"Martin Mazorra: Language of Flowers" at O2 Gallery

That whole language-of-the-flowers thing was a hoot, wasn't it, back in ye olde Victorian times?

Floriography, they called it. People of swell society sending each other bouquets of flowers, exchanging those little nosegays to wear upon their finest raiment, whereby folks in the know would get the messages intended. An arrangement predicated on the flower tansy, for instance, meant, "I declare war against you," but of course most of the myriad floral patternings were declarations of romantic love.

You know what else they used to do back in ye olde days? Woodcuts are what they used to do, long before linoleum was a thing. They say you could always tell a woodcut artist by the learning-curve scars still texturing their masterful hands (if not by the errant ink stains complicating a trade-specific apron).

The Brooklyn-based artist Martin Mazorra is not so old as all that – born in West Virginia in 1972, after all – but his woodcut creations and letterpress renderings are as solidly crafted and visually stunning as anything those old masters used to do with their knives and pigments and papers. And now Mazorra's large "Language of Flowers" collection is on display at Flatbed Gallery, and we're swooning like a lovesick swain from having witnessed them firsthand.

The long O2 Gallery walls are resplendent with multicolored handmade prints of Mazorra's floral works, accompanied by the artist's carefully set text that declares each flower's meaning and sometimes – this is so good – includes a bit of modern meta-commentary, a touch of snark among the wide-ranging suite of images.

"Flowers would say or emphasize what could not be spoken out loud," notes Mazorra. "I have added contemporary, solicitous twists to this tradition."

But really, it's the visuals here – the woodcut art itself, the varied vegetal world in all its vibrant profusion, and the colorful, expert printing on oversized French paper – that make this show a must-see. Which is still possible even now, because "Language of Flowers" is up at the Flatbed Gallery until Dec. 31, and so we'll pretend that this whole review is a bouquet of snowdrops we're sending your way. Because that, dear reader, means "joy to come."

Flower business blooming

SARAH TILL has gone from finance to flowers and is loving every bit of her flourishing business My Flower Cart.

From the south-east in England, Sarah worked in finance where she met her Kiwi husband.

Eight years ago they decided they wanted to raise their two children in New Zealand and chose Hawke's Bay to settle. Today the flower farmer florist works fulltime in her cutting garden growing and selling a range of beautiful, fresh, seasonal flowers from September to April.

"I have been growing flowers forever," Sarah said.

 "About three years ago I read a book by Sarah Raven and started to recreate her plan. We are completely organic and lease part of our 20 acres to Bostock who are of course also organic. We also have a fig block, selling the fruit to Te Mata Figs."

Sarah started selling her flowers in a cart outside the gate - hence the name.

However, she had a lot of theft and decided to approach a florist.

"I love cottage flowers and wild flowers. They are flowers with personality and the majority of them are perfect cutting flowers. They used to be popular in the 70s and have made a huge comeback in recent time. Some of the florists I deal with say they can't keep up with demand.

"They last well in a vase if they are cut at the right time. My flowers are cut one day and sold the next, so they are really fresh.

"I am really keen on sustainable flowers. I save seeds, and feed my flowers with comfrey tea and blood and bone. We are lucky here with good loamy soil."

She says people tend to think of buying flowers as a treat. "But it's so nice to go along to the market, get your veges, fruit, coffee and some affordable flowers.

"Growing flowers has also become more popular just as growing your own vegetables has. Easy flowers to grow that are great for picking are zinnia, sweet william, snap dragon and you can't go past nigella. Or throw a packet of wildflower seeds into your garden - there is always something interesting in them. Plant blue flowers to attract the bees."

Everything she sells is grown in her field and Sarah likes to make her posies and arrangements interesting by adding pods and seeds.

It was absolutely lovely walking thorough her beautiful garden. "Everything in it has a use, whether it be beautiful autumn colour, nuts or fruit and there is a beautiful view of Te Mata Peak."

The dahlia walk is Sarah's favourite spot in the garden.

"I love dahlias - they are just stunning."

She estimates she spends three hours a day in the garden and the rest of the day making up and delivering her flowers with some time spent on administration.

She says there's a science to picking your flowers and each flower is different but her top tip would be to pick first thing in the morning or last thing at night.

