The Perfect Guide to Spring Wedding Flowers: Identifying In-Season Florals for Your Big Day!

Ah, Spring! 

As we’re still packing on our layers and coats as we head out the door, and de-salting our winter boots at the day’s end, we’re yearning for signs of spring in the air. With Spring wedding season around the corner, we’re eagerly awaiting the first signs of fresh, in-season spring flowers for us to get our hands on and create some floral magic with!

As the sweetness of spring is yet to be upon us, wedding planning for our newly engaged couples is going full steam ahead! As you begin your preparations for your wedding next year, and are planning your wedding in the springtime, think – March, April, May – we offer you the perfect guide to in-season flowers that will enliven your wedding floral vision and evoke a fresh, lush, and beautiful ambiance for your big day – with plenty of meaning and significance to boot.

There’s something to be said about farm-fresh-picked florals, and we have some amazing partner growers both locally and abroad – our suppliers in Holland, for example, provide us with incredible spring floral goodies each season like their many bulb flowers – tulips, hyacinths, daffodils, as well as lush peonies in all shades and colors in the spring.

Here we offer a handy guide on what’s fresh and in-season for florals in the spring, as well as offering the significance and brief history behind each one – choosing one or two of these focal blooms can not only enrich your wedding floral look and vision but also offer a significant cost-savings when they are sourced prime in their season!

Spring florals bring the freshness of the season and all her beauty, fragrance, and color, and can even signify love, fertility, prosperity, and of course, devotion. Our handy guide will help you pick the perfect blooms for your special day by highlighting the top in-season spring wedding flowers – their meaning, cultural significance, colors, and why choosing in-season flowers is best for a truly stunning wedding floral look. Let’s get started!

Daffodils

Daffodils are cheerful and vibrant flowers that can brighten up any space. Often, they’re the first blooms (along with Crocuses) to arrive in the spring, and are the official birth flower for March! These sunny, scented, and hardy blooms come in many shades of yellow and white, their interior petals – called the Corona, and resembles a trumpet – can be ruffled, or more refined. They can have all shades of beautiful white, orange, or yellow centers, and gorgeous matching outer petals making them the perfect addition to your spring wedding look. Daffodils are a symbol of new beginnings, joy, and hope – so what better way to start off your new lives together than with the sight and scent of these classic spring blooms?

Bloom Timing & Availability: Late February – Mid-April (around Easter timing)

Tulips

Tulips have long been associated with love, abundance, and happiness; in fact, they’re the official flower of Holland! There are over 150 types of tulip species and over 3,000 varieties in the world, so there is no shortage of amazing styles, textures, and colors to choose from. Whether you choose classic red or opt for a more modern look with pink or orange, tulips will add romance to any wedding floral look.

Tulips are divided into three groups, depending on when they are in their blooming season. Early flowering tulips begin their prime blooming from March into mid-April. Greigii and Emperor Tulips are examples of early blooming varieties.

Mid-season blooming tulips start their prime bloom when the early blooming varieties are ending. They typically flower in April through early May. Examples of mid-season varieties include Darwin, Parrot, and Wings. Late-blooming tulips will bloom during May and some late-blooming varieties we love are the delicate Fringed, velvety statement Lily-Flowered, and French Tulips.

Bloom Timing & Availability: Late January – Early May, be mindful of the 3 stages of tulip blooming seasons – early, mid, and late. Tulips generally last until around Mother’s Day.

Peonies

Peonies may not be in season for long in the Spring, but boy are they worth it! Very few other flowers rival the peony, which are world-renown for their delicate petals, lush and rich textures, and heavenly scents. They’re amazingly light in fragrance, and they make such statement-making, uplifting additions to any wedding arrangement or look.

