August is glorious and merciless. The same sun that gilds your photographs will finish a hydrangea by the speeches.
The survivors
Garden roses hold. Lisianthus holds. Eucalyptus, olive and most grasses will outlast the marquee itself. Dahlias give you drama and ask only for water and shade until the last minute.
Save the sweet peas and hydrangeas for a May morning — or for the one arrangement that lives indoors, beside the cake, where they can be admired without being martyred.