"Don't pick in the heat of the day. Put your flowers into a big bucket of water and let them drink before you arrange them. My flowers do come with flower food for your vase but I think the best way to make flowers last is to change the water every day and cut a little bit off the stem. Bacteria in the water clogs up the stem and then they can't drink. If they can drink they can survive."

Because Sarah can't bear to waste any flowers they invariably end up around her home. "My husband jokes that it's like living in Elton John's house! I actually couldn't do this business without him and his muscles and his sense of humour."

The top wedding flowers for every season and why

When you think of weddings, you also think of flowers. Flowers are a huge part of any wedding. From traditional to boho, to even elopements, flowers play a significant role in wedding décor and traditions.

Flowers were traditionally used in weddings to symbol hope, fertility, and new life, as well as to ward off evil spirits. Now, we use flowers in weddings to act as centerpieces, as bridal bouquets, as arbor swags, and more.

Choosing the right flowers to compliment your wedding is something many brides stress over. From color, to shape, to cost, your wedding flowers are going to be a massive part of your décor and budget.

Here are some of the most popular flowers for a wedding by type and season:

1. Roses

Roses are an absolute classic, but many brides think of them as being overdone! JJ’s House designer of wedding dresses and flower girl dresses, Jessica says: “there are tons of different roses to choose from, vintage roses look especially beautiful at weddings because of their lush, romantic look.” They work year-round and are available in every color you can think of.

2. Camelias

Lovely camellias are perfect for late winter to early spring, and in fall. They’re multi-petalled with a mild, sweet scent and come in warm wedding colors like white, cream, pink, and red.

3. Ranunculus

This relative of the humble buttercup is an excellent choice for winter weddings and is a perfect option for a cost-effective alternative to roses or peonies. Lush and brightly colored, they work exceptionally well in a crown of flowers.

4. Hydrangeas

Bold and summery, hydrangeas massive blooms are the perfect accompaniment to a summer wedding. They come in warm whites, greens, pinks, burgundy, purples, and blues and their large size makes them ideal for garlands, swags, and table runners.

5. Cosmos

The daisy-like Cosmos are glorious for a mid-summer to an early fall wedding. These playful flowers are gorgeous in pale and dark pinks and work perfectly for your flower girl bouquets, making the colors pop against the white flower girl dresses.

6. Carnations

Don’t turn up your nose at the humble carnation! These affordable, year-round flowers are a perfect way to add more blooms to your floral décor without wrecking the budget. Look for carnations in white to bulk up bouquets, or to add pops of saturated color.

7. Dahlia

The bold Dahlia is a go-to flower for summer and fall weddings. With its signature spicy scent and rich, fall-friendly colors, dahlias are a perfect way to add drama to your floral arrangements.

8. French tulips

The graceful French tulip is different from the traditional Dutch tulip in length, and the large, tapered heads. More expensive than Dutch tulips, French tulips look beautiful in cream, soft pink, and yellow and work well for centerpieces. They are an elegant addition to any winter wedding.

9. Gerbera daisies

The Gerbera daisy is so bright and fun, it doesn’t look real. With an insane range of shades (over 300, in fact) the Gerbera daisy is perfect year-round and works especially well for fun, boho weddings and for flower girl bouquets.

10. Lisianthus

The elegant, cupper Lisianthus bloom is an excellent secondary flower for your bouquet. It comes in a wide range of shades, is available year-round, and is very affordable.

Are Flowers Good For Your Health? The Mood Boosting Benefits Are Pretty Great, Study Shows

For as long as I can remember, my mom has loved cultivating a large garden of herbs and flowers. "Gardening is my therapy," she always told me. And while, for a long time, I dismissed that as her excuse to visit Home Depot on a weekly basis, once I moved into a place of my own, the urge to nurture plants took hold of me, too. So are flowers really good for your health? Apparently, my mom had science on her side, so if you're wondering what in carnation will help soothe your frazzled nerves, look no further than a vase full of fresh flowers.

