Frost warnings

Just a few hours ago I learned that at a certain point in September, Environment Canada stops issuing frost advisories for Alberta. Incidentally, that happens to be today, despite the fact that Edmonton has yet to experience a hard frost. Apparently we’re to fend for ourselves now.

To be fair, the system is fairly straightforward. If the predicted nighttime low is between 5 – 1 then there is a “risk of frost” while if it hits 0, in Edmonton, we get “patchy frost.” Below 0, it is simply “low -2 with frost.”

So tonight I am crossing my fingers that it is indeed a night of patchy frost and not a hard freeze. I have a few events I need flowers for this weekend and the rest of the week is supposed to be beautiful. We’ve already survived one night of similar conditions, surely tomorrow will see us safe again? Ah, fall in Edmonton. Always toying with my emotions and cluttering my counters with flowers clipped haphazardly in the dark on particularly chilly nights.

The frost has been good for my creativity though. Since I can’t rely on garden flowers for events at this point in the year, there’s no real reason to save them. Instead I am trying to cram in as many creative projects as possible, and any orders that go out get extra garden flowers. It’s a bit of a rush, but I’m happy to keep it up until October, when I have to settle into serious garden maintenance routines.

Yes, October will be a month of digging. There are trees and bulbs on order for a garden I’m helping to design, set to arrive the first week of October. Plus my own bulb orders and baby perennials that were too small to go into the garden in the spring waiting to be planted, ideally sooner rather than later. The annuals will need to be composted, the dahlia tubers harvested, and the perennial beds mulched.

I suppose the date of our first hard frost isn't really the end of my season. Gardening only ends when the ground freezes solid. 

Pop Up Flower Shop - September 12th

This Saturday come visit me downtown for mixed bouquets in shades of burgundy and purple, bunches of sweet peas in hot orange and pink, and even a few dahlias (my favourites rights now are a true red) - all from my garden! Also dispensing free flower growing advice if that's more your thing. Come say hello!

A few bouquets

This summer I have made more wedding bouquets than ever before. It's an interesting exercise in colour and form. No two are ever the same, even if I deliberately try to use the same mixture of ingredients. In the endless variations among individual flowers lies potential and beauty. 

Late night whites

Of course, I'm always taking pictures of them at the worst possible times - late at night, in a rush in the morning with no one around to hold it. I end up fussing over them until the very last moment when I have to deliver them safely. At this point, I am trying to wait patiently for photos from some of the weddings I did this summer but it's difficult. 

Special bouquets ride up front

For those who have been following the garden - it's still going strong. I have a million sweet peas and in a strange reversal many of the plants are throwing out increasingly long stems. At this point I am harvesting several hundred stems every 2/3 days which is pretty incredible. Starting the plants indoors and setting them out early worked well and the plants did not seem to suffer unduly in the heat except those that were water stressed. The second flush of roses is also coming, and I am enjoying watching the light through the huge heads of burgundy amaranth. I'm sorry to see the garden drift into fall - I fear winter - but I suppose it is that time of year. If we could just have until the end of September, or, if nature is feeling generous, thanksgiving, I would be a happy florist indeed. Garden flowers make my work seem more like an intellectual challenge and less like a routine service. Particularly when I must rely only on what grows in the yard.

A delivery photo courtesy of my mom

Amy Sanderson Flowers Featured on Belle Lumiere and Style Me Pretty

When Mana at Birds & Honey says she needs flowers for a shoot, I'm there, since she always brings together the best people. This time, she took inspiration from the art of writing letters. The bouquet especially reflects the sense of old fashioned whimsy I associate with paper correspondence, using peonies ('Sarah Bernhardt' bred in 1906), tiny begonias (popularized in the mid-1800s), and local tulips (lest one forget 1637, the year Dutch tulip mania peaked). I also loved making a simple flower crown, again featuring begonias, ranunculus (admittedly a more modern flower, but with old world charm), and roses in palest pink.

In the winter it can be tough to find any interesting flowers, but begonias are a good choice if you’re in need of some floral cheer.  I actually picked these ones up at Rona, which just goes to show you that you can find good floral materials anywhere if you look. While working on this project I discovered how hardy begonias are out of water. They last a surprisingly long time given their delicate look. It’s a shame that more people don’t use either the flowers or the leaves (which can be quite dramatic – google ‘rex begonias’). If you’re a fan of old fashioned begonias, I would be more than happy to make flowers for you! I’m convinced they will make a comeback sometime soon...

You can find more photos and words in Belle Lumiere's journal and on Style Me Pretty. 

Photography by: Milton Photography | Styling, design and creative direction by: Birds & Honey | Floral Design by: Amy Sanderson | Hair & Makeup by: Connie Quiza | Stationery and Calligraphy by: Layers of Loveliness | Ribbon from: Frou Frou Chic | Model: Pearl Naomi of House of Willa | Rosie Skirt from: Vivian Chan

The garden in mid-August

I'm not the best at thinning plants out of the garden. Every year we have a thicket of volunteer sunflowers that no one has the heart to pull and this year was no different, except that I had built new planter boxes over most of their unused stretch of gravel driveway. They sprung up in between the boxes and gradually started to shade out the dahlias and roses. Now that the light is fading early, and the dahlias are taking off, they had to go. Hence this arrangement which features the yellows and reds of the sacrificed sunflowers. 

As you might guess, I love flowers that have multiple colour tones, arrangements that allow different shades to play off each other, unexpected combinations that pop and sing. That's not to say I don't appreciate simplicity - sometimes all you want is a beautiful arrangement in whites and greens. But when I make flower arrangements from the garden I use the opportunity to experiment with colour combinations. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, but every one helps sharpen my imagination and confidence in putting together unique bouquets and arrangements. Hopefully they give you some ideas too! 

A distillation of the garden in August