Jyväskylä parish replaces summer flowers with perennials at cemeteries

Jyväskylä parish has switched to perennials for grave plantings at its cemeteries, replacing traditional summer flowers, Yle reports.

The move follows recommendations from the Church’s environmental diploma, which encourages the use of multi-year plants over annual summer flowers to reduce water and fertilizer use, as well as maintenance costs and labor.

This spring, the parish replaced summer flowers with perennials at war graves and memorials. The change has already been adopted by parishes in Somero and Lahti, where perennials are now used on all maintained graves.

Liisa Kontunen, head of the parish’s cemetery and park services, said perennials require less watering and produce less plant waste. She hopes more graves in Jyväskylä will transition to perennials in the future, though the parish has not yet abandoned summer flowers entirely.

Gardener Kati Kivelä, who works at Viherlandia garden center in Jyväskylä, recommends perennials for graves that cannot be frequently maintained. She advises choosing plants based on light conditions and soil, with a height of 20–30 cm as a general guideline. Leaf appearance is also important, as perennials often have shorter blooming periods than summer flowers.