According to a new study from a research team at the University of North Florida, the benefits of bringing plants into your home are basically too good to pass up, even if you think you don't have that coveted "green thumb." Here's how the study was done: According to an AboutFlowers.com press release, researchers gathered 170 women between 18 and 65 years old and divided them into three groups. In one group, women were sent a home delivery of flowers; in the second group, the women received a candle of roughly the same value; and in the last group, the women didn't receive any gifts at all. The study took place over the course of 12 days, and each of the women, regardless of what gifts they did or didn't receive, completed an online survey to assess their stress levels every day of the research. For the women who received flowers or a candle, the delivery was sent to their home about halfway through the study, around day five or six, according to the press release.

At the end of the study, the researchers found that those who received flowers overwhelmingly reported that the blooms boosted their mood, while stress levels appeared to remain a bit higher for those who had received a candle or no home delivery at all. Basically, the simple act of bringing a bouquet into your home is enough to significantly boost your mood. "Our findings are important from a public health perspective because adding flowers to reduce stress does not require tremendous effort to generate a meaningful effect,” lead researcher Erin Largo-Wight, Ph.D., an associate professor at the University of North Florida’s Department of Public Health, said in a statement. “When life seems to be in a constant state of frenzy, flowers can provide us with a much-needed moment of calm.”

While this particular study comes from the Society of American Florists, an entire garden (see what I did there?) of research seems to support the nurturing health benefits of flowers, so get ready to fill your apartment with fresh green blossoms. The thing is, unlike more time-consuming ways to relieve stress, like going on long runs or writing in a journal, picking up a fresh bouquet of flowers is something quick and easy you can do for yourself when you're having a bad day.

And really, the sheer act of spending time around these plants may be enough to reap the benefits: In a 2014 study published in the Journal of Physiological Anthropology, researchers found that office workers who were exposed to unscented roses for only four minutes showed a decreased heart rate and reported significantly higher levels of relaxation than those who weren't exposed to any flowers at all. Simply being around a vase of the fragrant blooms while you're enjoying a cup of tea, catching up on your favorite show, or even doing the dishes can have seriously positive effects on your state of mind.

Now, I know it can be tempting to save money by filling your apartment with artificial flowers, but unfortunately, it seems like only the real thing will do the trick in terms of boosting your mood. A 2015 study published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health compared the effects of artificial and real pansies in a group of 40 high school students in Japan, and the researchers found that being exposed to the real flowers was the only way to produce a significantly relaxing effect in the participants.

Look, I'm no scientist, but it definitely seems like there's something about sharing your space with another living thing that's just plain great for your well-being. So the next time you walk by the flower display while you're shopping for groceries, treat yourself to a sunny bouquet. After all, it's for your health, right?

When I was in high school, after any school dance or any event that required a corsage, my mom would always try to convince me to save the flowers and press them in a telephone book using parchment paper. According to her, I would want them later. At the time, I couldn't quite figure out what I would possibly need those pressed flowers for, but after seeing the dried flower nails trend up and down my Instagram feed, I now know how I could've used the petals from all of those corsages.

OK, well, while I no longer have a telephone book (shoutout to Google) or those old, dried-out blooms from my high school years, I am willing to dry out old flowers from the corner bodega in the name of this latest trendy nail look. More importantly, my mother will be thrilled to learn that her obsession with keeping old flowers is now being repositioned as a beauty trend.

Essentially, the dried nail trend involves taking teeny tiny dried out flowers and adhering them onto the nail as nail art. By the looks of it, petals from the carnations and roses from all of those homecomings, proms, and winter formals might actually be too large to recreate the dried flower nails look. Instead, the trend incorporates literally the smallest little flowers you can imagine.

Spring flowers Geraldton wax an Australian wildflower favourite

Geraldton wax is one of Australia's most famous wildflowers and is widely used as a cut flower in Australia and overseas.

The flowers last for well over a week when cut. Chamelaucium (Geraldton Wax) is a genus of about 30 species all occurring only in south-western Australia.

They are generally medium to large shrubs, reaching 2-3 metres in height, with narrow leaves and 'tea-tree' like flowers. The leaves are highly aromatic when crushed.

The flowers appear in late winter and may last through until summer. They are circular in shape and are usually pale to mid pink in colour, although other varieties with colours ranging from white to purple are also available.

If a Geraldton Wax plant is desired for the garden then it should be chosen while it is in flower in order to obtain the desired flower colour.

