What to do?

trent13

I really want peonies for my July wedding of next year I know I shouldn't be worrying about this right now but I called a florist and she told me that I should try an experiment this summer to see if I'm willing to take the risk (since June is technically the end of the season). The florist told me to buy a few peonies this June and keep them in a cooler wrapped in a damp cloth and see how many survive (until mid July of this summer) she said she did this for another bride last year and almost all of the flowers survived, but she suggested only having my bouquet be peonies. Has any other bride used peonies for a mid to late summer wedding? And how did they look?

dogsandfrogs

Are you willing to entertain the idea of using a different flower?  I've been told that because of the weather we had this spring, that a lot of florists aren't even sure they'll have peonies come June this year.  Two florists I've talked to mentioned they aren't even attempting to order peonies this season.  They are apparently really, really particular about the weather, so it could be really dangerous to not only assume an experiment you try this summer would apply to flowers next summer, but to assume you can get them at the end of the season at all...

Maybe you could ask for suggestions on other flowers that would give you the same type of look but be less risky?

trent13

I've been researching flowers for hours and I have found others that I like I'm just bummed because they were my favorite and I really wanted them for my special day...I was just hoping for some miracle suggestion/solution I guess.

dogsandfrogs

Sorry I didn't have a miracle for you

Good luck!

trent13

I found a website www.wholeblossoms.com that will ship peonies year round this still might be risky I have a lot to think about.

Sue-n-Kevin

While I'm not a fan of silk flowers and always prefer fresh, silk flowers may be an answer for you if the look of what you want is more important than whether they are real or not.

I have seen this question over and over on these boards. There are some flowers that just cannot be forced to grow outside their season due to the elements needed for success, namely all four seasons to reach the point where they bloom. Peonies are like this, as are lilly of the valley and lilacs. I have all 3 of these in my garden because I love them, but they need the three seasons after they bloom to get to the point where they bloom again. Due to the mild winters and warmer than normal spring, my lilacs and lilly of the valley bloomed 1-2 weeks earlier than normal 2 out of the last 3 years. This year we've had highs of 70+ for the past week, with more in store. They may bloom as much as 3-4 weeks early this year.

While not the same, large spider mums are lovely, as are white ranunculus which have almost the same shape as a white peony.

Good luck.

kmclean29

There is a company that can supply them for an extended season, but they end up costing about 15 a stem.  Talk to your florist if you have your heart set on them and they should be able to locate this supplier

trent13

I also found a website www.wholeblossoms.com they offer peonies year round I don't think i'm going to have a lot of them in my wedding probably only for my bouquet I don't know i'm still undecided about this but I have a long time to think about what i'm going to do thank you ladies for all of your help!!!!!!