There are 48 known cultivars of peonies and endless shades to choose from. With the myriad of gorgeous hues like classic white or cream, pinks, corals, muted pastel tones, yellows, deep berries, purples, and reds that look almost too good to be true, these blooms offer a unique and elegant touch to any arrangement. Peonies also signify love, honor, happiness wealth, romance, and beauty, and the peony is traditionally given on important life occasions as an expression of goodwill, best wishes, love, and joy. They also signify a happy, prosperous marriage in many cultures and traditions – so they’re the perfect pick for weddings!

Bloom Timing & Availability: Late April/Early May – Late June, may get other varieties sourced later (Fall) from our international grower partners (but pricier!) Peonies will typically be done before July 4th.

Ranunculus

A perennial wedding favorite, and a Pinterest and Instagram ‘most saved’ flower, Ranunculus are treasured for their swirls of paper-thin petals, brilliance in color, voluminous, yet light fluffy blooms, and with their symbolism deeply rooted in all things love, joy, and romance. Ranunculus are delicate, ruffled flowers that have layers of beautiful crepe-like petals.

The versatility of the Ranunculus is that they come in such a wide variety of brilliant shades, and vibrant colors from muted pastel tones, neutrals, champagne and creams, delicate berries, lavenders, peaches, corals, bi-colored and even bold, deep, and vibrant shades all over the rainbow (we saw some gorgeous teal ranunculus at The Floral Reserve a few weeks ago!)

Their bloom shape is similar to roses – but with even more layers of delicate, unfolding petals – making them perfect for creating show-stopping bouquets and centerpieces. Ranunculus also signify radiance, charm, and attraction which makes them ideal for weddings as well. Bonus, they’re not scented, so you can enjoy these blooms if you’re sensitive to scented flowers! Their prime bloom time is early spring naturally, but they are available at other times during the year from international sources.

Bloom Timing & Availability: Late January – Mid-June, may have some mid-summer from local growers. May get other varieties sourced Spring-Fall from our international grower partners! Please note – these are the most delicate and expensive flowers you can get in season!

Hyacinth

In season around Easter time, these fragrant bulbs offer gorgeous blue or purple petals that make an excellent addition to any spring celebration! Hyacinths signify constancy so they’re perfect for expressing your dedication on your special day. Plus their beautiful fragrance will linger throughout the venue adding an extra romantic touch!

Native to the Mediterranean and tropical regions of Africa, Hyacinth flowers are vibrant, beautifully scented, dense clusters of flowers, and symbolize optimism, and positivity in many traditions. The Hyacinth is also considered a symbol of magnificence, peace, and loving assurance. Many churches around the world are often adorned with Hyacinths as a symbol of love, peace, and happiness. 

In many shades and varieties, some of our favorites are: Anna Marie hyacinths are of salmon-pink color, Splendid Cornelia have a soft pink hue, Carnegie hyacinths have delicate clusters of white flowers, Delft blue hyacinths have stunning blue clusters, Grape Hyacinth have bolder, more petite clusters of purple/blue flowers, and there are some rare and unusual varieties such as navy blue, deep purple, yellow, red, and orange.

Similar in shape to lilacs, hyacinths can also work well – we love grape hyacinths for a more delicate texture!

Bloom Timing & Availability: February – Mid-April, may get other varieties sourced in late Spring.

Sweet Peas

The delicate, heavenly-scented sweet pea is a fixture on many spring wedding floral looks.

The sweet pea symbolizes bliss, pleasure, good wishes, kindness, and gratitude. As a taller, more dimensional floral, sweet peas are known for their delicate, upright blossoms that add height and a dreamy, ethereal quality to any wedding floral look. Sweet peas are also the official birth flower for April.

Native to Sicily and the islands around the Mediterranean, this richly-scented floral is as delicate as it is alluring. The sweet pea can vary by shade, having graceful single or tantalizing double colors, and the strength of fragrance can vary as well. 

While the sweet pea is not the plant that cultivates the peas we eat, it is closely related. Both sweet peas and garden peas are in the same (Fabaceae) family, along with beans and legumes like lentils.