Plants are native to the dry summer climate of south-western Australia, although they will grow quite successfully here, provided they're planted in appropriate positions. The normal pink-flowered form is more suitable for the local area, hardier than the deeper purple or white forms.

However, if a position with good drainage in sandy soil is selected, then most varieties will succeed. Plants may be sensitive to frost until they become established. A sunny or semi-shaded position is preferred.

Plants should be pruned back each year after flowering, reducing the plant's height by about one third. Regular cutting of the flowers for indoor decoration will assist in the pruning process.

Perennials

Perennial plants form the basis of many gardens, particularly those that have a cottage or older style structure.

Flowers are produced over the summer months. They generally live for three or more seasons, rather than needing to be replaced every year, as is the case with annual plants.

Perennials are sometimes planted individually, although clumps or drifts of multiple plants can be most effective.

They will generally produce good displays of flowers for several years, after which time it is preferable to prune back, lift and divide the plants. This enables the healthier parts of the plant to grow, eventually ensuring better flowering. Foliage and root growth are mainly produced in the first season, with the plants reaching flowering maturity in second and subsequent seasons.

Many forms of perennial plants are commonly grown.

Salvias, commonly known as sages, are one of the more widely grown perennials. Plants are available in different varieties ranging in size from those under a metre in height to some that reach almost two metres.

Long woody stems are produced, with flowers appearing on the ends of the stems. During late winter the old stems can be cut back to just above the base of the plant, virtually at ground level. Then the plant can be dug up and divided into smaller plants, if it has grown too big to flower effectively.

Pineapple sage, which produces bright red flowers over light green leaves, is a valuable addition to many gardens.

Euphorbia is a hardy winter flowering variety with grey green leaves and lime flowers, which contrast well in the garden.

Other hardy perennials include plectranthus. Some varieties have mauve leaves, others have grey leaves, but all are tough and grow well under tree canopies.

When dividing up perennial plants a sharp knife may be used. Each section needs to have healthy roots with some basal shoots in evidence. It may be preferable to use fingers to tease the plants apart, rather than cutting through the larger clump with a knife.

Good, well-rotted compost should be added to the soil prior to replanting as this will assist in ensuring a good food supply for the new plants. Watering with Seasol will help the formation of new roots structures.

Gerbera are another group of perennials that can be divided at this time if the plant has become rather large.

Plants that have grown to a large size will not produce as many blooms.

Digging the plant out of the soil will enable the removal of old, dead or dying leaves. The plant can be cut into two or more smaller plants. Prior to replanting in a garden bed that has been enriched with a compost-type material, the crown of the plant, where the stems are joined to the main plant should be dipped into a fungicide solution. This will help reduce future incidence of disease.

Productive beans

Beans are a good choice for inclusion in the home vegetable garden as the plants are generally very productive.

Many different varieties are available to suit different growing conditions and preferences. They will grow quickly from seed, particularly if the seed had been soaked in water overnight prior to planting.

Soil that has been enriched with organic compost will be ideal as this will provide the good food source that will be required by the plant for crop production.

Adding superphosphate and sulphate of ammonia will provide the extra minerals required for optimum growth. Application should be at quantities suggested on the packaging.

In general, bean seeds should be planted about 4cm deep and 20cm apart if a dwarf variety has been selected. Taller growing varieties can be planted about 15cm apart. Regular picking will ensure a long season.

Flower power: Afghanistan's poppy farmers harvest success with rose

Standing in a field of roses in eastern Afghanistan, former poppy grower Mohammad Din Sapai quickly but carefully plucks the delicate petals that will be turned into rose water and oils for sale around the world.

The sweet smelling crop is providing farmers in Nangarhar province with a viable alternative to growing opium poppies, the sale of which has fuelled the conflict raging across the country.

"I am very happy with this harvest of flowers," Sapai tells AFP as he stands among hundreds of blooming rose bushes.

Sapai is one of more than 800 farmers in the province bordering Pakistan benefiting from the "Roses for Nangarhar" project, a joint Afghan-German initiative set up in 2007 to encourage poppy growers to switch to a legal, money-making flower.

"They provided us with the plants, the tools and even paid us for the first year when we had no harvest," Sapai, 50, explains.

"Now I have 600 plants and I collect up to 1,200 kilos (2,650 pounds) of petals."

