It’s safe to call it now: dahlia season is here in earnest! For better or for worse, every Backyard Bouquet for the rest of the season is going to feature dahlias. Can’t be helped.
While I’ve historically been most drawn to the big, dramatic “dinnerplate” dahlias (like everyone else), this season I’m finding myself gravitating towards the smaller, decorative ball varieties, especially those with rich, saturate hues.

I was supposed to be designing wedding bouquets when I could no longer deny the pull some orange blooms out in the field I had seen earlier in the morning were having on me. I bound up the romantic blush white bridal bouquet I had been working on and went out to cut those orange beauties to make this design. Dahlia ‘Maarn’, ‘Ginger Willow’ and ‘Seattle’ make a great mix. The orange cosmos, helenium, ecualyptus, currant tomatoes, and celosia ‘Sunday Orange’ were the perfect textural bits to dance around them, along with some foraged bits of grass.

You may recognize the tin from an earlier Backyard Bouquet this year in a very similar color story. I love seeing the seasons so strongly represented in such similar designs. Proof that it doesn’t really matter what the blooms are (say, if you’re planning a wedding), but much more about the color and movement in the designs.

What’s blooming in your backyard this week? Feel free to add a link to your own Backyard Bouquets in the comments section below. If you are on Instagram, be sure to use the hashtag #backyardbouquets to join in the fun. I’d love to see what everyone is growing and creating!
The only “rule” is that all the elements in the arrangement must be sourced locally, within a 25 mile radius. Your own backyard is a great place to start!!