The sixth annual flower festival will be held at Ayia Kyriaki Chrysopolitissa Church in Kato Paphos next month. This year the festival is titled, ‘In the footsteps of St. Paul.’

Festival organiser Tricia McNeeney said she had been organising the flowers at the church for some time before she came up with the idea of having a festival.

"We had five or six ladies helping to do the flowers, and I thought that would be enough of us to start a festival." she said. “We’re mostly ladies but there is one man."

Having never organised a festival before, but participated in numerous ones in Bedfordshire in the UK, where she previously lived, it was an ambitious plan.

"I became interested in flower arranging about 25 years ago, and took part in evening classes to learn the art at the beginning,” she said.

She then completed an adult education floristry course. “It’s all about practice once you know the basics," she advised.

The Chinese are widely believed to have been the first people to put flowers in a container of water, and the Japanese created schools with masters, whose philosophies shaped the evolution of flower design as an art form.

In ancient Greece, floral garlands were created out of flowers. They were placed on statues of gods and goddesses and were used to honour the dead and the heroic.

McNeeney admitted the choice of flowers in Cyprus poorly compares to that in the UK, but added that since joining Europe, the choice has increased, as blooms are imported from Holland.

“The lack of choice doesn’t matter too much for the festival as we’re trying to portray a story. As long as the colours are right, it will be fine," she said.

The first story to be depicted is that of St. Stephen being stoned, and dark red flowers will represent his blood. One ambitious display will show the shipwreck of St. Paul on Malta.

St. Paul travelled all over the Mediterranean visiting places such as Athens, Rome, Malta and Cyprus. The flower arrangements of the festival will depict these stories and adventures.

"The lady doing this story is having part of a boat built, there will be some rope and perhaps an anchor and flotsam and jetsam," McNeeney said. One woman is creating St. Paul’s pillar, which promises to be spectacular.

The festival will take place over three days and it will take participants a full day in the church to create the arrangements.

There will added work for the florists who will help to fill empty spaces with arrangements, as well as help to make and serve refreshments.

Entry to the flower festival is free, but there is a donation jar and all profits will be going to local Paphos based charities.

The church is adjacent to the Roman ruins and St Paul’s Pillar in Kato Paphos. The Anglican and Catholic worshippers use the church for their services, concerts and recitals.

The Anglican Church first started the event, with some support being given by the Catholic Church; it’s now evolved into a joint venture.

Half of the profit from the event will go to the Catholic Church, and they will put it towards the building fund of the St. Michaels hospice in Mesa Chorio in Paphos.

The Anglican Church will split their profits between the Paphos heart association, the ex-pat kidney patients association, and the Amergetti day centre for the elderly.

"One of our ladies lives in Amergetti," said McNeeney. “This is how we were made aware of the charity. They provide a day centre and meals on wheels. They are also just starting to have a home help scheme. It’s important to be involved with the community and I enjoy it."

Exact attendance figures from last year are sketchy, but it’s estimated that more than three and a half thousand visitors passed through the church doors.

The Festival is on Wednesday April 22 to Friday April 24 from 10am to 6pm and each evening there will be a concert starting 6pm. Entrance is free, and programmes will be available to guide visitors around the displays in the church.