We already know that William and Kate are a new breed of royals. This down-to-earth young royal couple are very modern and have modern global interests, including sustainability. Even when it comes to the tradition and ritual of their Royal Wedding, they’re choosing to do things in a more sustainable way.
According to a Reuters article, the flora and foliage for the Royal Wedding will be seasonal and locally sourced—much of it coming from royal estates. Since this wedding is so much about British culture and tradition, it was important to Kate that the plants “had to be seasonal and as organic to the place as possible.”
The total talley of plants for the wedding comes to about 4 tons of foliage, including eight 20-foot-tall English Field Maples, and bushels of cream and white flowers including blossoms, azaleas, rhododendrons, euphorbias, beech, wisteria, lilac and Chinese gooseberry (actinidia). Kate’s bouquet is also expected to contain organic, seasonal flowers.
Kate and William have also insisted on using as many live, growing plants as possible instead of cut ones. After the ceremony, the Royal Wedding foliage will remain on display in Westminster Abbey until May 6, after which cut flowers will be donated to charity and live plants will be replanted. Most of the trees are expected to be planted on avid gardener Prince Charles’ Highgrove estate.