Opium is big business in Afghanistan, where Nangarhar is the sixth biggest poppy-producing province.

Poppy cultivation hit a new record last year, with opium production soaring 87 percent to an estimated 9,000 tonnes, official figures show.

But Sapai says he is perfectly happy to grow roses.

He makes enough money to support his family, and insists roses have fewer costs and take less effort. After the rose season, which ends in May, he switches to growing vegetables.

Better than poppies

Starting at dawn and working until late morning when the heat sets in, Sapai and his workers appear resigned to the constant dangers lurking around them as they quickly pick off petals and drop them into large bags.

Nangarhar is rife with fighters belonging to the Islamic State group (IS), which emerged in Afghanistan by the end of 2014 and quickly turned the province into a stronghold.

The Taliban also roam the area, and bombs planted along the roads leading to rose fields are a constant threat.

In nearby Omar Qala village, teacher and rose-grower Shah Zaman is also convinced about the benefits of harvesting petals instead of poppies.

"The people here used to cultivate poppies but this is haram (forbidden under Islamic law)," Zaman tells AFP.

He expects to harvest one tonne of petals this year.

"The roses are much better... I make good money from roses. They are resistant and don't require as much expense or work."

Khan Agha, a representative for Afghan Rose Ltd in Dara-e-Noor district, which emerged out of the Afghan-German initiative, agrees.

Roses "do not require watering, fertiliser or care" -- unlike poppies, he says.

Rose trees are also more durable, lasting 30 to 50 years, compared with poppies, which must be planted every season.

"We have solid contracts with the farmers who grow roses asking them to stop cultivating poppy and other types of narcotics, and the places where we grow roses are clean from poppy 100 percent," he adds.

The farmers grow a variety known as Damask roses, which were brought from Bulgaria by the Germans but are endemic to Afghanistan, says Mohammad Akbar Mohmand, the owner of Afghan Rose Ltd.

The petals are distilled in the provincial capital Jalalabad. It takes about six tonnes of petals on average to extract one litre of essential oil.

At peak harvest time, Mohmand's distillery employs more than 120 people. From dawn until late morning, trucks flow from districts across the province delivering their precious cargo.

Once picked, rose petals begin to wilt within hours and lose their scent.

"The roses picked in the morning have to be distilled the very same day, even if we have to work until 2 am or 3 am," explains Mohmand, as bags of petals are poured into seven huge stainless steel vats.

Make perfume, not war

Shortly before the "Roses for Nangarhar" project started, Afghan entrepreneur Abdullah Orzala began growing roses and distributing the plants.

The US-trained engineer recently opened a boutique in Kabul selling rose water and perfumes to middle-class Afghans and foreigners.

He has 100 hectares (250 acres) of roses, but hopes to triple the number of plants next year "if the security (situation) allows".

Like Mohmand, Orzala never stops worrying about the constant threat of violence.

In 2016, 50 farmers working for him packed up and abandoned their crops in Achin district after it became an IS stronghold.

"You can deal with the Taliban, but you can't mess with Daesh," he says, using the Arabic name for IS.

Two years later, his farmers remain displaced further north. Afghan Rose Ltd also closed the Achin distillery and retreated to Jalalabad.

Its rose oil now supplies several European companies, including German organic cosmetics brand Dr. Hauschka -- whose products are priced well out of reach of ordinary Afghans.

"They make very expensive creams with our roses," says Mohmand.

Orzala exports its rose oil to Canadian company The 7 Virtues, which also sources essential oils from Haiti, the Middle East and Rwanda under the slogan "Make perfume, not war".

3 Creative Ways to Incorporate Roses Into Your Wedding Flowers

When it comes to choosing wedding flowers, many brides have a clear list of blooms they think they have to have (peonies, it's always peonies) and those that they aren't so sure about. Flowers like carnations, baby's breath and, yes, even roses can be considered lowbrow; but as we've written recently, many of these "bodega" flowers have been making a resurgence as cool, trendy blooms among some of our favorite florists.

The rose, often seen as less desirable than many other flowers (like the peony or dahlia), has so many beautiful variations besides the run-of-the-mill bright red. To help educate us all on different ways your florist can incorporate roses into your wedding flowers, we worked with Emily Buckner from FLWR Studio, one of our favorite floral designers. She created three arrangements in three different styles, incorporating some of her favorite ways to use roses (and psst, the variety she uses here is a beautiful new kind called the Applause!).

