It's British Flowers Week 2020! Gardening & spending more time outside at home has fast become a favourite pastime over the last few months with lockdown measures in place. We’ve all had to make our worlds a little smaller, in order to help slow the spread of coronavirus and reduce pressure on the NHS.

It has also highlighted the relaxing and mindful benefits that gardening can bring. The positive impacts on mental and physical health are of particular importance at this time and going forward. For many, this has been an opportunity for people to learn new skills and spend more time out in the fresh air.

British Flowers Week

Flowers never fail to bring a smile to faces their beautiful colours and shapes can brighten up the darkest of days. Now is the time to really show off what you’ve learned over the last couple of months, with British Flowers Week 2020 just getting underway (June 15th). This year, the organisers are calling on you all to create arrangements for the windows at home or at work. The idea is to display your beautiful blooms for people passing to enjoy. There is a free toolkit to make beautiful arrangements at home, which is applicable at any time of the year. Featuring print out decorations, flowers and helpful seasonal charts.

After you’ve put your window or floral arrangement together, you can then share pictures of it online. Use the following hashtags:  #BritishFlowersWeek, #NewCoventGardenMarket, as well as tagging @MarketFlowers in order to be entered into the competitions being held.

British Flowers

Virtual Events

There are also lots of virtual events taking place over the week. This could be a great opportunity for you to learn more about gardening and flowers. Offering knowledge that can then be applied in your own gardens and outdoor spaces. You’ll also find some resources and tips for growing your own on the website, so have a look to see if there are any answers to questions you may have. If you’re a novice gardener or want to see examples of other windows to help give you some inspiration - there are lots of photos to be found. Have a good browse and see what you can find.

Where the virtual events are concerned, you can hear from: Simon Lycett giving a beginner’s guide to caring and conditioning British flowers, head gardener at Old Covent Garden Kenny Raybould discussing planting and an interview with Shane Connolly about British flowers, foliage and plants. You’re sure to come away after the week with all sorts of good ideas and big plans for your own garden. And what better way to discover lots of new plants and flowers?

History of British Flowers

Interestingly, up until the 70s, the only flowers you saw were those grown in Britain by local flower farmers but today, the majority of the flowers you see in high street shops come from large scale commercial growers and routed through Dutch auctions.

The aim of British Flowers Week 2020 is to help raise awareness of which British flowers are in season and when. Using beautiful British floristry to showcase beautiful flowers, plants and foliage. It also hopes to encourage more people to buy British when it comes to flowers. People are increasingly looking to choose more locally grown flowers as the seasons go by, helping to support British growers.

Check out countryside online for all you need to know about buying British flowers.

*free images from pexels