August would have to be one of my favourite months of the year for flowers! Still many of the winter blooms, but really seeing some springtime flowers coming in to the market!
Here are a few we are using at the moment in our work.
1. White magnolia
Meaning - Purity, innocence and virtue
I know you've seen a lot of magnolia on our insta lately, but white magnolia has just emerged at the market, and I love the elegant shade of white, with the hit of pink at the centre.
Image source - Elise Hassey for Floreat
2. Daphne
Meaning - Honesty, innocence and mortality
When I was once visiting Wayne and Alison from Aliway Enterprises, I could smell the most beautiful scent - when I asked what it was, Alison proudly said it was the daphne, 100m away under the camellia - need I say more!
3. Freesias
Meaning - friendship, trust, thoughtfulness and innocence
Right now is my favourite time for freesias, coming in mixed colours, nice and tall, and having the sweetest smell!
4. Anenomes
Meaning - A forsaken love
A sad meaning, but a gorgeous flower!! Coming in beautiful white/blush with a dark centre, red, hot pink and different shades of purple and burgundy.
5. Blossom
Meaning - Blossom represents spring, a new beginning and growth. Cherry blossom has additional meaning in Japan. Here this blossom type - sakura - represents life and the fact that we don't control it.
Beautiful japonica is still around, raspberry is my current fave, and some other fruit blossoms popping up!!
Image source: Pinterest
6. Camellia
Meaning - Love, Adoration and Longing
In beautiful whites, pinks and reds, camellia is beautiful as a gardeny style flower, and also has beautiful foliage.
Image source: Elise Hassey for Floreat
7. Birds of Paradise
Meaning - The bird of paradise flower symbolizes joyfulness, paradise, freedom, anticipation, and excitement
We love using "birds" - they have such an amazing shape and structure, and who would have thought a colour combo of orange and blue would work so well with so many things!
Birds of Paradise need 3 to 5 years to mature before they flower, so I feel each and every stem is a treasure!
I Love Wednesdays for Floreat
8. Dutch Iris
Meaning - Hope, wisdom, trust and valour
Dutch iris are a new favourite of mine - they are an old fashioned bloom, but I find the structure so beautiful! They are tight when you first get them, and when the open they hold for days! They come in a vibrant purple, but I love the white and yellow ones!
9. Daffodils and Jonquils
Meaning - Jonquils have long been associated with Narcissus, whose self-absorption caused his demise. The flowers also stand for creativity, inspiration, rebirth, vitality and success.
The simplest, but sweetest smelling of them all! Paperwhites and jonquils are the precursor to daffodils, and we are using them for everything at the moment!!
Image source - @tillawinstonflowers
10. Wattle
Meaning - As one species of a large genus of flora growing across Australia, the golden wattle is a symbol of unity
Wattle is native to Australia, and also introduced to other warmer climates around the world. It is often referred to overseas as "Mimosa".
Image source: Elise Hassey for Floreat
11. Carnations
Meaning - Fascination, disctinction, or love
With so many beautiful colours available, carnations, otherwise known as sims, have well and truly made a comeback.
I would never have dreamed a few years ago that I would be using carnations in our bouquets, but now, because of their colours, texture, and longevity, they are becoming a staple during the winter months!
Image source: I love Wednesdays for Floreat
12. Cymbidium Orchids
Meaning - orchids mean thoughtfulness, refinement, fertility, beauty, charm, and love, they're the perfect bloom to celebrate all of life's precious moments.
The lovely Neville Schaefer of Schaefer's Orchids only makes an appearance at Sydney Flower Market each Friday in the Winter months when his Cymbidium orchids are on full show, and what a treat it is when he's there. Our orchid order is always impeccably packed in boxes so that his prized Cymbids don't get damaged on their journey back to our studio. We got our first box last Friday, which is always a very exciting day!!
Image Source: Elise Hassey for Floreat
13. Tulips
Meaning - perfect and deep love
One of the biggest supplier's of tulips in Australia is de Boer tulips (which translates to "The Farmer"), who began their family business in the fields of Holland. Based in Victoria, they are now the biggest supplier of tulips to the Sydney Flower Market and their contribution to the Australian local flower industry is invaluable. Their wide range of interesting single, double, parrot and frilly tulips are some of the most beautiful we've seen.
Image Source: @ilovewednesdaysphoto for Floreat
They come in oranges, pinks, peaches, reds, burgundy, purple, yellow, white, and they last for 7-10 days, while you can enjoy watching as their stems grow in the vase, sometimes up to 15cm or more!
14. Poppies
Meaning - rememberance
Image Source: @jonimaflowers Instagram
The poppies popped up early this year, and we are very happy about that! We source our poppies from a few different growers, one of them being Jonima Flowers (read more about their family run farm here) who have tall, strong stemmed beauties in an incredible range of colours.
The come in white, pink, peach, red, yellow and orange sold all together in one mixed bunch, and can last for 5-7 days, depending on their stage of life. If closed in a bud and they haven't opened after a few days, you can scald the ends in boiling water for about 10 seconds or peel their furry, green cases off to nudge them open.
15. Sweet Peas
Meaning - Blissful Pleasure
Joe's sweet peas are back and better than ever!
Image source: Elise Hassey for Floreat
Here are a few of the bouquets and arrangements we've been making lately!
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