British flowers are growing on us. MAXINE GORDON visits a York farm in full bloom

RACHEL Wilkes introduces me to William Shakespeare. Red and prickly with a sweet-shop smell of Turkish delight, this king of roses is rightly named after our own king of words.

In a lush field between Strensall and Sheriff Hutton, Rachel is keeping the very fine art of British flower growing alive.

"Ninety per cent of all flowers bought in this country are imported," says Rachel, who set up her business Ducks & Daffodils selling British cut flowers to clients some four years ago.

It's a round-the-clock venture, growing flowers for all seasons. Rachel reels off her list: in January, there are hellebores and lots of evergreens such as ivy with its black berries and the coloured stems of dogwood. There is the shiny Sarcococca too, with its intensely fragrant flowers as well as snowdrops and seed heads, which look great in arrangements. By spring, daffs, hyacinth and anemone take over with dahlias and chrysanths giving lasting colour through autumn.

But it is now - in the height of summer - that British flowers unfurl their star quality. Looking around Rachel's plot at Goodness Farm, there are red and pink poppies the size of saucers; elegant delphiniums in eye-popping blue swaying in the cool breeze and a sea of thrift in shades from snow white through to lilac and fuchsia pink - its pretty, compact, flower head perfect for wedding decoration. "I am using these to make some flower crowns and bracelets for a photoshoot at the weekend," reveals Rachel.

Inside a polytunnel, it suddenly feels tropical. Sweat peas are luxuriating in the summer fug, happily weaving up through the wire trellis and releasing a heady scent more commonly found in a department store fragrance hall.

It's here that the work of the flower farm begins. Seeds are sewn in trays until green shoots emerge, these are then planted on in larger pots, hardened off and eventually transferred to the ground to take flight.

"It's very hands-on. All the annuals are grown from seed. It's hard work, but rewarding. I get to work with beautiful products and if they are for somebody's wedding, it all adds to their big day."

The demand for seasonal, English, flowers seems to be following a similar trend to what's happened with food, observes Rachel. "The trend is for small-scale producers using the best-quality produce to create their products, with it all done as an individual creation."

It means every bouquet or arrangement she makes is different. "It all depends on what was looking good in the morning; those are the ones I pick."

There is a fashion too, says Rachel, for a retro, more relaxed look for wedding flowers. "Brides at the moment are going for pastels and vintage shades."

Rachel sells bouquets to select cafes around York including three in Gillygate - Cafe No8, Bistrot Guy and Cafe 68 as well as its outpost at the Castle Museum. Shoppers at wholefoods store Alligator in Fishergate can buy her posies there too.

Mum-of-two Rachel, 42, moved to the area from Essex to attend at York University. She worked in food retail but changed direction after starting her family, and began growing flowers and veg for fun, which led to her study horticulture at Askham Bryan College.

Today, she is part of a co-operative of local flower growers who meet regularly to support each other and take advantage of block-buying.

Her biggest challenge remains the perennial one - and one all gardeners will share. "Keeping on top of the weeds."

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