First Peonies of the Season

This morning I woke up early and headed out to Bridge Farm Nurseries in Cockeysville, MD. When I pulled in at 6:05 AM, Mel Heath, the owner of Bridge Farm was out cutting peonies for our order. Since Mel doesn't use greenhouse or high tunnels, peonies are his first big crop of the season.

Mel is serious about peonies. He takes such care in growing them. He loves those plants so much, he often ops not to cut them, even though he could sell the blooms, because he knows the plant is too young to thrive after a cutting. From the barn, all I could see were rows and rows of peonies, and Mel's orange cap sticking up between rows.

Using locally grown flowers means we use what's available when it's available. From week to week, we never know what it will be. This uncertainty is the key to creating unique, one of a kind arrangements. I picked up 220 pink peonies this morning, along with some beautiful apple green viburnum and bleeding hearts. These are the flowers we'll use for our Mother's Day arrangements. Check back for a look at the finished products.