What Flowers Are in Season for a Summer Wedding?
Summer gives you more variety to work with than any other season on the farm. Whether you're dreaming of a rustic look, a classic garden feel, or something bright and unexpected, there's a summer bloom that fits your vision.
The Range of Summer Blooms
Here in Zone 7, June through August brings a wide mix of options:
Sunflowers for a rustic, sun-soaked feel
Garden roses for a more traditional, romantic look
Zinnias and rudbeckia for bright, colorful, joyful arrangements
Whatever vibe you're after, summer can deliver it.
My Favorite Summer Surprise: Lisianthus
If you ask me what I get most excited to work with in summer, it's lisianthus, hands down. It's a bloom most brides don't recognize at first — it looks like a rose, but it isn't one at all — and it consistently earns a "wow" the moment someone sees it up close.
Lisianthus has exceptional vase life, which makes it perfect for bridal and bridesmaid bouquets and boutonnieres — anything that's going to be out of water for hours on your wedding day. I love using it especially in late summer, July and August, and we'll often see a nice refresh of it again in early fall.
It also comes in colors for nearly any palette: green for a foliage-forward look, white for the classic Ashland Alabaster palette so many of my brides are drawn to right now, and rich jewel tones, purples, pinks, soft lavenders, blushes, and even browns.
A Palette I Love: Wildflower Waltz
One of my favorite summer color palettes is what I call Wildflower Waltz — bright, cheerful, fun, and a little funky if that's the direction a couple wants to go.
I think a lot of brides are afraid of color, and they shouldn't be. Color is memorable. It's what sets a wedding apart from the sea of all-white-and-green or blue-and-white weddings. Leaning into seasonal color is something guests remember for years, and honestly, it never goes out of style.
Planning Around Richmond Summer Heat
Richmond summers aren't just hot, they're hot and humid, and that combination is tough on flowers. A few things I always tell my summer brides:
Flowers to Avoid
I recommend steering clear of hydrangeas for outdoor July and August weddings. They're beautiful, but they're drama queens in the heat and tend to wilt fast. I also avoid more delicate, tender blooms in general during peak summer heat, since they simply don't hold up outdoors for hours at a time.
Flowers That Hold Up Beautifully
The good news is there are plenty of gorgeous options that handle the heat well:
Sunflowers — cheerful and durable, and available in softer tones too if you want something less bold
Carnations — these have come a long way from the dyed-carnation science experiments you may remember from school. They're incredibly durable, add great volume and texture, and we can manipulate them to look like a completely different flower. They're also budget-friendly.
Lisianthus — my favorite for a reason. Long-lasting and heat-tolerant, even out of water.
Solidago (goldenrod) — a fun, wildflower-look filler that holds up well
Ageratum — a soft purple filler flower that's a lovely, dependable addition to a summer palette
Celosia — long-lasting with great texture, and a classic choice for that traditional floral look
Beat the Heat with Smart Planning
A few practical moves can make a big difference on the wedding day itself:
Consider a Sunday brunch wedding or another creative timing choice to avoid the hottest part of the day
Plan an outdoor ceremony with an indoor reception — the Richmond and Central Virginia area has beautiful venues that offer both, which also gives you a built-in rain backup plan
Trust that your flowers are being properly cared for behind the scenes
How We Help Flowers Survive the Heat
At Breemar, every arrangement and personal flower we provide is properly conditioned before it reaches you. I also use two specialty floral preservation products, Crowning Glory and Finishing Touch, which I alternate between depending on the flowers. These create a light coating on the petals that helps them absorb extra hydration and nutrients, while preventing premature petal drop, browning, and wilting.
It's a small extra step, but it makes a real difference on a hot wedding day, and I include it for every client, including my DIY brides, so their flowers are set up for success from the moment they leave the farm.
Booking Your Summer Wedding Flowers
Breemar Flower Farm works on a shorter booking window than a lot of traditional florists, since we specialize in smaller weddings and DIY setups. That flexibility lets us move faster than some other vendors.
Here's how it typically works:
Ideal timeline: several months in advance, to lock in your date since we limit how many weddings we take per weekend, especially during peak times (April-June & September-October).
Standard timeline: about 45 days in advance, which is our preferred payment-in-full window
Tight timeline: as little as 2 weeks in advance, if your vision has some flexibility and life circumstances call for a faster turnaround
Life happens, and last-minute venue deals or unexpected circumstances come up. We'll do our best to work with almost any realistic timeline.
Whether You Want Full-Service or DIY
From a simple bridal bouquet to a full DIY Bucket setup, I'll help you figure out what fits your Richmond summer wedding and your budget. Get in touch and let's map out flowers that are as durable as they are beautiful.
Keep Blooming,
Nicole
