Wedding Flower Availability by the Season
By Petals & Loam
Wedding Flowers Available Year-Round
There are so many flowers that are available year-round, but just because they’re available doesn’t mean they’re in their prime. Some flowers do better when they’re naturally in season rather than when they’re forced to be in season, but we’ve compiled a list of a few flowers that are reliable all year.
Roses are one of the most consistent flowers year-round and we love using them in our designs because of their reliability. Other focal flowers that we love using throughout the year for weddings and events are carnations, gerbera daisies, ranunculus, scabiosa, chrysanthemums, and lilies. These flowers are reliable in that they typically always look full and are not only consistent when ordered but they also bring beauty to any arrangement.
For filler flowers we love wax flower, statice, limonium, solidago, baby’s breath, or hypericum berries for their longevity and consistency.
The beauty with these flowers is that they come in a wide variety of colours which means they are perfect staples for wedding or event flowers whenever the season.
What Flowers Are Available For My Wedding?
Flower seasonality and availability is a huge unknown to so many people getting married. Many brides and grooms are unsure of what flowers are in season for their wedding and can sometimes get their hearts broken when they find out that their favourite flower is out of season (or extremely expensive to source because it’s out of season).
With global sourcing it’s easy to think that flowers are always available and while that is true for the most part, there are flowers that thrive when they’re in season. For Canada, a lot of our flowers are imported from the Netherlands, South America, and the United States. While we try to source locally as much as we can, and are always looking for new flower farmers to support, that can be tricky in Calgary’s unpredictable climate. Thankfully, there are many blooms that are reliable all year round, and many different varieties that can be used for your wedding.
We love using flowers that are in season so we have broken down which flowers are available for your wedding by which season they thrive in. Many of these flowers can still be sourced in other seasons because of the earth’s two hemispheres, it just means that pricing can reflect that! Don’t hesitate to ask your florist about flower seasonality, they will know what is best for your own region and will have great substitutions if your dream flower is just a little bit out of reach.
Flowers Available for Winter Weddings & Events
Starting from January-March we are more limited with flowers available here in Calgary. Winter is a season to lean into greenery and berries and let the flowers that are in season shine. Winter weddings in Calgary, Canmore, or Banff can be tricky if photos are being taken outside. If temperatures dip below 0° Celsius flowers will freeze and brown immediately once brought inside. If you are planning to have an outdoor ceremony or take photos outside we strongly recommend either having a backup bouquet or leaning into hardier berries and blooms.
Flowers that are available for your winter wedding are hellebores, anemones, spray allium, tulips, veronica, hypericum, heather, silver brunia, freesia, and flowering pieris to name a few of our favourites.
For winter greenery we love juniper, cedar, Carolina sapphire, and fir and love using pinecones and different berries to make your wedding flowers shine.
For December brides and grooms, weddings can lean into the Christmas spirit with ornaments, or lean away with colourful hypericum berries, tulips, freesia, heather, or spray roses, along with flowers that are available all year round. Just because you’re planning a winter wedding doesn’t mean it has to only be red, white, and green!
Spring Wedding Flower Availability
Spring is a time of new life and with that comes so many beautiful flowers. Spring often blurs into summer but officially spring begins the middle of March to the middle of June and it is one of our favourite seasons for flowers!
If you love pastels, texture, and fragrant flowers then you should definitely plan for a spring wedding because there are so many amazing flowers to choose from.
We love that for spring weddings we finally get to use peonies because they come in so many stunning colours. We also love using vibirnum for a springy bright green, stock, sweet peas, tulips, poppies, clematis, and butterfly ranunculus because they are so whimsical and add movement to an arrangement or bouquet. Lily of the valley is another spring flower that is available for weddings is currently trending for bouquets, it is, however, a trickier flower to use and is quite expensive so just keep that in mind if you have your heart set on these blooms.
Flowers Available for Your Summer Wedding
Summertime as a Calgary florist is an absolute dream; so many local growers are able to supply stunning flowers like dahlias, zinnias, scabiosa, snapdragons, yarrow, campanula, cosmos, phlox, nigella, delphinium, blue lace flower, chamomile, and more.
Colour is bursting here in the summer and with so many pretty blooms available it can be difficult to choose. Peonies are coming out of season by the end of June but that is when dahlias are beginning to shine, as are garden roses. If you’re looking for a wildflower inspired wedding, summer is one of the best seasons for it! While summer might be cut short in September here in Calgary, the availability of these flowers from British Columbia helps to keep the season going well into the end of September.
The Best Flowers for a Fall Wedding
With fall officially beginning in the middle of September there are still so many stunning flowers to choose from in the first few months. As October gives way to November and December a lot of the flowers begin to look more like those available in the winter months. If you’re looking for that bright and colourful autumnal feeling we’d suggest aiming for a wedding in September and October. While a lot of these flowers are still available into November and sometimes even December, styles tend to lean more towards wintery blooms and the availability of some of these flowers can dip as it gets colder.
For those rich fall tones we love using zinnias, dahlias, both types of amaranthus, unique coloured sunflowers (think pale yellow, deep red, orange), chocolate lace, and flower pods such as nigella pods or scabiosa pods. Using dried grass like bunny tail or pampas grass is a great way to get that autumn feeling as well.