Spring is just at its beginning. We have so much to look forward to – the scent of lilac on a May morning, peony in June, blowsy roses in July, sweet peas for all of August and jugs of dahlias in September. At least this is our fantasy of the English country garden, something not all of us possess. How welcome, then, is this new collection of growers who have transformed smallholdings and small-scale plots into abundant flower fields. Produced using sustainable farming methods, their flowers retain all the scent and charm of spring and summer.
Londoners who dream in flowers should take notes from Wolves Lane Flower Company, the
micro-flower farm aiming to inspire more urban growers. On a patchwork of outdoor beds
and a 40m unheated glasshouse in Wood Green, founders Camila Romain and Marianne
Mogendorff draw jewels from the soil from March to November. These sustainable stems
supply top florists, weddings and their own workshops covering topics such as How to Grow
From Seed and How to Grow Dahlias. The plot and glasshouse are open to visitors once a
month and you can pick a bucket to take home; aim for May or June when flowers hit the
ceiling. wolveslaneflowercompany.com
‘A wonky old smallholding’ is how Milli Proust describes the cut-flower plot at her home in
West Sussex. Judge for yourself by looking at the ethereal images she posts on Instagram, all
hazel fencing, climbing roses and blooms tumbling from the windowsill. For seven years
Proust has supplied her artfully arranged garden flowers to clients including Christie’s
auction house, Spring restaurant and Nina Litchfield studios. Now she’s teamed up with
fellow grower Paris Alma to launch Alma Proust. The duo have rented an acre from a local
farmer to cultivate a flower field, with cuttings supplying their own events and other local
florists, with nationwide delivery to come. The home plot will be used to produce seeds to be
sold in packets. Floral varieties being trialled and grown are like no other – think ‘King’s
Ransom’ sweet peas and viola in tiger-eye red. almaproust.com
Those looking for flowers for London events and weddings traditionally had to go through
the florist. That’s no longer the case thanks to Sitopia, which will deliver buckets of flowers
on a certain colour theme for clients to arrange themselves. With twisting leaves and
curling petals, these are not the straight-as-a-rod stems you might find imported from
Holland. Tulips, cosmos, snapdragons and sunflowers come straight from the soil of the two-
acre organic farm in Greenwich giving a just-picked-from-the-garden, whimsical feel. The company also offers add-on florist services such as wiring buttonholes and making bouquets for brides. Everything is dependent on weather and season, so it suits those prepared to go with beauty of the moment. sitopiafarm.com
Dahlia fanatic Alfie Nickerson is bursting with plans. On his six-acre flower farm in the
Norfolk Broads, he’ll be sowing 25,000 seeds this year as well as planting 2,500 dahlias in a rainbow of colours, shapes and sizes. With any luck this dizzying array of flowers will
include the never-seen-before results of his own hybrid experiments. Having spent too much
of last season on the road in his van – supplying the likes of Petersham Nurseries and JamJar
Flowers – he's resolved that this year’s deliveries will be done by post, with UK-wide drops. Instead of a subscription, view it as a prescription and sign up for a regular dopamine dose of biodynamic blooms from dahlias to zippy zinnias. burntfenflowers.com
