought about whether to plant any seeds, here I am at that same moment wondering about planting bulbs. Even more than at the start of this year, growing to make a sustainable difference, to give an alternative floral option matters.
.
.
We have all felt that Autumn is almost here. This tulip bouquet is to say hello to all those spring brides who are feeling hopeful, many who have moved their weddings from this 2020 year. If this year has made you want wedding flowers that are as kind to the earth as they are beautiful, DM.
Sharpening my saw.....
.
.
.
I am being like the woodcutter today - practicing my craft in slack times.
.
.
I made this pedestal earlier - the pickings of the abundance of flowers in the cutting garden right now. The dahlias are especially prolific at the moment with ‘Labyrinth’ in all her splendour strutting her diva stuff in this rather exuberant arrangement.
.
.
I do have a small wedding this weekend which is good. The lovely couple involved have had some rotten luck with their timings - not the least the recent re-tightening of permissible social distancing within Greater Manchester. My heart really goes out to them and so obviously I want to do my very best for them with my florals.
.
.
What are you up to these next few days my flowery friends?
Simple pleasures, complex times...
.
.
.
Our cutting garden lies alongside an historic canal. Since our section of the canal runs across a particularly flat portion of the Cheshire plain, Thomas Telford and his engineers in 1834 had to bank up the surrounding land when building it.
.
.
The downside of this is that you have to climb uphill from our village to our canal wharf . The upside is that we are afforded a beautiful view from our cutting garden out over the farmland on the Cheshire Plain.
.
.
These August evenings, after another seemingly inevitable day of depressing news, I for one need a little ritual to sustain me.
This view, as I walk up the cutting garden to deadhead the dahlias in full bloom, does just that.
.
.
What are your simple sustaining little pleasures at the moment ?
Dahlias - Top tips now the data is in…..
Treat them mean to keep them keen is my finding. This is an oft used phrase when discussing affairs of the heart, and while I am not too sure about its guidance on that subject, it does stand scrutiny with our dahlias.
.
.
Next year then, no time or soil will be spent potting dahlias up. The dahlia’s will be in the ground late April with a fleece, copper rings and a liberal sprinting of egg shells . Only one small piece of dahlia tuber will be planted not a massive clump as the flowers from less is definitely more.
.
.
And labelling? Well, still cracking that particular nut………
.
.
What’s your favourite dahlia this year?
Forever everlasting flower crowns…
.
.
Sometimes you want things to last forever. Sometimes you don't! This floral crown was made a few weeks ago at one of my on line classes. The colour is like our fading garden. The textures echo the Cheshire hedgerows. Everything is changing.
.
.
I love sharing what I create, the techniques I use to build them but I hadn’t shared what had been created that day. And then I knew why. I wanted it to dry before you saw it. I wanted everything to knit and weave together and then settle. That’s when I would consider it was finished.
.
.
This one has rosemary, artemisa, nigella, euphorbia, a dash of clary sage. Oh, and grass from our paddock. Swipe to see more views of the crown. What’s happening in your floral day this Tuesday?
Here is a Monday morning jug of joy for you....
.
.
.
As our little staycation extends sneakily into today, I thought it would be good to just plonk these roses in one of my old french pitchers, with its matching browns and honeyed yellows, on the kitchen table. Because it looks just like the sunrise this morning as August ripens into late summer.
.
.
.
Already in these early mornings, with the almost imperceptibly changing colour and smell even, one can feel September and Autumn whispering of its coming.
.
.
Can you sense the arrival of Autumn in your garden?
It’s a totally tangerine sort of Sunday.
.
,
.
The sun is shining (in fact it’s a scorcher) and this weekend we are having a slight staycation.
.
.
.But it’s dahlia season and I still had to cut these ‘Totally Tangerine’ and ‘Salmon Runner’ dahlias which are growing their socks off in the cutting garden and nodding in the gentle summer breeze. These eye poppers theme perfectly with the blue sky - and my blue apron come to that.
.
.
. What are you doing with yourself this beautiful August Sunday? Me - I’ll be in the paddling pool.
I am feeling a little wild this Friday morning..
.
.
.
This small wild garden style bouquet that is.
,
,
With sweetpeas, Nigella, scabiosa, their seed pods, lysimachia beaujolais and grass from our paddock she’s a floral miniature marvel. Beautiful but not exuberant or overstated, this one would make an ideal bridesmaid bouquet -
complementing but not upstaging her bride whom she is there to support on the latter’s special day.
.
.
Given these unique times and curtailed attendee numbers limitations at weddings, I realise bridesmaids may be rather thin on the ground at the moment - so let’s give them a shoutout and big flowery hug today.
.
.
Which supporters and background helpers would you call out this Friday?
