Weddings & Events in Sydney

Weddings & events in Sydney: spring peonies, March roses and lilies

Weddings & events in Sydney follow Australia's peony season, which runs from October to November and on into summer, and overlaps with Sydney's spring wedding season. A bride marrying in October or November can choose peonies in their Australian season, a March bride does better with peony-shaped roses or lilies, and guests who can't make the day send flowers to the reception instead.

A spring bride in Sydney and the Australian peony season

Spring weddings in Sydney run from September to November, and Australia's peony season opens in October and continues through into summer. A bride marrying in October or November is choosing a flower that's in season at home, not one flown in against the calendar.

The bridal bouquet can bring peonies and roses together in one soft, rounded shape. The Duo of Peony Roses and Peonies pairs peony-shaped roses with true peonies in a single bouquet, so the bride gets the look without relying on peonies alone. Brides working through the options can start in the bridal bouquet range, and anyone choosing for the rest of the wedding party can look through wedding bouquets in the same spirit.

A bride set on something unmistakably Australian can choose protea instead. It's a cut flower grown commercially in New South Wales as well as in Western Australia and Victoria. The waratah, the flower that stands for New South Wales, blooms around Sydney itself in September and October, though it isn't one the catalogue carries, so it stays background rather than an option here.

For a bride getting ready at a harbourside hotel, the delivery details include the guest's surname and room number if known, and the hotel decides whether it goes to the room or reception. More on reaching a hotel address is on the flowers in Sydney page.

Peony-shaped roses and lilies for an early-autumn bride

March is the month most weddings take place in New South Wales, according to the Bureau of Statistics, and in Sydney that month falls in early autumn rather than spring. A March bride is marrying outside Australia's peony season, which has already closed by the time she walks down the aisle.

A peony-shaped rose fills that gap with a similarly full, layered head. The flower most often sold under that name is an English rose bred by David Austin, though that's a description of the type rather than a claim that every rose in this range is one. Set beside a peony-shaped rose, lilies hold their own as a greenhouse flower cut all year round, so they go into a bouquet for any date on the calendar, March included.

Where a particular flower isn't available for the date chosen, the florist substitutes one close to it in colour and price. The finished bouquet is photographed before the courier sets off, and that photo is the moment to flag the substitution if it doesn't suit.

Two weeks in a vase: jumilia as the guests' gift to the couple

Guests who can't make the wedding itself often send flowers to the reception instead, and jumilia is built for that job. The 51 Jumilia in Airy Wrapping arrangement has buds up to seven centimetres across, white at the base and pink at the edge, and with proper care in a vase it lasts up to two weeks, well past the wedding day itself.

A flower basket full of lilies does the same job for a table, since the basket stands without a vase at the venue. One thing worth checking first: lilies are toxic to cats, pollen and vase water included, as RSPCA NSW reminds owners every year, so a basket like this suits the reception better than the couple's own home if a cat lives there.

Wedding flower delivery in Sydney is timed against the venue's running order rather than guessed at, so a basket or bouquet can land for the toast, with dessert, or just before the couple walks in. Orders placed for a set date and time go to any zone across Sydney, and booking earlier leaves more slots open; each address is charged on its own, as set out on the delivery page.

Start with what suits the date: peonies for a spring wedding, peony-shaped roses or lilies for one in March. Guests sending something instead of attending will find it among the gifts for the couple in the Wedding range, and anyone still settling on a date can check the peonies season before fixing it.