5 Flowers I Would Ask For: July Edition
As part of an ongoing series on Instagram
For the past several months, I’ve been doing a monthly series focused on my favorite seasonal flowers available during the growing season (here in New York: April through October/November-ish). I haven’t yet done any accompanying blog posts, but let’s start here with July. Yes, we’re halfway through the year, but…better late than never!
While June is technically the beginning of summer, June flowers are still mostly holdouts from spring: fluffy peonies, soft ranunculus, the last of our tulips. July flowers signal that we are really in summer now, and the heat brings hardier blooms in vibrant colors.
Without further ado, here are the flowers I would ask my florist to use if I were getting married in July:
Number 1: Echinacea
Echinacea aka Coneflower
Echinacea- in my top five favorite flowers! When I got married in early June, I desperately wanted these beauties for my bridal bouquet and floral arrangements, but sadly it was just too early. Luckily, I can live vicariously through any of my couples getting married later in the summer!
These beauties are most well-known for the pinkish purple color above, but what makes these so special and versatile is their range of available colors! The sunset tones below are a great example:
Hello gorgeous!!
Number 2: Strawflower
Stawflower aka Xerochrysum
Strawflowers: wow, talk about a range of color. The peachy variety above is definitely my favorite, but these stunners can be found in a ton of shades.
Check out the silvery pink and deep purple varieties below:
The best thing about strawflower? You can hang these babies upside down to dry, and they look nearly identical to how they look when fresh! Then you can use them as permanent decor throughout the year in bud vases or in your winter wreaths.
You can spot some in my wreath from last year here:
Number 3: Chamomile
Chamomile, often mistaken for Feverfew
Chamomile (yes, the same one in your nighttime tea!) is such a sweet sprinkle to add to any July wedding palette. These won’t dry well, but enjoy them while they’re here- dainty, sweet, and with a cottagecore vibe to soften more angular flowers.
If you’re arranging chamomile at home in a vase, take your allergy meds before; these blooms tend to make everyone VERY sneeze-y!
Number 4: Delphinium
Delphinium “Cliveden Beauty”
Oh Delphinium. A true heartstopper.
Most non-florists don’t know this, but blue is a challenging color to integrate into a palette without using artificial dyes! Blue is probably the least commonly-occurring color among flowers, so we take any opportunity to use natural blues we can get. Muscari & tweedia in the spring, delphinium in the summer, and thistle in the fall. Blue hydrangea is available imported most of the year, but can look a bit dated in design work (don’t come for me!!).
Delphinium comes in a ton of shades, including white, purple, and pink. It dries nicely, but where it SHINES after a wedding is as a pressed flower. I pressed a ton of delphinium flowers for the place cards at my wedding, which you can see here:
Number 5: Garlic Scapes
Twirly, curly garlic scapes (yes, the same ones you eat!)
Garlic scapes are an absolute must for anyone drawn to dynamic shapes, adding angles and curlicues to arrangements and bouquets.
Here’s an arrangement I designed last summer with them and some local tomatoes from the farmers’ market:
If you source these from a pesticide-free grower, you can eat these afterwards! Hot tip: use them in a dirty martini for a local summer twist.