Whether you’re having a spring or summer wedding, or celebrating your nuptials in autumn or winter, our guide to the best wedding flowers for every season has got you covered.
While you can go with any flower for your special day, taking advantage of flowers that are in bloom will add a seasonal touch to your bouquet and, if sourced locally, could be a more eco-friendly option.
Here, we’ve got all the best wedding flowers for every season with everything you need to know about the meaning and symbolism behind these blooms.
Spring
Daffodils
Daffodils make a beautiful addition to a spring wedding bouquet. You’ll be very familiar with the bright and vibrant yellow flowers that bloom at the beginning of the season, but you can also find daffodils in a variety of other colours from white and peach to orange and pink. They compliment other flowers beautifully too, and look elegant as a vocal point in a bouquet or arranged in a centrepiece. What’s more, daffodils are also rich in symbolism. Blooming at the beginning of spring, they are a symbol of new beginnings and represent rebirth and renewal, which is very fitting for a wedding as the married couple enter a new season in their life together.
Sweet Peas
Delicate sweet pea flowers not only smell divine, but come in a variety of colours with ruffled petals that will add a special touch to your wedding bouquet. Whether you go for white, pink, red, purple or blue sweet peas, these sweet-smelling blooms also come with plenty of symbolism and meaning. As a sign of gratitude and appreciation, they’ll add an extra-special sentiment to your big day. Fun fact: Sweet pea flowers are traditionally given to brides in France on their wedding day as a sign of good luck and a symbol of protection for the bride on her special day.
Tulips
One of the most popular flowers in the world, tulips make the perfect wedding flowers for spring nuptials. Rich in history and symbolism, tulips originated in Central Asia where they grew as a wildflower before making their way to Europe in the 16th century. There’s a variety of colours available to add to your bouquet or wedding flower displays, from pink and purple, to yellow and white. While each colour will have a slightly different meaning, in Floriography, the Victorian language of flowers, tulips are seen as symbolising deep love and elegance. For a wedding specifically, opt for pink tulips, a sign of care, affection and best wishes, or red tulips symbolising eternal love and passion.
Summer
Peonies
Peonies have become everyone’s favourite summer flower, and if you’re having a summer wedding you can’t go wrong with these lush blooms. They’re full of romance, rich in history and totally timeless, making them great for traditional and contemporary weddings alike. Peonies come in a wide variety of colours and shades too, so no matter your wedding colour scheme you’ll find a bloom for you. Like with most flowers, different colours will have different meanings. For weddings, pink peonies are usually the most popular as these big and bright blooms are a sign of luck and prosperity. They can be used alone as the main flower in a bouquet for a unified and traditional look, or paired with smaller complimentary flowers for a more whimsical style.
Sunflowers
While it might not be the first flower that springs to mind when you think of a wedding bouquet, sunflowers are a lovely choice for late summer weddings. These striking blooms will add an instant pop of colour to your day, and suit rustic or boho-inspired wedding best when paired with foliage, wildflowers and lots of greenery. Whether you add them to your wedding bouquet or incorporate them into your table centrepieces, sunflowers instantly bring joy and happiness so are very fitting for a summer wedding. Sunflowers are also a symbol of loyalty and admiration thanks to the myth of Clytie and Apollo, and in China, they are seen as a sign of long life and good luck.
Delphiniums
Blooming in early summer, delphiniums are tall flowers that come in a variety of colours including blue, white and pink. They add elegance to summer wedding bouquets or floral arrangements and are seen as a symbol of renewal, evoking joy and positivity. Delphiniums are vibrant and truly striking too, with sturdy stems that can add height to wedding day arrangements. What’s more, they work for almost every wedding day scheme, whether you’re tying the knot in a rustic, garden wedding or a traditional church ceremony. Delphiniums blend beautifully with greenery, too.
Autumn
Dahlias
If you’re tying the knot in the autumn, consider adding dahlias to your bouquet. In the Victorian era, dahlias were seen as symbols of devotion, love and beauty which still rings true today. Traditionally they are the flower given to a couple on their 14th wedding anniversary, but they make a beautiful wedding day bloom too. The stunning flower with its intricate detailing and delicate petals can be added to a wedding flower bouquet, or is show stopping enough to be used alone.
Chrysanthemums
A classic choice for autumn weddings, chrysanthemums, also nicknamed ‘mums’, are full blooms that will add depth to any bridal bouquet and make a lovely focal point. Chrysanthemums are available in a wide range of colours, all with different meanings. For example, red chrysanthemums are a symbol of love and passion, while white signify loyalty. For an autumnal wedding, add warm and richness to your bouquet with chrysanthemums in deep red, orange and purple, or alternatively add softness with white and pink hues. Generally, these beautiful blooms are a symbol of joy, happiness and love, very fitting for a wedding celebration.
Hydrangeas
Blooming from late summer to mid-autumn, hydrangeas are an excellent choice for your autumnal wedding bouquet. These voluminous blooms are very striking, and will add both colour and texture to your wedding day flowers. Symbolising unity, togetherness and gratitude, hydrangeas resonate perfectly with the sentiments of a wedding and signify the joining together of two lives. Pink hydrangeas are the most romantic of all, symbolising love, while white are associated with grace and purity. Although in the past blue hydrangeas were said to represent rejection and coldness - perhaps not the message you want to send as you say "I do" - they now also symbolise sincerity and gratitude, making them a lovely option as well.
Winter
Poinsettias
For a wedding during the festive season, opt for something a little different and add poinsettias to your bouquet or incorporate the seasonal flower into the table displays. The flower, which is also one of December’s birth flowers, has a different meaning and tradition depending on the country you’re in, but generally they are seen at Christmas and signify positivity and festive joy. Whether you opt for red, white or pink poinsettias, they are sure to bring festive cheer to your special day.
Calla Lilies
The calla lily is traditionally given on a couple’s 6th wedding anniversary, but thanks to their deep meaning you’ll also find them in bridal bouquets, too. Symbolising love and appreciation, the tall, slender flower is available in a range of colours. While white calla lilies are often a traditional choice for expressing sympathy at, for example a funeral, when it comes to wedding bouquets you’ll often spot elegant pink calla lilies as a symbol of romance, or yellow calla lilies as a sign of gratitude. They can be used as a standalone flower or the focal point in a bouquet, or paired with complimentary flowers as part of a larger design.
Ranunculus
Add romance to your wedding day bouquet with beautiful ranunculus. They bloom in late winter through to spring, so are a perfect choice for a wedding during the colder months. Red ranunculus are particularly great during the wedding season and have become popular in bridal bouquets in recent years, thanks to their symbolism of passion and romance. Orange ranunculus symbolise joy and positivity, making them another aptwedding day choice. Or, for something a little softer, opt for a pretty pink shade which is thought to signify love and admiration.
Looking for the perfect wedding flowers for your big day? Shop our ready-to-wear wedding collections and save 25% on full collections, or have bespoke flowers designed by our Head Florist.
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