A Garden Wedding for Every Season

With its dramatic shifts in climate, New York can seem like a different country depending on the time of year-a trait you should exploit when planning your reception's location, décor, and menu. Use seasonal flowers, proper heating, and fresh ingredients to fit the scene.

• By Katie Charles
• Published Winter 2006

Fall

Autumn begs for a rustic event, so stake your tent in the Hudson Valley. Andrea Most Gottschall of A Most Creative Affair advises playing up the harvest theme: Line entrances with barrels of apples or orange, red, and rust mums. Serve hearty fare like squash soup, pork belly and new potatoes, and signature cocktails such as hot cocoa spiked with Schnapps. Don't skip heaters-they'll ensure your reception is a pocket of comfort.

IN SEASON: dahlias, bittersweet berries, chrysanthemums, and fiery foliage like oak and maple.

Winter

Winters in the city seem endlessly grim, so Liz Seccuro of Dolce Parties recommends choosing an upstate resort like Mirror Lake Inn or Mohonk Mountain House that offers skiing nearby. As a floral alternative, amass simple white branches for height and drama, then weave in paperwhites and fairy lights. For an après-ski chic vibe, serve mulled wine, cider, and cheese fondue with artisanal honey; dress up Prosecco with pomegranate seeds or cranberries.

IN SEASON: amaryllis, Ilex and privet berries, Dutch tulips, Ranunculus, evergreens.

Spring

An English garden wedding is a chance to celebrate your love-and the end of another mid-Atlantic winter. Karen Bussen, author of Simple Stunning Weddings, suggests draping a gazebo with lilac branches and naming each table after a local flower. Vary your centerpieces and cluster different types of blooms by kind-say, a tulip table, then a lily table-which will be easy during this bountiful time of year.

IN SEASON: hyacinths, poppies, peonies, lily of the valley, and dogwood branches.

Summer

Head to Lake Placid during a full moon for a bucolic throwback-to-summer-camp affair. Planner Mimi van Wyck recommends erecting portable platforms with tepees and mosquito netting . Serve a spiked camp punch , and pheasant or venison for the main course. After hours of dancing in the moonlight, gather around a bonfire for late-night burgers and s'mores -unless your more adventurous guests are up for a midnight dip in the lake.

IN SEASON: garden roses,cosmos, hybrid-delphinium, sunflowers, dahlias, and mountain laurel.