1. Select a combination of shapes and sizes.

Roses come in many shapes and sizes—single blooms, pompom, rosette, high-centered, cupped, quartered, double—the list goes on! To create depth and dimension in my arrangements, I like to use multiple varieties in a similar color tone. For this arrangement I've used high-centered Applause roses, a lilac spray, and a delicate blush single as my focal flowers. The supporting Queen Anne's lace adds texture to the recipe—romantic, soft and full!

2. Use interesting shades.

When most people think of roses, they envision the crimson Valentine's Day variety. While there's definitely a place for the deli rose, it's important to note that roses aren't exclusively red. When creating the palette for this arrangement, I worked with a selection of cooler hues to highlight the blue tones in the Applause rose. When paired with the vibrant blue cornflower and the moody gray carnation, the rose takes on an cooler color, quite unique and fun!

3. Rethink the dome.

My preference is always for a garden-inspired arrangement over the traditional dome or spiral shape. If I'm looking to create a more graphic or architectural moment, I will often opt for a number of full blooms, arranged on a kenzan (ikebana) frog. Limiting the arrangement to a just a few blooms can be very eye-catching and is also a great way to create an economical arrangement.

A dozen pollinator-friendly flowers

Fill your garden with colorful annuals that you and the pollinators can enjoy all season long.

Varieties from All-America Selections (AAS), a non-profit plant- trialing organization, can brighten your garden, attract pollinators.

Attract hummingbirds and second looks from passersby with the vibrant, bright-orange flowers of Canna South Pacific. This compact variety can be started from seed and was selected as a 2018 AAS winner for its vigorous, full and uniform growth habit.

Whether it's spikes of lavender, pink, white or red your garden and container need, you'll find them in the Salvia Jewel series. Watch butterflies and hummingbirds stop by for a sip of nectar and see finches feast upon the seeds later in the season.

Add more vertical interest and pollinator appeal in the garden and large planters with Asian Garden Celosia. The bright-pink blooms hold their color all season long atop sturdy stems, 31 to 40 inches tall.

Include a few Cupheas, also known as Mexican Heather, in containers, borders and mass plantings. Try FloriGlory Diana for plentiful, large blooms in an intense shade of magenta.

Incorporate beauty even in challenging locations with EnduraScape Pink

Bicolor Verbena. As the name implies, it is hardy, tolerating drought, heat and temperatures in the low teens, too. Use this spreader in large containers and baskets where you can appreciate the soft- pink blooms with their darker center.

Lure pollinators to your garden and containers with Vinca Mega Bloom Orchid Halo. The bright- purple blooms with a white eye stand up to heat and humidity without succumbing to disease.

Grow winning varieties of a traditional favorite, zinnia. These low-maintenance, sun-loving annuals can be started from seed directly in the garden. Add vibrant color to the garden with Queeny Lime, Zowie! Yellow Flame and Magellan Coral. Include a smaller-scale beauty with Profusion and Zahara zinnia varieties.

Gardeners and pollinators love purple coneflowers (Echinacea). Two colorful varieties, Cheyenne Spirit and PowWow Wild Berry, will fill your garden with color for seasons to come.

Cheyenne Spirit coneflower produces a mix of purple, pink, red and orange flowers along side lighter yellows, creams and white. This compact plant stands tall in wind and rain and is drought-tolerant once established.

PowWow Wild Berry coneflower lives up to its name. The vivid, deep-rose-purple flowers retain their beautiful color all season long. You'll enjoy continual bloom without deadheading or grooming.

Add more perennial beauty with Twizzle Purple Penstemon. The spikes of vibrant, purple blooms are favorites of hummingbirds and other pollinators. Include them in containers for added height or high-impact color anywhere in the landscape.

Extend your budget and increase perennial plantings next year by starting these three winners indoors by late January. Your efforts will be rewarded with flowers that same season.

And don't let shade stop you from inviting pollinators into the garden. Bounce Pink Flame Impatiens has all the flower power of common impatiens but is resistant to downy mildew. Plus, they are a bit more forgiving if you allow them to wilt. Just add water, and they bounce back.

