We have got used to picking up flowers from the supermarket, but have you ever wondered where the flowers actually come from? The supermakets sell seasonal flowers, but looking deeper those seasonal flowers may be from the Netherlands, Kenya, Israel, along side those from the UK. Some flowers will have a Union Jack, but this may just indicate the arrangement was made in the UK, with flowers from other sources. (This was looking in february at Spring or Seasonal Flowers!)
How to make flowers arrangements more eccological and sustainable:
- grow your own flowers
- use flowers that dry and can be used as dried flowers or seed heads eg hydragea or teasels
- use natural and biodegradable materials, such as moss, bark
- avoid oasis - use twigs or reuse chicken wire to hold flowers in place
- reuse and compost where possible
In our church buildings, home of God and first home of God's people, we place God's creation, nurtured and tended by us as an act of true worship. As a team the Garden Club are using the Lady Chapel to show case sustainable arrangments. We are using plants which are in the churchyard, hedgerows or our gardens. By thinking outside the box, our arrangements can impact the senses, and may be interesting due to the shape of the leaves or the colour of the greenery, or perhaps have a lovely scent. Over the winter, our arrangements may be winter decorations with evergreens and pinecones - Holly, Ivy (both with flowers and berries), Yew, Pittosporum and fircones. We want to share God's creation with the visitors to the Lady Chapel, and hopefully enhance the peace and calm of that space.
See Sustainable Church Flowers website for more information. https://suschurchflowers.com/
scented leaves
dried Hydrangea
bowl of winter treasures