Why we cut rosehips

By September the dog roses along the hedges have finished, and the hips start to colour: first orange, then scarlet, then a dark, waxy red by November.

We cut them from a grower’s hedge in Hertfordshire, where they would otherwise be flailed. A few branches change the feel of a bouquet completely. They add weight and shine, and a sense of the season turning.

They last for weeks, long after the flowers around them have gone, and they dry beautifully if you hang them upside down in a cool room.