There are hundreds of different flowers being grown around the world for use in the floral industry, and every florist has their own favourites to design with that play a big part in creating their signature style. For me here at Periwinkle, I love to craft my flower designs using a unique mix of premium blooms that are super seasonal and mix them with the favourites that always put on a great show.
This means that as we move through the seasons the flower mix I use in your orders will be different, even week to week the mix changes as I pick the best flowers from the Ontario flower market that is fed by our amazing local growers as well as picking up special bunches of goodness that are at the wholesalers, who receive deliveries from the Dutch market as well as South America.
Here's a quick cheat sheet on my absolute favourites that you can expect to see:
Year round super stars:
Roses of all shades, but I'm especially partial to pinks, peaches, soft buttery yellows and oranges. My two favourites right now are "Free Spirit" that looks like a sunset, and "Creme de la Creme" which is a soft buttery yellow.
Alstromeria in a rainbow of colours; snapdragons in pinks, oranges, reds; Spray roses in pinks, creamy champagnes, oranges; Carnations, some loathe them but they are actually really fluffy and pretty and come in some fabulous unusual colours and varieties. Lisianthus (my favourite is white with a pink edge)
Premium blooms that are (usually) super seasonal and special that I add in to the mix:
Winter:
Helebore, double Tulips, ranunculus, Amarylis, narcissus
Spring:
More tulips, ranunculus (this is their actual season and can be field grown in the spring), anemones, narcissus,
Summer:
Peonies, these beauties are only around for a few weeks a year and that can be anytime from late May into July depending on the weather, my favourite to design with is "Coral charm"; Sweet peas, these are also only a few weeks usually in July; Dahlias, these usually start in late July into August. Ranunculus continue. Stock, which smell like sweet cloves and are super frilly and delightful.
Fall:
Asclepias, berries, dahlias until the first frost. Ranunculus
When making an arrangement or bouquet, I start with a mix of some of the all year super stars that are solid performers and tend to have a nice long vase life, then punctuate the design with the special seasonal luxury blooms that are the secret spice that makes my designs so special.