Wedding Flower Ideas for Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall!

For that fresh picked, all natural look, you want a ranunculus wedding bouquet. Even that maven of wonder, Martha Stewart, shows how to tie a wide ribbon around ranunculus for an elegantly simple bouquet.

You can even find hot pink, bright orange or sizzling yellow ranunculus to add that unexpected pop of color among the usual whites and greenery in the bouquet and repeat the color splash in other floral arrangements.

Simple Stunning Wedding Flowers

Or you can choose the picotee ranunculus that have a sophisticated antique cream color or the white with yellow center that works well in a nosegay for the classic bride. The ranunculus, cousin of the buttercup, grows in swampy areas which is why its name in Latin means "little frog."

These are hardy plants, once cut can last up to a week which is great to know if you are making your own centerpieces. The only problem is that ranunculus are seasonal, so they are only available from winter to spring.

If you want the look of ranunculus in the other months, you'll have to use silk flowers. The ranunculus is a popular, cost saving alternative to roses. Each ranunculus blooms opens wide to reveal dozens of delicate petals.

These flowers are great for outdoor weddings remaining fresh when other types of flowers tend to wilt in heat. You can find ranunculus for about $1.20 per stem at the florist. If you purchase these wedding flowers from a vendor or in bulk, you can negotiate a better price.

With overnight shipping and advanced growing techniques, you can have almost any fresh flower that you want for your wedding. But if you choose wedding flowers that are not in season, be prepared to double or triple your flower budget.

A more practical way to approach wedding flowers is to start with color and style that you want flowers to reflect, then find out what is in season.

Spring flowers: anemone, daffodil, hyacinth, lilac, narcissus, peony, ranunculus, sweet pea, tulip.

Creative Wedding Florals You Can Make

Summer flowers: chrysanthemum, English lavender, forget-me-not, freesia, daisy, hydrangea, iris, larkspur, Queen Anne's lace, stephanotis, sunflower, tuberose.

Fall flowers: aster, chrysanthemum, dahlia, marigold, zinnia, colorful orange/red/gold leaves

Winter flowers: amaryllis, camellias, casa blanca lily, daffodil, holly, jasmine, narcissus, poinsettia, ranunculus, star of Bethlehem, sweet pea, tulip, wax flower

Flowers that you can find almost year round: baby's breath, bachelor's button, carnations, calla lily, lily of the valley, carnations, gardenia, roses

Another tip is to find out what types of flowers are grown near the wedding site. By using local flowers and greenery, you save transportation costs and may be able to purchase flowers directly from a local grower at wholesale prices.

Whether you shop for wedding flowers from the grower or florist, bring samples of fabric and colors, photo of your gown and bridesmaids gowns and photos or information on the reception site. As you shop, you can place flower samples and bouquet photos against these items to see flowers fit the overall image you want to create on your wedding day.