Plant Sunpatiens Spreading Shell Pink in full sun or shade. Enjoy the season-long, soft-pink flowers even in high heat, rain and humidity. This variety has all the low-maintenance beauty of impatiens but is resistant to downy mildew.

Once you've added these beauties to your landscape, sit back and enjoy. You and the pollinators will reap the many benefits of these winning additions to your gardens and containers.

Why you should plant flowers alongside vegetables

Flowers have a remarkable ability to keep your veggie crop strong and healthy. Here's what you need to do.

When planning a vegetable garden for this summer, be sure to leave space for flowers. Vegetables can benefit from the presence of flowers for a number of reasons -- namely, their ability to attract bees and other pollinators.

Maggie Saska, a gardening specialist at the Rodale Institute's organic farm, says that bringing bees into the garden ensures a better veggie harvest:

"Without bees stopping by your garden to snack on nectar and swap pollen around, you're going to have a pretty disappointing crop."

The benefit goes both ways. Flowers help these struggling populations, too, whose decline have been linked to excessive use of chemicals in agriculture in recent decades, as well as loss of natural habitat. The more places for them to feed and help with pollination, the more secure our entire food production system is.

In an article for Rodale's, Saska explains how to go about choosing the right flowers for your vegetable patch.

1) Look at the bloom time. You'll want the flowers to bloom at the same time as the vegetable crop: "If the flowers you planted don't bloom until two weeks after your peas are done flowering, your peas are out of luck." But, at the same time you want blooms to happen throughout the whole growing season to help all of your plants, so plant a variety of flowers.

2) Look at the flower shape. Did you know that different shapes attract different pollinators, such as hummingbirds, bees, and beneficial wasps? Saska recommends flowers with a 'composite' shape (with petals arranged identically around a center). These could be zinnias, marigolds, cosmos, etc.

3) Think about height. The flowers should not block the sun for the vegetables, so choose low-growing plants. Saska points out, though, that some crops such as lettuce could benefit from a bit more shade at the peak of summer, so a taller flower next to it could be helpful.

4) Choose flowers that repel pests. This piece of advice comes via The Spruce, which admits that studies are inconclusive on this topic, but anecdotal evidence is strong -- and you don't stand to lose anything by having beautiful, colorful flowers in a veggie patch! Some suggestions:

Calendula: repels asparagus beetles and tomato hornworm, can be a trap for aphids
Cosmos: attracts bees and green lacewings, which attack other pests
Lavender: despised by ticks and moths
Marigolds: releases a chemical that kills root nematodes in the soil
Nasturtiums: deter squash bugs and beetles

Did Flowering Plants Evolve On A Lost Continent, Like Darwin Imagined?

In his vast correspondence with other contemporary naturalists, Charles Darwin mentions an “abominable mystery”. This mystery was the origin of angiosperms or plants with flowers. The fossil record showed that flowering plants appear relatively suddenly all around the world in the mid-Cretaceous, in contrast with Darwin's belief of a gradual, slow evolution. Darwin explained the apparent sudden evolution using gaps in the fossil record.

Perhaps, he suggested, the ancestor of modern flowering plants evolved in a remote place, from where the new group quickly spread. Plants with flowers are far more likely to become fertilized, thanks to the help of insects or the wind, can quickly produce seeds and colonize new terrain. So to solve this mystery it was just necessary to find the remote place where the first flowering plants evolved. Darwin proposed an interesting explanation why this place was not found during his lifetime: "I have sometimes fancied that development might have slowly gone for an immense period in some isolated continent or large island, perhaps near the South Pole.”

Darwin speculated that the first flowers evolved on a continent, from there spread over the globe, meanwhile the continent with the transitional fossils disappeared beneath the sea, far out of reach of any fossil collector or naturalist.

Since Darwin, many plant fossils have been found, but the origin of flowering plants still remains elusive. Possible sites of origin of the angiosperms were placed in the Arctic region, Southeast or East Asia, South America and Africa. Some fossil leaves of the Triassic and Jurassic resemble leaves of modern angiosperms but there is no direct evidence to link the fossils to the group. The oldest known fossils of angiosperms, showing some typical parts of a flower, like carpels and stamens (the reproductive organs of a flowering plant) but lacking others, like petals (modified, brightly colored leaves to attract pollinators),  were found in China, dating to the early Cretaceous. Archaefructus, discovered in 1998, was a plant growing in wet environments or even water, as the sediments, where the fossil is preserved, and the morphology of the leaves suggest.

