Homegrown cut flowers bring the outdoors in. If you have the space, create a dedicated flower garden or use cutting blooms as accents in other planting beds and landscape designs.
Mulch your cut flower garden regularly to reduce weeds and keep soil moisture at optimal levels. Consider planting perennials like Zinnia ‘Purple Prince’ and Delphinium ‘Blue Star’ as long-term perennials and annuals to add vibrant hues.
Location
A dedicated cut flower garden doesn’t have to be an overwhelming commitment of time or space; even a small bed planted with easy-to-grow blooms like chrysanthemums and sunflowers as well as perennials and annuals with good vase life can provide you with enough blooms throughout the season.
Be mindful of the sunlight available to your planting beds, and choose plants with similar light, soil and water requirements to avoid competition for resources. Many cut flower species feature long stems; plan their placement closely together for maximum vase longevity.
Some plants, like Aquilegia or Yarrow, self-sow and can become regular filler plants in arrangements year after year; others are one-time annuals which can easily be replaced with seedlings.
Soil
Cut flower gardens require healthy and well-draining soil that supports flowers while being suitable for their particular species. Organic matter like compost and slow release fertilizers help improve soil health over time and promote big, beautiful blooms from each blooming plant.
Find a spot in direct sunlight where your garden can receive at least 6-8 hours per day, whether that means creating an individual cutting garden bed or incorporating flowers into existing vegetable or ornamental gardens or landscape designs.
Many perennial flowers require staking, such as tall snapdragons and zinnias; ensure their planting spot doesn’t expose them to windy conditions or heavy rainfall. Some plants need regular pinching and deadheading in order to produce blooms throughout the season; make sure there’s sufficient space available for these activities.
Water
Cut flower gardens don’t need to be large spaces, but should offer easy access to water. As landscape designer Carien van Boxtel advises: when cutting flowers regularly it is beneficial to have plants nearby that can be refreshed with water from a hose whenever needed.
She suggests planting your cut flower garden in rows, crop-style, to make harvesting flowers for arrangements easier. You could also grow annuals that serve well as fillers in cut bouquets; try and include flowers with various heights, bloom sequences and foliage colors in each arrangement. To extend your season indoors sowing seeds during spring and fall can add variety; cold-sensitive varieties require extra care until ready for transplanting outside.
Fertilizer
Fertilizing is key to getting the most from your garden and flowers, as it promotes vigorous vegetative growth with sturdy stems, as well as increasing blossom and vase life.
For optimal results, granular fertilizer should be applied at 1 to 2 pounds of actual nitrogen per 1000 square feet and either mixed in with soil or top dressed.
Finally, accessing a sunny spot is also key for cultivating successful cut flower gardens. A sunny location will make weeding and watering simpler while giving you access to varieties that thrive in direct sunlight. Consider installing raised beds in your garden to enhance soil quality; these will offer more consistent sunlight exposure as well as better drainage – essential components of successful cut flower cultivation.
Pruning
As in any garden, pruning is key to keeping a cut flower garden healthy and helping your blooms last longer in vases by eliminating dead blooms and stimulating new growth. Furthermore, regular harvesting helps ensure optimal performance from your blooms – they tend to fare best this way!
Consider creating a cutting garden in your yard, or adding perennials and annuals to existing vegetable gardens or landscape plans. Even with limited space available, some rows of cut flowers could add color and vibrancy among other plantings and veggie beds or the back of a garden. Just ensure the area you select receives adequate sunlight as most cut flower varieties require 6-8 hours of direct sun per day – also take into consideration wind exposure as some flowers don’t do well in strong gusts of wind.