wild and free

Yep. thats it isn't it? what we all want to be and what life in the 21st Century doesn't allow.. Ah well. thats a discussion for another day no doubt. So, Wild & Free you might ask? Well, as it goes for a brief moment in my not so distant past I dabbled in the art and business of floristry.

I have the utmost respect for florists not to mention the growers, whose back breaking business and lifestyle by and large goes unthought of by the everyday consumer. Flowers are expected to last for weeks, open on the 'correct' day, be disease free and have perfect blooms. Not much to ask is it? ha ha. As such, the more familiar I became with the flower industry the more disillusioned I was about the processes involved in the industry and how even though yes, flowers are a natural product, the amount of chemicals, toxins, plastics, irrigation and travel/transportation pollution etc involved essentially make this industry one of the most unsustainable industries going around. in my humble opinion.

that's not pointing the finger at anyone except for the big 'C' and 'G' (capitalism and globalisation), that encourage the everyday consumer to believe they can have whatever they want, whenever they want and for very little money. in terms of the floristry industry, I feel that this puts a huge amount of pressure on growers to grow flowers out of season, not suited to our climate and for florists to order in flowers from overseas. the more I learn about organic and sustainable food production and lifestyles, the more I think there are huge opportunities out there for floristry to become much more sustainable. Thats not to say there aren't amazing flower growers out there already producing and growing seasonal organic blooms, but it certainly is saying that people like this are at the forefront and the industry still has a long way to go.

Which brings me back to the initial point, wild and free. As I foraged the other day, it was hard not to pick all the little wild flowers that were sprouting up everywhere I looked. Yes, they aren't a bunch of magnolias, peonies and orchids. But they are beautiful because of what they represent. the natural world going about its everyday cycle, producing perfect flowers everyday, there for the picking. wild and free. I love bouquets and flower arrangements like this especially at the end of summer, when there's a variety of edibles gone to seed (which have to most beautiful not to mention beneficial flowers) and lovely summer blooms available. Anyway here is a little winter weed posy which isn't as spectacular as the ones that will be around in spring and summer but is nevertheless great because of what it is.