Bluebells as a table centrepiece
Sandy Sanderson
Posts: 1
Hi all, I am a new member with lots to learn but very enthusiastic! I am hoping you may be able to help me, although not with my own garden in this first instance.
I work for a ecological and environmentally aware organisation. We are holding a celebratory event in late May next year. I am responsible for decorating the large room (seating 200). I want to use floral table centrepiece but not cut flowers. Our colours are blue and green. I have a "bright idea" to plant native, obviously responsibly sourced, bluebells in pots but am not sure this will work? My reasons being that they are native, pretty, can be used again in years to come, so are not wasted, colour appropriate.
However, do bluebells thrive in pots? Will they still be in flower in late May? Does anyone have a better idea of suitable plants?! Hoping you can help. Thank you in advance.
Posts
Hi Sandy, welcome
I'm not sure it will work either. It's a bit late, I associate bluebells with the early May BH.
also, whenever I see them for sale in pots they always look droopy - though this may be down to lack of care by the growers.
In the sticks near Peterborough
I'm afraid I agree with Nut - I've never seen them looking happy in pots and also I think they usually flower earlier (depending on weather of course).
I know they're not blue, but I'm wondering whether cowslips might be an acceptable alternative. They seem quite amenable to being grown in pots - I often see them in pots in the Wildlife Garden section of garden centres. I think the flowers last longer than bluebells too as long as they're in cool shade, so they could be 'controlled' and brought out into warm sunshine a few days before 'the day' to look at their best.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Garden Forget-me-nots are really just the native Wood Forget-me-not, and are easy to obtain as bedding plants for spring. Or blue Aquilegias? Also native, and have strong stems that stand up well.
What about blue pansies, they look nice in pots.
I agree with lily, blue pansies, violas even better, are reliable, grow in pots and look good. I bought lots as plug plants and they are in my outside pots now. They will flower into June when I have to dig them up to make way for summer bedding.
In most years, bluebells will be over by late May. Forget-me-nots, too, are getting a bit leggy and messy by this date. Also, I find the Spanish bluebells make me wheeze - I can't stay in a room with them, and I think it likely that others would be similarly affected.
Our daughter got married at the end of May this year and wanted blue flowers or plants. Blue is a difficult colour to find, but we managed it: early in the spring I bought trays of lobelia plug plants (blue and white), which I potted on and cossetted, three plants to a pot. They made very pretty table decorations.
If cut flowers would do, cornflowers are a wonderful colour.