Spring is well and truly here at Doddington with heavenly hyacinths and beautiful blossom. Artisan florist, Rachel from Catkin, shares why she looks forward to this time of year…

As a florist who grows my own flowers the winter can be a hard slog. It does have its own pared down beauty but by the time March arrives I really am chomping at the bit for spring.

In my cutting garden at Doddington, it’s the hellebores that really signal the start of the productive season – they appear in early March and just keep going – I am usually harvesting them right up until the end of May. I love their shape, their faded colours and if you cut them as they are forming a seed head then they will last for ages in a vase.

The prunus blossom is the next to arrive and I have to admit to cruising along verges and hedgerows in my van looking for safe places to pull over and get out my secateurs.

If the hellebores are ‘on your marks’ the prunus blossom is ‘get set’ and very shortly you have ‘GO!’, with narcissi, grape hyacinths, anemones, tulips and cherry blossom appearing together in a short space of time. Along with the trees and hedges greening up almost overnight, the effect is joyous, particularly as I will have been waiting for it for so long.

The gorgeous thing about using seasonal flowers is that each season has its own character and is made even more special because it is transient. I love using spring flowers to create arrangements that are exuberant but ethereal at the same time. Blossom branches exploding from a jug, or hellebores flowing out of an urn, it is fabulous to capture their spirit and beauty before the baton is handed over to summer.

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Join Rachel for a celebration of spring and make 2 beautiful arrangements using an abundance of spring flowers.

11 April 2017 | 10am – 4.30pm | Doddington Hall

£150 incl. lunch, flowers and containers for the flowers.

Places are limited. Click here to book your place.