I was born with a green thumb. My Gran was 80 a few weeks ago & still has a lovely little garden at her unit. My great Aunt, who I love dearly, once worked as a florist and My Mum taught me everything I know about gardening. She encouraged my love of flowers and was the one who suggested that maybe Floristry was the career for me & after spending my year ten work experience in a Florist, I never looked back.
Growing up, I was lucky enough to have a stay at home Mum. My sister and I rarely fought and were always having Barbie picnics in the garden. Mum planted a hot pink rhododendron and a pink & white camellia outside my bedroom window - I always called them "Lauren Flowers" and would admire them every day as the blooms opened.
My favorite childhood memories are of Gardening with my Mum. Being a one-income family with a mortgage meant there wasn't a lot of money to spend on fancy plants & edging, but the garden was always beautiful. She was always taking cuttings from old plants to create new ones, collecting cuttings from friends, neighbours & my Gran, who had a beautiful garden filled with Roses, camellias & a driveway lined with hydrangea. I still remember collecting rocks from the quarry to make the edging - and I now have the same in my garden.
This afternoon I went to visit my parents & sister, Mum and I wandered around the garden with Layla & Hamish in toe, admiring the spring bulbs, freesias & bluebells, looking at the progress of what looks will be an enormous foxglove & admiring the Camellias in full bloom while I pointed out things I "needed" cuttings of! Needless to say I think sometimes she dreads my visits as she knows I'll be rummaging through the beds to find something new.
This time spent with my Mum is like no other, it's peaceful & fills and we talk about secrets that we don't want my Dad to hear!!
