Blooms in Season: May

Every single month when Natalie comes to me with an idea for her arrangement, I’m blown away by the flowers she wants to pair together. This month she mentioned berries and beautiful bright clematis, which blew my socks off when I saw them in person. I love the way Natalie is able to design such an organic bouquet that looks stunning and effortless at the same time. Read on to see her tips on using blueberries and strawberries in your own arrangements!

Flowers used in this arrangement:
viburnum berry chocolate cosmos icelandic poppies sonoma garden roses clematis blueberries woodland strawberries

I’ve never seen blueberries in the Bay Area before. I know they are common in the North East, are they easy to grow in California, too? The blueberries in this arrangement are from the garden at my studio in San Francisco. It was a complete experiment to plant them. I had a bush left over from a project I was doing, and I just put it in the ground. I have learned that blueberries love acidic soil, which my studio garden is full of, so I think this helps them do OK. My husband grew up in New England and he has fond memories of going blueberry picking in Maine as a child. I don’t think we’ll ever achieve that blueberry abundance in California, but it was fun to try. I noticed that you used strawberries in the arrangement, too. How did you do that? We grow woodland strawberries in our garden and they have long stems. These stems allow us to put them in a vase. I love them when they are green, as they actually last in the arrangement for a few days. I love including unexpected

The size of that clematis is amazing! Where did you find it? I was at dinner at a friends house in Berkeley and they had an amazing garden and this clematis was in it. They generously let me snip a few stems from their garden to bring home. Clematis is a very delicate vine, but it can grow very well with the right environment. Why are Chocolate Cosmo’s named that? Chocolate Cosmo’s actually smell like chocolate. It is so cool! They are actually a native of Mexico and once grew wild there. I love their deep dark color and delicate stems. But, I love their scent the most!

Both Natalie and I hope this inspires you to create something beautiful this Memorial weekend!

Flowers by Natalie Bowen Designs | Photos by Caitlin Flemming