Peonies

One of the most sought after flowers in a wedding bouquet is the Peony.  Every year, brides come in with beautiful pictures of bouquets that they have found online or in magazines.  In many instances, those bouquets showcase this beautiful and lush flower. In some cases as the focal point of a mixed hand tied bouquet, or even on there own as a loose collection of garden blooms. Unfortunately what is unknown to most brides is that the peony is only available for a very short time span, sometimes only a few weeks between May and June in Canada.  Since so many flowers are available year round, it's hard to believe that the peony isn't.  The reason for limited availability is because peonies, unlike most flowers, do not grow well in greenhouses.  They need to be grown outdoors, leaving them at the mercy of fluctuating weather conditions. If there are perfect weather conditions the yields are high and the prices stay relatively normal, however, if the weather doesn't co-operate then there are fewer to be had and the cost is driven upwards.  There is also no way of knowing ahead of time what will happen.  So if peonies are on your list of must have flowers for your wedding day May is the best time to set your date and it's probably best to discuss substitution options, as you never know what the weather will bring.