When people hear of a garden wedding, the first image that appears in their heads is a backyard or a park, with a plethora of plants as decorations. Of course, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with having an outdoor wedding, or even using plants as decorations. The idea, however, is to make the wedding look like a natural paradise and not the garden section of the local big box store. Here’s how to use plants at your wedding without overdoing it.
The first consideration should be your guests. Anyone with allergies will be extremely uncomfortable if you have a lot of flowers or other pollen producing plants in their vicinity. How can you combat this? Ideally, you can make sure that the person in question is as far away from the offending plants as they can get. Or simply plan to use other versions of that plant. For instance, if you wanted roses as decorations, you could use the petals instead. For beautiful (but strong smelling) gardenias or jasmine, use climbing vines or bushes that don’t blossom, such as ivy or pine. Remember that your guests are there to celebrate your day with you, and if they are uncomfortable, your wedding will not be the success that you meant it to be.
No allergy problems that you can think of, as far as your guests and wedding party are concerned? Great! Move on to the type of plant you want for your decoration. Roses, again, are a traditional plant, and there are many ways to use them. Miniature versions make very pretty favors for a table, either by putting a pot on each one or by strewing tiny blossoms. Want to be really unique? Get a shot glass for each seat, fill it with water, and place the tiny blooms in there. Now you have a unique and pretty garden favor that won’t be forgotten anytime soon!
Perhaps you want garden favors and a garden based location. This is easily done; all you have to do is scout out your local park. You can call the parks and recreation services department in your area to reserve it; be careful, however, because city events take first priority. Besides, you would hate to plan your wedding on the same day as the founding fathers’ birthday, if for no other reason than it would make things a lot more complicated for your guests!
If you’re lucky, you may live near a Victorian house that doubles as a historical site and has a garden that you can rent for your wedding. Many times, these sites have very beautiful, well maintained areas. They may also be expensive, but guaranteed, they are worth every penny.
Last but not least, what happens if you’re stuck indoors and you still want a garden theme? You can simply decorate the room with a few well chosen plants. Again, to avoid allergy issues, you could do a lovely Asian theme with bamboo shoots in water, or bonsai trees. Cherry blossom sprigs are beautiful in tall glass vases as well. These centerpieces can easily be turned into favors for the table. Just be sure there’s no fighting over them as the guests leave your wedding!
Garden themed weddings can be impressive and fun without subjecting anyone to the miseries of allergies or breaking your budget. A little clever legwork and some consideration of thought can result in beautiful decorations that will enhance your wedding tenfold and make your reception the talk of the town.
