St. Agnes Lighthouse

The Legend

Isles of Scilly legend claims that the first Scented Narcissi were brought over to the islands as a present to the Govenor's wife, who lived at Star Castle, from a Dutch Merchant Captain. Thinking the bulbs were onions, she boiled them, but on tasting them, threw them out the window into the moat as they tasted so horrible. The flowers flourished in this environment, and Scented Narcissi were born.

Historically

In 1879, William Trevellick of Rocky Hill Farm, took note of these wonderful flowers growing amongst the island, and speculatively sent a box of Scented Narcissi to Covent Garden. On receiving an unexpected fortune for the flowers, Trevellick along with Richard Mumford, Hugh Watts, and W.M.Gluyus, became the first flower farmers on St. Mary's.

In The Last 100 Years

The islands continued to send flowers across the UK, and in the 1950s, St. Mary's boasted 90 flower farms; today, with the increase in imported flowers, just twelve remain on St Mary's.

Today

The island flower industry is a huge part of life on St.Mary's, and is the second biggest industry on the Islands after tourism. We are proud to support the remaining flower farmers on the Isles of Scilly, and source all of our flowers from them directly. Every bouquet of flowers we send to you includes a "Farmer Tag" so you know exactly which farm your flowers came from, and who farmed them for you.