Everything Else You Need to Know

In this my first year the subscription period runs from mid June to the end of August and you can choose from 4,6,8 or 12 weeks

When you sign up for your subscription you will choose from 4,6,8,or 12 weeks subscription with the exception of the 12 week offer you will be able to choose which weeks between mid June and the end of August that you receive your flowers.

I am passionate about flowers and gardening and really enjoy sharing this with others. I am always very happy to show visitors around the formal garden and cutting gardens at Chernocke House, it is however best to ring to arrange a suitable time.

Deliveries will take place on either a Monday or Friday afternoon as cutting will take place in the mornings so your flowers will be as fresh as possible. The delivery area is around a 5 mile radius from Aspley Guise, see map of area on the contact page. This area includes Bow Brickhill, Woburn, and Ridgemount.

Delivery days are Monday or Friday afternoons. When you set up your subscription you will choose your delivery day. Flowers are cut in the morning and then delivered in the afternoon. You will be given a 2 hour time window for delivery. If you are not going to be in you can name your safe place for deliveries.

Almost all of my annual flowers are grown from seed in my greenhouse and potted on in my polytunnel, before they are planted out in the cutting garden once the last frost has passed. A number of my cut flowers are taken from perennials like Peonies or roses and these I do not grow from seed. I look for interesting and unusual plants to grow that will produce flowers that create beautiful vase arrangements.

Most fresh cut flowers will last 7 days in a vase if they are kept out of direct sunlight and in a reasonably cool environment. It helps if the water is changed at least once in the 7 day period. Unlike commercially grown flowers that are shipped around the world my cut flowers are not treated with chemicals to prolong their life. Some blooms may fade before 7 days these should be removed to preserve those left in the vase.

This would be possible but is not advisable. I like to create a balanced and beautiful vase of flowers that show the range of English grown flowers that are available. One single flower type would not create a balanced display and I would not recommend doing this.

As the flowers are seasonal the available colours depend heavily on what is flowering in any given week . I will always try to create a balanced and beautiful vase/bucket of flowers but cannot guarantee any particular colours.

I try very hard in my horticultural practice to use sustainable materials like jute netting for supporting flowers, peat free compost and reusable or recyclable pots. I use natural fertiliser like seaweed tea and I do not spray with chemicals, leaving natural predators like birds, hedgehogs and ladybirds to keep the slugs, snails and aphids at bay. We have 3 very large compost bays which we try to use to create our own compost from the leaves and waste the garden produces.Description goes here

Essentially flowers grown in the UK without using hothouses and heated greenhouses can be classified as English Flowers. Until a few years ago only 15% of flowers sold in the UK were actually grown in the UK. Today things are starting to change as more and more of us are demanding local and seasonal flowers, as we recognise that daily flights from places like Columbia and Kenya carrying globally sourced flowers is hard to justify. This does mean that the same flowers are not available all year. English grown flowers obviously follower the UK weather and the varieties will change from week to week throughout the season; often a flower is only available for a 2 or 3 week window. Rather than growing a few varieties in large numbers artisan growers like myself produce more varieties often more unusual and interesting that you will not see elsewhere.