Written by Rona Wheeldon
October 30, 2015
Foliage is arguably one of the greatest strengths of New Covent Garden Flower Market, especially the amazing array of wonderful seasonal British varieties.
And with autumn providing such a fabulous array of colours and forms, we thought that we’d dedicate this Product Profile to all things foliage, starting with this beautiful Spindleberry, with its unusual-shaped, bright pink and orange fruits.
Background
Outside Doors 4 and 5 at the Market, you'll find Foliage Row where our two foliage specialist wholesalers are based - Porters Foliage and GB Foliage. Between them, they carry the best assortment of British grown foliage available anywhere in the UK.
Perfect for the informal, relaxed floristry style which is very on-trend at the moment, British outdoor grown foliage has a very natural look. It's perfect for providing texture and movement to your designs.
At this time of year, it's not just green foliage that we're shining the spotlight on though. Think red, orange, brown and burgundy too!
The exact timing of when home-grown autumn foliage arrives at the Market each year is very much dependent on the weather. So, the best guide to what's available at any particular time is to look in your garden, a park or woodland to see what’s growing. It will give you a good idea of what you’ll expect to find at Nine Elms. And of course, you can always check with the foliage experts at the Market, who are mines of information.
For inspiration for your autumn arrangements, settle down with a cuppa and browse through this report, which also includes foliage from further afield. In addition to British foliage, GB Foliage also sources from mainland Europe, whilst Porters Foliage sources from around the world.
Types
BRITISH FOLIAGE
Guelder berry
Cotoneaster
Hawthorn
Crab apples (Malus)
Sloe berries
Red hazel
Cotinus coggygria
Berried ivy (Hedera helix)
Ivy trails (Hedera helix)
Weigela
Hebe
Go-Go (Gaultheria)
Rhododendron
Laurustinus (Viburnum tinus)
Hydrangea (admittedly a flower, but we couldn’t resist including it!)
Oak
Pittosporum
Senecio
Eucalyptus
WORLD FOLIAGE
Viburnum berry
Eucalyptus stuartiana
Leucothoe fontanesiana 'Rainbow'
Mimosa (Acacia baileyana)
Eucalyptus populus
Preserved beech
Preserved beech
Preserved ruscus, chestnut, beech, maple, eucalyptus, salal, pittosporum…
Design Inspiration
By incorporating seasonal foliage into your work, you'll be giving it a special dimension and you'll really stand out from the crowd.
As well as autumnal foliage being arranged with flowers, we're also seeing a growing trend for it either being used on its own or as the main feature of arrangements.
Here are some examples of beautiful designs by Flower Market customers featuring autumn foliage…
(Source: Rebel Rebel)
(Source: That Flower Shop)
(Source: McQueens)
(Source: By Appointment Only Design)
(Source: Nikki Tibbles | Wild at Heart)
Your Designs
(Source: The Topiary Tree)
(Source:Sophie Townsend)
We'd love to see photos of arrangements that you've made using autumn foliage from New Covent Garden Flower Market. Simply send an email to info@cgma.co.uk, stating your company name and website address. Or if you prefer, you could post your photo on Twitter and copy us in, by including @MarketFlowers in your tweet. We'll then upload your photos into this section.
I hope you've enjoyed reading this month's Product Profile. It's not an exhaustive list of foliage available at this time of year, by any means, but we hope it's provided you with lots of inspiration! Please do ask away below if you have any questions or would like to make any general comments. As always, we'd love to hear from you…
Comments