1954- my brother Robby in our backyard.

By Carolyn Parker

HAVE YOU EVER thought about how you arrived at your passion’s door? Since the debut of my first rose book, I’ve often pondered how my life became a love affair with roses. And as a writer, I’ve asked myself the questions­­–when did I see my first rose; what was the first rose I planted; how and when did I begin to arrange flowers? The answers–and sometimes I can barely come up with them–always surprise and delight.

Recently, Susan Donley, Mary Knowles, and I were asked to give five-minute bios at the beginning of a flower-arranging seminar. I’ve known these two women for more than thirty years, we’re designers, we’ve endlessly talked about, not only plants and flowers, but almost everything about our lives, past and present.

Susan, who owns the flower shop, Florali, spoke first. She told how she grew up with all kinds of flowers–both her grandfather and her father were master gardeners. Roses, bulbs, perennials, fruit trees, and vegetables inspired her childhood. She said she couldn’t remember a meal, at her mother’s table, that didn’t have a lovely flower arrangement. Everyday–flowers at the dining table? I’d never heard that before.

Then Mary, of Knowles & Murphy Landscape Design, told how she played in a magical garden created by her mother who always encouraged Mary to pick and play with whatever she wanted. At six years of age, she remembers being especially enamored by beautiful foliage and made little arrangements of different kinds of leaves and flowers for her bedroom. (I’d never heard that either.) She also made miniature garden spaces in the dirt with pebble paths and pretend flowerbeds.

My childhood garden

When it was my turn, I said, “Unlike Susan and Mary, there were few flowers in my childhood garden, as a matter of fact, my back yard also lacked trees and shrubs! There was nothing but a big patch of brown lawn invaded by clover and dandelions. Fences on all three sides bordered neighbors’ gardens that were filled with beautiful flowers, raspberries, rock walls, pathways, shady trees.” I peeked through the fence slats and longed for a garden.

I was charmed to hear my friends speak of their childhood floral associations. They recalled little things they’d never thought about. Susan growing up to become a florist––she’s opening her second store in Broadway Plaza––seemed only natural. And Mary, becoming a garden designer with a special interest in gorgeous plant material was a no-brainer. As for me, I think the longing for a beautiful garden gave me the energy and inspiration to create my own. And in the process, everything was so magical, my passion urged me to photograph and write about it all.

Recall your own floral inspirations

Audience members, after hearing our stories at the flower-arranging seminar, found delight in recalling their own early experiences with flowers. You might like to do the same thing.

October is often a very good month for rose blooms, it’s almost a second spring. With our cooling weather, the soil doesn’t dry out so fast, and it’s a pleasant time for tending and grooming.

COLUMN ARCHIVE