While many couples think of the delicate pink and peachy shades, the sweet pea also grows in alluring shades like “brownie” and many other bold pink and purple colorways, too!

Bloom Timing & Availability: Late February – Late May, may get other varieties sourced later in the Spring and Early/Mid Summer from local farmers and our conditions.

Lily of the Valley

Lily of the valley was first imported from Japan over a thousand years ago and is still known today for its incredibly rich, storied history across many cultures around the world. Lily of the valley, with their light fresh spring-like scent, is known as a symbol of good luck and prosperity, serenity, delicacy, and kindness.

Their delicate beauty and wonder stem from their tiny flowers’ bell-like shape. Throughout many cultures, some believe that these beautiful little bells can call upon good spirits to deliver good fortune to those who receive them.

A historical anecdote that we find oh-so-romantic: “During the month of May, people in England would engage in a ritual dance – one of these dances ‘the courtship,’ required young men to hang a bundle of lily of the valley blooms in the doorway of their beloved’s house. If the young girl came to the dance with the blooms in her hair, it meant that she had accepted her admirer’s invitation.” [source: lovingly]

Lily of the valley looks great as an accent flower, or use one full bunch as a bridal bouquet for a simple, “freshly picked from your woodland garden” vibe – it’s a statement, and quite a timelessly elegant look.

Bloom Timing & Availability: Late April – Mid-May | please keep in mind: this is the shortest window!

Lilac

The beloved lilacs are frequently considered a harbinger of spring, with many who track the timing of their blooming to signal whether our spring here in New England will be early or late. Clusters of richly scented lilac blooms create dimension, detail, and delight for any spring wedding floral look.

The lilac is also the 8th wedding anniversary flower and ALSO the state flower of New Hampshire! In the loving language of flowers, purple lilacs symbolize the first emotions of new, pure love, while white lilacs signify beauty and youthful innocence.

The Lilac’s meaning is of radiance, purity, and innocence, and they can come in variations of purple, pink/purple, and white. A beautiful filler floral for centerpieces, floral arches, arbors, mantles, and hanging installations, and as a delicately scented accent flower in your bouquets, lilacs’ fleeting season makes them hard to come by in their short window, so plan accordingly! Their gorgeous texture, an homage to spring, and glorious scent are a sure-fire pick for your spring wedding. 

Bloom Timing & Availability: Early April – Mid May | another short growing season locally, but we also source lilacs from Holland within the same time frame

Freesia

Fragrant freesias have long been associated with purity, trust, divine union, innocence, and lifelong partnership – making them an excellent choice for wedding florals. These sweet-smelling blooms come in such a vast variety of colors that is a super versatile pick – standouts such as white, and shades of yellow, pink, purple, and orange are available so you can easily find the perfect hue for your big day. They estimate over 1400 species exist today, and each shade carries a special significance. While red represents passion, white signifies purity and innocence and is a great choice for bridal bouquets due to its deep meaning. Pink freesia represents maternal love, while yellow varieties signify joy and harmony.

Bloom Timing & Availability: Natural Growing Season April/Early May – Mid-June | but available year-round.

Conclusion

Now that you know all about the top in-season spring wedding flowers, it’s time to identify your favorites for your big day!

What are the benefits of going in-season? There are several reasons why choosing seasonal blooms are best: they’ll likely cost less since they’re plentiful during this time of year (when peak supply is up); Plus, they’ll last longer because they’ve grown naturally with our natural climate and changing seasons.

These seasonal options often boast more vibrant, bolder, and brighter colors compared to out-of-season varieties, they are also hardier blooms in general so they have the longevity that international sources might not have (especially when shipped)!

So next time you’re planning a spring wedding make sure to keep these gorgeous seasonal flowers in mind when selecting blooms for your wedding floral vision. We’re here to guide you through the whole wedding floral process, get in touch and we can chat all things flowers for your upcoming Spring wedding!