It’s winter downunder, and I’m really craving some freshly cut roses or hydrangeas. I do wish November would hurry up so I can pick some for the vase again.

Though, what will be flowering for me very shortly are ranunculus. I love, love, love these plants. They flower for several weeks, even months, in the garden (they’ll stop flowering when temperatures start to remain above 15degC/60degF) and they last well in the vase too (7-10 days in cool rooms). The flowers are not shy, provided they don’t experience extremes of temperatures – hot then cold or cold then hot. Plenty of winter rains can rot the tubers too (yep, we get a lot of rain in New Zealand over winter), so they are best planted afresh each year. Though you may have some popping up again the following year if you leave the tubers where they are.

I’d give these plants some flower food every 2-3 weeks and pick them regularly to promote continuous blooms.

I can’t wait until they flower!

Top two images by the brilliant creatives at Aesme Studio.