The connection of Archaefructus with water supports also another idea about the evolution of flowering plants. The Cretaceous radiation probably begins somewhere in the wet tropics. The new plants then spread quickly from their place of origin and in just forty million years flowering plants make up already more than seventy-five percent of all known land plants. But according to botanists Archaefructus, despite its primitive traits, cannot be considered the first flowering plant, but just a very basal form, relocating the possible origin of angiosperms outside of China.

A modern discovery may vindicate Darwin's very speculative idea about the true origin of flowering plants. The continent of Zealandia, located east of modern Australia, disappeared in the sea in the late Cretaceous. If the first flowering plants evolved on the lost continent of Zealandia, this would explain the apparent lack of fossil forms.  From Zealandia, maybe with a tropical, wet climate at the time, the new group would quickly spread over Australia and Asia, united at the time in a single landmass, coinciding with the discovery of primitive flowering plants in fossil sites of China and Mongolia. There is also some evidence to support this hypothesis observing the distribution of modern species. Research suggests that Zealandia played an important role to explain the dispersal and evolution of animals, providing a dry land bridge, in the South Pacific. It's likely that also plants used this land bridge.

This is supported by the distribution of flowering plants still sharing some traits with their primitive ancestor.  Many primitive flowering plants are found clustering around the former location of Zealandia, supposed origin of the primitive ancestor.  The genus Amborella is found only on the island of  New Caledonia,  southwest Pacific Ocean. Austrobaileya is found only in the tropical forests of Queensland, Australia. Degeneria, a genus in the family Magnoliaceae, a very old group inside the flowering plants, is only found on Fidschi, a remote island north of New Zealand.

Scented winter flowers

To me there is nothing in the garden that is as uplifting as fragrance, particularly in the darkest depths of winter. Catching an unexpected whiff of the scent of summer on a cold, grey day when dashing out the front door or walking to the bus stop is one of the everyday surprises which makes gardening so magical.

However, as a self-confessed fair-weather gardener who hates the cold, for me there is just one downside to many winter flowering shrubs: you have to get out in the freezing drizzle to actually smell them. I barely last a few minutes at a time. Fortunately, a small handful of these beauties also happen to make excellent cut flowers, so you can surround yourself with the scent of the outdoors all day. Having experimented with loads each winter, I have come up with my top four that smell as good in the house as they do in the garden.

Wintersweet, or Chimonanthus praecox, lives a secret double life as a mild-mannered garden shrub all summer long, with plain green leaves that are easily overlooked. Yet come this time of year, its bare branches erupt into waxy yellow flowers with deep burgundy throats and a scent that will stop you dead in your tracks. Spicy, sweet and intensely fragrant, it is well worth the few years' wait for the plants to reward you with flowers.

If you only have a tiny spot to play with, you couldn't do much better than Daphne bholua, especially if it is overshadowed by trees and tall buildings. These shade-loving, tiny, evergreen shrubs produce delicate white or pink blooms that look like they are made from sugar icing. And the scent – oh, the scent. Deep, rich and classically floral, it reminds me of vintage perfume.

Sarcococca hookeriana is another excellent candidate for smaller, shady spots, producing a jasmine-like scent so powerful you will almost certainly smell it before you see it.

Last but not least comes Viburnum x bodnantense, a large shrub with small pompoms in delicate white or pastel pink. With its extremely long flowering season, starting from mid-autumn until early spring, you'll get a conveyor of scented blooms right when you need them most.

No garden? No problem

Even if you don't have any outside space at all, there are many winter flowering house plants you can grow for unbeatable fragrance indoors. I am a huge fan of the ivory, scented flowers of trailing cactus Epiphyllum anguliger, with its mad, fishbone-shaped foliage. For lovers of the classics there are always the white, rose-like flowers of gardenia, with an infamously intense perfume and the old-school bridal bouquet favourite of stephanotis, whose lighter, fresher scent can still fill a room.