

Eat your hearts out, expensive London florists. These gorgeous hyacinths were being sold at the market at the weekend: three bunches for £5.00. A few stems in this jug, more elsewhere and a friend took another bunch back to London with her. The smell is just heavenly. The flowers really are blue, not mauve-ish as they look here.
I’ve seen cut amaryllis stems before, but not hyacinths. I imagine they’re specially grown for the cut flower trade, probably in the Netherlands. How do they get those long, straight stems? Such horticultural skill.