Grow a variety of perennial and annual flowers with good vase life, flowering shrubs and grasses that add color and texture, plus organic matter for maximum soil improvement. Start with soil testing as a first step, followed by ample application of organic matter.
Arrange the plants according to their cultural requirements, with taller varieties at the back and shorter varieties in front. Keep in mind that each variety should be cut at different stages to extend vase life and ensure maximum vase life.
Choose the Right Plants
Step one in creating a cut flower garden is selecting plants that suit your needs and preferences. Consider what uses you’ll put the flowers to before selecting ones with long vase lives for fresh arrangements.
As beginners, annuals like zinnias and sunflowers are an ideal choice, being easy to grow while offering a range of colors in their arrangements. Other good choices for newcomers to gardening may include astrantia, sweet peas, tulips, dahlias, lilies and delphiniums.
Carefully reading seed packets and plant labels is crucial. Annuals that make great cut flowers such as cosmos and phlox, such as cosmos and phlox, require full sun. In addition, make sure that any plants grown specifically for cutting feature longer stems with more blooms than others bred for general gardening purposes. Also important is considering how much light your garden receives as well as its location.
Choose the Right Location
No matter if you opt for a separate cutting garden or add flowering annuals into your vegetable plots, allowing easy access for harvesting is paramount. Selecting a site with wide rows enables you to walk across beds easily while reaching each plant without crouching or kneeling down – essential when cultivating cutting gardens as well.
When growing annual tall vining flowers such as zinnias or sunflowers, make sure they can easily be reached. Some types of sweet peas and climbing nasturtiums may require support through netting or trellises; check seed catalogs or plant tags carefully for details.
To keep blooms blooming all season, plant a combination of hardy perennials and half-hardy annuals with differing color, size and texture combinations. Shrubs and grasses add textural interest while fragrant plants such as rosemary, mint or lavender add fragrant bouquets that create eye-catching bouquets.
Plan Your Garden
Planning a cutting garden offers many possibilities: you could either create an entirely separate cutting garden from other gardens in your yard, or incorporate cut flower beds within existing beds.
As a starting point, it is best to divide your flower beds into long and linear sections that make planting, weeding and harvesting easy. This makes accessing all plants simpler – particularly ones needing support such as stakes.
Group your flowers by their cultural requirements, such as sun or shade exposure, bloom time and height. This will ensure all of the cut flowers receive optimal conditions to thrive and make your work easier!
If you have many full sun flowers, it would be beneficial to separate them from shade lovers like snapdragons and bachelor’s buttons that thrive in shade environments (snapdragons and bachelor’s buttons, for instance). This will prevent competition for sunlight that could result in shorter stems; additionally, keep in mind which of your blooms require support such as staking, netting or other means and place them accordingly.
Start Planting
If you have the space, dedicate one or more garden beds specifically for cut flowers. Otherwise, incorporate them into existing vegetable beds and landscape plans as an addition.
When planting, make sure the area receives ample sun. Harvesting should also be accessible and simple – for instance a raised garden bed makes weeding and picking easier than one on the ground.
Dependent upon the plant species selected, some require trellises or other support structures for climbing. