What flowers are in season for my autumn wedding? An essential guide to autumn cut flowers
Autumn is an absolutely stunning time of year to be married, we are moving away from the warm tones of summer to more muted and earthy shades, that reflect the changes in nature going on around us. It is a time of year to embrace texture, movement, abundance and rich colour in your wedding flowers, drawing on all the rich seasonal ingredients that are only available during this one precious season.
I want to talk to you about the finest seasonal flowers in season and why I would choose them as a wedding florist! So many people focus on having an outdoor summer wedding, and I hard relate, of course… a quintessential English country garden style wedding is unbeatable in the warmer months. What is there not to love? However, I think it is absolutely crucial to focus on the benefits that each season brings to a wedding, and autumn has never ending list in my opinion. Where my autumn girlies at? This one is for you!
Why choose an autumn wedding?
Aside from the autumn flowers, the light is just golden at this time of year. The bright harshness of the summer sun gives way to a golden warmth that envelopes everything in a warm hue. Your skin will thank you too as autumn light is super flattering! September can often have beautiful weather, we are past the potential heatwave summer months and we enter the softer temperatures. And even if it does rain? Well you have nothing to lose, your venue more than likely will be catering for an autumn wedding so there is less pressure to rely on the weather for your day to run smoothly.
Felicity Billen, a talented photographer explains how ‘Autumn is such a gift from a photography point of view. The light its lower and softer, giving us that gorgeous golden glow without the harshness you can get in high summer. Add in those rich, warm colours, changing leaves and earlier sunsets, and there is depth and atmosphere to autumn wedding photographs that is really hard to beat. It is a season that naturally makes beautiful photographs.’
By the time we hit autumn we are well over the bbqs and summer garden parties having had our fair share of summer salads and pimms. Choosing an autumn wedding means you can look forward to having a more hearty dinner menu and warming drinks. Queen and Whippet, my absolute favourite caterers to work with btw! share these fabulously tasty ideas when it comes to enjoying your autumn wedding menu. Butternut squash tartlets with sage, wild mushroom arancini, honey roasted figs and goat’s cheese crostini are all wonderful crowd pleasing autumnal canapés. Moving onto the main course, Pete suggests a beef bourguignon or roast chicken supreme with chestnut stuffing, ensuring that these robust dishes provide comfort and satisfaction. Finishing off with an autumn pudding, a stand out sticky toffee pudding is a great way to end your wedding breakfast, or the quintessential autumnal desert, apple and blackberry crumble works wonders.
How to choose an autumn wedding colour palette?
When choosing a wedding you can really embrace colour in your wedding palette, warming browns, mocha, deep burgundies look fabulous and if you are still looking to add a glimpse of romance then by all means lighten this up with a touch of blush. People typically think of an autumnal colour way as gold, yellow, orange, red and I get that, however nature’s tones are far more subtle. Yes, the trees are turning red and gold, but the tones are more muted, it is not a garish orange, yellow or red (unless you see the beautiful maple trees, which are absolutely striking!) So broaden your horizons when it comes to thinking about an autumnal colour palette for your wedding and move away from the traditional look.
My favourite autumn wedding colour palettes would be:
Deep plum and blush (and do add in white here, if you are tempted by the more classic white wedding vibe) Deep plum foliage and dahlias are just unbeatable at this time of year, so do not underestimate the power of adding in seasonal deep foliage, particularly if you have your heart set on a traditional white and blush wedding.
Mocha, toffee and burnt orange: again add in the deep chocolate foliage to add depth. There are so many gorgeous brown tones available during autumn, the bronzed foliage and tan coloured bracken, through to toffee & capuccino roses and my ultimate favourite rudbkia.
White, brown and red: bear with me on this one, I have a theory that a pop of red, namely rose hip branches will work in any colour way… to me there are the most seasonal flower around and their natural, trailing shape makes them such a usable foliage at this time of year. Red and white is a classic no no, historically some would say ‘blood and bandages’ however by adding in the warming bronze and mocha tones, this instantly softens the whole look making it feel seasonal, yet stylish.
A wedding florists top 5 autumn flowers:
Rudbekia: if I could chose a desert island flower for autumn, it would be this one. Particularly the ‘sahara’ varieties which are grown in shades of brown, red, soft yellow and an in between mix of all those shades! A long lasting hardy flower, they work equally well in bridal bouquets and table flowers as they do in large scale installations.
Hydrangea: At this time of year the hydrangeas take on a much more muted tone, the murky reds and greens can form the perfect base to any wedding colour palette. The paniculata varieties fade again to the softest pink and can even be used in installations when they are fully dried brown. Texture and interest is what we want to achieve in our autumn wedding flowers, and hydrangeas will provide this in abundance.
Rose hips: These trailing, tumbling branches will add movement to your wedding flowers, and a touch of that British hedgerow vibe that works every so well in autumn. The daintier rose hips can work just as well in bridal bouquets, just remove any thorns whatsoever, we do not want these anywhere near our bride’s hands or dress!
Chrysanthemums: There is no flower snobbery here as I am a huge fan of the, not so humble chrysanthemum! In recent years the varieties have really come on in leaps and bounds with some absolutely stunning varieties. The large headed ‘blooms’ such as Vienna copper are timeless, yet stylish. The cute little santini varieties are fab too for smaller arrangements, or beefing out installations.
Autumn Foliage: It is not an autumn wedding without foliage, and this is the season where more is definitely most the merrier! Bronzed beech, textured bracken, old man’s beard, deep plum psychacarpus to name just a few. You could even get away with having just large scale foliage installations, emulating nature’s wonderful landscape at this time of year.
What makes a beautiful Autumn bridal bouquet:
Autumn bridal bouquets should be full of movement, texture and interest, and embrace richer, warmer colours… be bold with your choices and you will not regret it. We have moved on from the blousy peonies and garden roses of summer, but do not be deceived, we still have lots of focal flowers avaiable to use. Dahlias are a great seasonal flower, the pom pom ones are a round ball and can emulate the size and shape of a garden rose. Daintier blooms such as helichrysum, chocolate cosmos, work well for adding in more delicate texture alongside dainty berry sprigs. In terms of foliage, special shrubs such as abelier will provide texture with tiny delicate pink flowers, with corylus, pyschocarpus and old man’s beard combining beautiful texture with colour too. Elegantly stylish trailing bouquets work well at this time of year, with foliage such as jasmine providing that much needed movement. Finish the bouquet off with warm toned trailing silk ribbon, or sumptuous velvet and you’ve got a bridal bouquet fit for the most beautiful autumn bride.
What ceremony flowers work well at an autumn wedding?
As always I recommend starting with your wedding ceremony venue, will you be in a beautiful old church or a grand old country house? Take lead from your surroundings and incorporate as much or little detail as you like. If you are getting married in a church, a floral archway is always a fabulous way to decorate the church, greeting guests on arrival and creating special moments as you walk out as newly weds. Large stone urns full of tumbling, seasonal flowers and autumnal foliage will be perfect for framing the altar, and do consider how you’d like to dress the aisle, be it pew ends or floor standing meadow arrangements. Are there any window ledges or key areas that are crying out for flower? By placing flowers in key points throughout the church, you will ensure your wedding decor remains cohesive throughout.
If you are getting married in a venue, again consider the backdrop to your ceremony. Is it busy or neutral? Will you potentially be outside, in which case think about flowers that would potentially work inside too. If the British rain calls and you have to move inside at the last minute. I always recommend repurposing ceremony florals where possible, and myself and my team will stay onsite to do so. I will walk you through the best arrangements that will do this, however some examples would be: ceremony vase installation of various vases on plinths in different heights full of tumbling autumn blooms and foliage. This kind of look can easily be repurposed straight after the ceremony, ensuring not only you get your money’s worth from your flowers, you can enjoy them throughout the whole day and at multiple areas of your wedding venue. Floor standing meadow aisle arrangements are another great way to repurpose flowers. The initial outlay may seem like a big chunk of the floral budget, but really you are paying for two sets of arrangements as what you use in the aisle, can go to line the ends of your banquet tables, decorate the front of your top table and provide statement florals for surrounding your cake table. All of these arrangements contribute to creating an elevated, stylish, yet considered feel when it comes to your autumn wedding flowers.
If you are having an autumn wedding in the south west I would love to hear more about your big day plans! My wedding florist studio is based in North Devon, however we regularly travel all the way up to the Cotswolds, Somerset, Bath, Wiltshire and down to Cornwall, and of course with local weddings on our North Devon doorstep too! For more wedding flower inspiration please do peruse the portfolio and of course the journal is packed full of real life weddings and all the inspiration you could wish for when planning your wedding flowers.