Flowers for Mom

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Yesterday at the farm we had a Mother's Day workshop which is one of my absolute favorite workshops each year. Mother's day falls at the best time of the year for Linda's flowers. The flowers are incredibly fragrant and absolutely gorgeous.

Some of my all-time favorites that bloom around this time include: rununculus (the rose-like flower below), baptisia (the yellow stalk-like flower below), peonies, mock orange (my favorite), rhododendrons, spirea, smoke bush (I don't know its real name), and much more.

So, in honor of Mother's Day, (and because pictures of the farm are my mother's favorite posts) I decided to post some pictures of the beautiful flowers that all you mothers deserve to be given.

Happy Mother's Day!

Early Morning Flowers

This morning I dragged my lazy bones out of bed at 6:30 and drove over to Grandview Christian Church, to help Linda set up for a workshop of sorts. Linda was guest speaking/teaching on the topic of flower ministries.
As the go-to-flower gal around Grandview, Linda is well known around church, which is how I came to work on the farm with her.
She faithfully donates her beautiful arrangements to Grandview services every week for all to enjoy.
Flowers are a wonderful way to get involved at your local church. Don't grow cut flowers? That's ok! You would be amazed at the variety of arrangements you can make with tree branches, grasses, and even weeds.
The pictures I've included are just a few from this morning's workshop and should demonstrate how simple starting your own flower ministry could be. Enjoy!

Arrangements from the Garden

Spring is here! After having almost an entire week of beautiful sun, we had one of the first big thunderstorms of spring last night.

When we first moved to Tennessee, I never thought I would get used to the crashing thunder and giant bolts of lightning. Now, I love hearing the sound of heavy raindrops falling on the roof or slamming up against our glass door as the wind whips them every which way. It is soothing to listen to the rain and humbling to think about its mighty power.

In honor of what the beautiful sun and mighty rains bring to us each year (FLOWERS!), I thought I would post some simple arrangements thrown together at the farm in hopes of igniting creativity with your flowers at home.
These arrangements are so simple. Grab one main flower and throw in leaves, grasses, ferns, anything you can find popping up in your backyard or even along the side of the road.

I love color so picking one or two main flowers that are bright and contrasting is my go-to plan. Hosta leaves, honeysuckle vines, grasses, and ferns are great fillers that you can find just about anywhere.
When in doubt, go simple. If you have lots of one beautiful flower, like this next picture, simply throw them all in a plain vase or pitcher to make the flowers stand out. Don't worry about making your arrangements perfect and static like FTD. Fun, loose, and wild is the way to go... at least with flowers.
Peonies are a beautiful and full flower. They are abundant around Mother's Day and make arranging easy and quick. Below is a simple arrangement with only peonies and dianthus.
And of course, daffodils are the perfect spring flower. These bright beauties are perfect by themselves. If you decide to combine them with another plant like forsythia (which is blooming everywhere here in T-town), be sure to wash the stems to get rid of their sap. It is not friendly to other plants.
I hope these pictures have sparked some ideas. Now, go take a walk and explore the wide variety of spring plants and shrubs that will add the perfect flair to your arrangements. Be creative. Good luck and happy spring!

Spring on the Farm

Today was the first workshop of spring out at Aunt Willie's Wildflowers. Twelve women from a local gardening club donned their boots and made the trek out to the farm for a bird's nest workshop (pictures on website).

I went out to the farm yesterday to help Linda clean up the homeplace and make a few arrangements. We were so excited to be back outside working with the flowers. Yes, you heard right, flowers already! East Tennessee has had quite a few warm days making many of the flowers at Aunt Willies bloom early. This morning was sunny and with all the colorful flowers, I just had to take a few pictures to share with you all.

I couldn't believe how many arrangements we were able to make from the early bloomers. Small, white pitchers made the spring colors pop. Don't worry about not having much green filler to add to your arrangements, simple and loose combinations work well with these vibrant spring flowers.

These three pitchers in the window are my favorite arrangement location at the farm. We always have one stem of whatever is blooming in each pitcher. The simplicity of this arrangement against the beautiful landscape outside the window always makes a statement.

So, for those of you with a few bulbs popping out of the ground, grab your favorite jars or pitchers, cut a few stems, and bring some glorious spring into your home.