August 26, 2018

The Most Beautiful Flowers of Paris

Being an ex-florist and flower addict means I can’t help picking all the most beautiful flowers in Paris ... even if it sometimes gets me into trouble!

Diary of a flower addict

When I first moved to Paris, I had no idea it was illegal to pick even a single bloom in parks or on roadsides. I've been scolded by locals and even police yet still continue to cheekily pluck the odd flower when I think no-one's looking!

During my 20 years in Byron Bay, I used to keep a pair of secateurs (cutters) in my car so that whenever I spotted some irresistible roadside blooms, I could easily pull over and snip a few armfuls for myself.

My floral Parisian life

One of the attractions for me about Paris is the sheer beauty encapsulated in French flowers. The entire city is adorned in blooms - in huge swathes throughout parks and gardens, spilling from jardinieres in every apartment window, by the bucket load in markets, in elegant arrangements in boutique windows, and bursting forth from flower shops.

My favourite blooms to take home from markets and florists for little vignettes are tulips, roses and poppies so I can watch them open from bud to full bloom.

Upon moving into my first Parisian apartment - a tiny 20 square metres - the first thing I did was visit my local fleuriste and buy a delicate phaelenopsis orchid potted plant to brighten my winter days. It lasted months, right up until springtime.

Why do flowers captivate us?

Flowers are eternally captivating to us because they feed our desire to be seduced. We are first and foremost enthralled by the eyes, then our sense of touch and smell.

When I see flowers, I experience an emotional and physical response. I can be just as lost in a single bloom as I can in a room full of blooms.

A $2,000 floral seduction

While working as a florist in Byron Bay, a gentleman who had recently bought a holiday cottage in town ordered enough roses to fill the entire abode, as a surprise for his wife when she arrived to stay for the first time.

We set up vase after vase of luscious, colourful roses and scattered fresh petals throughout. I imagine the delight she must have felt, turning the key and walking in to see a couple of thousand dollars worth of decadence and delight before her eyes.

French flowers v. Australian flowers

French flowers are :

lush and soft
feminine and intimate
sometimes loosely gathered together as if straight from a garden …
or arranged into structured, extravagant designs like those of Jeff Leatham

11 PLACES IN PARIS TO FIND BEAUTIFUL BLOOMS

1. HÔTEL COSTES

My favourite roses in Paris are at this chic hotel, where I love to stand outside to gaze at the opulent window displays, full of abundant, hedonistic, riotous blooms in soft and vibrant shades. Step inside the hotel and you will experience sensual bundles of roses in subdued, intimate, chandelier-lit spaces.

2. Markets + Florists

Local marchés are an affordable and personal way to purchase blooms, as they are sold en masse and displayed in rainbows of colours. Florists seem to exist on every street corner and boast peonies, tulips, roses, ranunculas, hyacinths, poppies, orchids, iris, daffodils and so many more depending on the season. Potted plants are always available too. In early spring, hyacinths burst open and make me giddy with their perfume and loveliness.

3. Jardin du Luxembourg

Being right on my doorstep in St-Germaine-de-Prés, the immense gardens at Luxembourg are a source of almost daily delight for me. The rose gardens make me want to get my secateurs out and start snipping. In spring, swathes of daffodils burst forth and in autumn, golden chrysanthemums fill every urn.

The gift of living so close to these gardens is watching them change by the season. Seeing spring blooms eventually give way to a barren, snowy landscape is a beautiful reminder of the cycles of life.

4. Palais Royale, Paris

My first experience in these formal gardens was with a lovely Frenchman on a date, who explained to me the history of the palace and showed me through the long galleries of luxury boutiques surrounding the gardens. A smaller and quieter garden than it’s more iconic sister Tuileries, it’s where locals come to find peace, quiet and beautiful blooms amongst it’s pebbled walkways and splashing fountains.

Beyond Monet’s Garden in the little village of Giverny, small, narrow cobbled laneways are equally charming with façades and balconies festooned with flowers and vines.

8. Musée de l’Orangerie

A date with a Frenchman was where I experienced for the first time a panoramic style immersion in Monet's waterlilies here. The experience entails walking slowly around an immense oval gallery in which are hung Monet’s famous waterlily paintings in a manner intended to make you feel you are actually inside the waterlily ponds.

9. The Ritz Hotel

Five star hotels like The Ritz are the ultimate luscious immersions in floral fantasy. It's easy to pass an hour or two wandering from garden to terrasse to lounge area ... to soak your senses in the formal, innovative and large scale arrangements of peonies, roses, hyrdrangeas and arum lilies.

10. Art galleries

Paris the city is essentially a museum of art. With too many galleries and exhibitions to mention here, you really cannot miss an opportunity to visit something old or new. Be equally entranced by floral inspired images by the masters of Renaissance, or by modern photographers.

11. Flower boxes • Jardinières

If you visit Paris, make sure to look up and admire the jardinières that many Parisians place in their windows, spilling over with brightly coloured geraniums, adding even more charm to the already most charming city in the world.

TIPS FOR LONG LASTING BLOOMS

Upon returning home with your flowers, re-cut the stems in between nodes, with a sharp knife or secateurs, on an angle. This allows a greater surface area through which the flower can drink.
Add the flower food provided by the florist to the water, or a teaspoon of sugar and small splash of white vinegar and bleach, to feed the blooms and clean the water.
Strip the stems of any foliage that will be below water level, so as not to pollute the water.
For tulips, A French maman I know swears by a few copper coins in the water to keep the stems straight. They do continue to grow towards whatever light source is in the room, making them bend elegantly over which can be lovely anyway.
For gerberas, use only 5-10 cm of water to prevent drooping over.
For hyacinths, do not cut off the bulb, but leave it intact.
For oriental lilies, once each bloom opens, gently pinch off each furry stamen tip, to prolong flower life and to avoid the stamen staining what it may land on. Wash fingers well afterwards.
Re-cut stems and change the water every day, if possible.
Keep flowers away from drafts and direct sunlight.
Avoid displaying flowers near fruit, as they release ethylene gas that causes flowers to wilt.