Across the northern hemisphere farmers are harvesting the wheat that feeds us all.

I thought about giving thanks as I mulled over Fall arrangements for 2022, and decided I couldn’t do better than offer wreaths featuring this beautiful tradition-rich grain.

We have reason to give thanks in North America – while war has taken a big bite out of Europe’s wheat supply, our bumper 2022 crop will help offset the global shortfall.

I needed to hand cut the wheat to get long stalks. Through the grape vine I got in touch with David, farm manager for Black Sheep Creamery, just as he got ready to cut a wheat field in nearby Adna. That’s how I found myself watching one honey-colored autumn afternoon when David fired up the combine.

I brought home two kinds of wheat from that field: a modern hard red wheat with classic whiskery awnings, and an awn-less heritage wheat that David says was likely brought to the U.S. from the Ukraine or Poland. Both make lovely wreaths combined with flowers from my fields (safflower, poppy pods, statice, flax seed pods, gomphrena, Chinese lanterns, rose hips) on a base of foraged tree moss. The wreaths are 20-22” across, just the right size for most front doors, or anywhere else you like. I’ve saved some wheat for Thanksgiving table arrangements too.

When you break bread this fall, think of this quiet golden grain threshed in an afternoon field right here in Lewis County. Cherish the peace that allowed it to flourish and yield the harvest on which we all depend.

Categories: UncategorizedTags: buy local, dried flower wreaths, dried flowers, farmer florist, local flowers, wheat wreath