When you container garden, no matter how many pots you have each and every bloom is a precious reward for all of your hard work. Each flower is a small victory against bugs, disease, and the weather. You might have picked a few blossoms for inside but most were cherished and likely to stay on the plant. Limited supplies, not enough flowers not enough space. Now that I have a large garden filled with perennials I was still in the “please don’t pick the flowers” mentality. I didn’t want to shorten the length of time that I could see them blooming by bring them inside, and that’s silly.
While they are outside I can enjoy them for the length of time it takes to go from the door to the vehicle, maybe a glance while I am gardening, but that’s it. So I’ve changed my ways. Peonies were meant for picking, they were meant to grace a table, and be plunked in a antique teal colored mason jar. Their sweet fragrance was meant to meander through the kitchen, and up the halls.
I have a good friend down on the coast who used to bring me armfuls of flowers from her garden, the generosity of that act just blowing me away. Now I understand the joy those flowers brought me multiplied her happiness also.
Flowers are meant to be enjoyed, both in the garden, and in the house.
Do you pick the flowers and bring them inside to enjoy, or are you parsimonious with the peonies? Do you have someone who shares their bounty with you? Plucking petals…