Pupils touched as Gordonstoun tribute to Duke of Edinburgh washes ashore to school's young climbers at Cummingston

JUNIOR Gordonstoun pupils on a climbing trip at Cummingston on Saturday were touched when a floral wreath cast into the sea by the school earlier in the day, in tribute to Prince Philip, washed up on the rocks below them.

It was a poignant moment for pupils after the wreath was cast into the Moray Firth from the school's sail training vessel, Ocean Spirit of Moray, at Hopeman Harbour, on the day of the Duke of Edinburgh's funeral.

Photographers from some of the world's biggest media outlets, including Getty, Reuters and Sky, were there to cover the school's tribute to their oldest alumnus.

For the local florists who made the wreath, their handiwork was beamed around the world, with footage shown in the US and Australia.

Forres-based Wild Blossom, now in its fifth year, is run by Bev Alexander and Caroline Byrne.

Caroline crafted the biodegradable wreath using Gordonstoun school colours, including purples, blues and whites.

Bev said: "Caroline did all the work. It was quite a bespoke piece and it was lovely to do. We wanted to make it really natural and rustic.

"We used wicker branches and straw on the base as we wanted to make sure it would float. The biggest challenge was 'does it float and look beautiful?'

"It had to be done at the last minute to ensure the flowers looked lovely, so we made the base and added the flowers on the morning.

"We kept it nice and wild and fresh-looking – we thought Prince Philip would like that. We had hyacinths in there, different colours and textures of foliage.

"It also had to be robust and there had to be enough weight to keep the balance when it was thrown into the water.

"We've never had to do anything like that really before."

Bev added: "We were really honoured to do it and we got quite a reaction from it with so many press and activity on social media, which was lovely for Moray."