Salt Air & Summer Stems
Heading to the Coast for a Big Farm Wedding
Firth Flock Flowers – July 2026
As summer begins to soften at the edges, August has given us one of the most memorable moments in the three years since Firth Flock Flowers began. It’s been a month full of weddings — big ones, tiny ones, elopements in medieval houses — but one story stands above the rest. Not just because it felt like a career‑defining moment, the kind where you suddenly step into a new arena of weddings — the kind with planners, 160 guests, and logistics that stretch you in every direction — but because of how it all unfolded. It tested our knowledge, our stress levels, our organisation… and then, once it was over (and once we’d finally slept), we realised how effortless it had felt. How smoothly everything ran. How well we worked together. How organised we were. And how much we’d love to go back and do it all again. Every vendor and member of the crew was doing their job — calmly, confidently, without fuss — whether it was the marquee team, the catering staff, or us with our flowers and trees. Perfectly Planned By Helen held the reins quietly in the background, making sure each of us could focus on our own part without worrying about anything else. It was one of the most relaxed working environments we’ve ever been part of - so here’s a little look behind the scenes
A Wedding Built With Living Plants
(A collaboration between Ellen Firth of Firth Flock Flowers & Jenny Hunt of Lima Gardens) This was a project we’d been planning for months, and one that pushed us creatively, physically, and horticulturally in the hottest, driest summer we’ve ever known as growers. The couple wanted their day to feel alive — pockets of garden, trees, and plants woven into the marquee and church. After many shared Pinterest boards, Instagram inspiration swaps, and long conversations, we created a design built around living plants and meadow flowers, wrapped in hessian and grouped to form little garden scenes. It was something so unique that we hope the guests, and the bride & groom were blown away! Inside the marquee, tall hornbeam trees anchored the space, bringing height and a calm, structured presence. Beneath them, the tables were lined with hundreds of bud vases, each one filled with stems grown on our two farms — a long ribbon of colour running the full length of the marquee. Guests took these home at the end of the night, and the hornbeams will be replanted on the family farm as a living reminder of the day.
A Trip to Dingle Nursery Hand‑picking every tree and plant
To bring the living‑plant vision to life, Jenny and I travelled to Dingle Nursery in Mid Wales, a business we trust for their extensive plant knowledge and care. Their team took us out in a truck for a behind‑the‑scenes tour of their enormous growing fields, letting us handpick every tree and plant we wanted. The quality was exceptional, the service was wonderful, and we left feeling inspired — and very grateful. We couldn’t recommend them enough.
The Flowers
For this wedding, we chose a mix of showstoppers, textural fillers, and foliage that could create a relaxed, meadow‑inspired feel while still holding their own in large installations.
Dahlias were the stars of the season — bold, structured, and symbolISING commitment and kindness. They’re also one of the best late‑summer flowers for large weddings because they hold their shape beautifully, whether they are used in bud vases or big, abundant arrangements. Hydrangea paniculata brought volume and softness to the milk churns, a flower often seen in high‑profile weddings for its romantic abundance. Echinacea, surrounded by sculptural ferns, were used in the living‑plant pockets beneath the hornbeam trees, adding a natural woodland feel. Cosmos and phlox brought movement and fragrance, both historically linked with joy and unity. Amaranth, used sparingly for drape and richness, carries one of the most fitting meanings of all — everlasting love. And the herbs — rosemary, mint, and lemon balm — added scent and tradition. Rosemary has appeared in royal weddings for centuries, symbolising remembrance and fidelity, while mint brings warmth and hospitality, and lemon balm adds a soft, calming fragrance. The rest of the palette worked together to create that wild, garden‑path atmosphere: achillea, silene, zinnias, snapdragons, feverfew, natural grasses, and generous beech and cornus foliage. Together they added height, texture, softness, and colour contrast — the kind of layered, meadowy abundance that makes arrangements feel alive and gently gathered rather than overly styled.
A Brutally Hot Summer — and a Big Achievement
Growing every stem for a wedding of this scale is challenging in any year, but this summer has been particularly tough: feast‑or‑famine blooming, heat‑stunted crops, sudden flushes with nowhere to sell them, and weddings in extreme temperatures without coolers or refrigerated vans. Despite all of that, we did it. Every flower in that marquee and church was grown by us. It was one of the proudest moments of our year. Just wait till me get the professional photos to share with you!
Elsewhere in August…
While Anglesey was the headline, the rest of the month was full of lovely moments: Bethan’s first solo wedding at Penarth Fawr — a tiny, intimate elopement in a medieval timber‑frame dwelling, with flowers grown on her own farm Moel Famau Flowers. Seeing the photos, the whole day looked so gentle and stress‑free. They planned it in just two months, heading to the beach for burgers and games after their ceremony. A handful of small elopements across North Wales, each one personal and quiet in its own way. Sometimes we’ve just made bouquets and buttonholes; other times we’ve provided DIY flower buckets. Julie & Joey’s vibrant multicultural wedding at Pentre Mawr, complete with a Chinese Tea Ceremony and Lion Dance. This was a real team effort.
Workshops Coming Up...
As Summer Softens Into Autumn
August was hard work, but the kind that leaves you tired in the best possible way. The kind of tired that comes from collaboration, creativity, and seeing ideas grow from sketches and soil into something real. If you’d like to hear more about our flower farming, our weddings, or our workshops, just tap any of those links. Here’s to a gentler September, cooler days, and the first hints of autumn colour.
With Muddy Hands & Hopeful Hearts,
Ellen
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