Since the flower market is currently bursting with blooming branches, Natalie and I wanted to create an arrangement to include one of our favorites – Dogwood. We used them at my wedding. We also decided to create an arrangement that includes three vases. Both of us thought it would be fun to showcase how to use multiple vases on one a console, table or alcove in your house. I have to say – we had a lot of fun designing this month’s feature together. Read on to see how we put it together and to get tips from Natalie.

How do you select the right three vases to go together?

When making a multi-vase arrangement I like to keep the color palate cohesive and add some interest through textural changes.

What flowers were used in this month’s arrangement?

Dogwood, daffodils, geranium leaf, tweedia, lilac, and ranunculus.

Any secret tips to keep these blooms lasting longer?

Flowers with woody stems, such as Lilac, need a lot of water. The best way to make sure they get plenty of water is to hammer the ends of the stems to fray the ends to allow for maximum water availability.

What comes into season in April?

April is a special time of year full of select Springtime blooms. Many April flowers do not grow at other times of year and are not available for import, which makes their short season that much more special. April brings us the end of flowering fruit and nut trees but does bring us incredible dogwood and lilac. We also start to see muscari, fritilaria, the continuing of tulips and hyacinth. We have also been getting the most wonderful varieties of ranunculus this year, which has been a treat.

We hope you enjoyed this month’s feature. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask in the comments. You can even let us know what you’d like to see in the coming months!

Flowers by Natalie Bowen Designs // Photos by Caitlin Flemming

In another life I think I would have been a florist – I’ve always had a passion for flowers. Natalie and I met over three years ago while designing the flowers for my wedding. As soon as we met I knew we would become friends. I’ve found that whenever I design an arrangement, or take photos of flowers at the market, people are asking me questions about what is in season, what I love using in arrangements and more. That’s when I turned to Natalie to start a once a month flower series called Blooms In Season. We will be traveling to the flower market to bring you what has come into season that month and then put together an arrangement with tips on how to make it look beautiful and little tricks to make it last longer. Read on for debut of this month’s Blooms In Season.

What flowers inspired this month’s arrangement?
I was most inspired by the beautiful plum ranunculus so I let that start the design for the arrangement. Ranunculus are in season right now and the deep saturated color seems so perfect for early Spring.

What blooms and branches are in season in March?
Ranunculus, cherry branches, bradford pear, poppies, tulip magnolia, fritilaria, anemones, narcissus, daffodil, muscari and tulips.

When working on an arrangement what do you do first?
I always clean my flowers and lay them out so that I can see what ingredients we have to work with.

Flowers We Used:
We used ranunculus, anemones, viburnum foliage, snowdrops and poppies. All of these flowers are in season and while most of them are available at other times of year, they looked so much more beautiful right now since they are in season.

Instructions:
I filled the vase half full. Ranunculus and poppies do not like a lot of water, so I made sure that there wasn’t too much water in the vase. As a rule of thumb I always clean all the leaves off the the stems that will be below the vase line. This looks so much better in a clear vase and also keeps the water cleaner which makes the flowers last longer. Poppies uniquely need to be burned at the tips to make sure that they do not drink too much water. I hold the freshly cut stem under a flame for ten seconds until I see them turn black.

Check back next month for another Blooms In Season feature.

Flowers by Natalie Bowen Designs // Photos by Caitlin Flemming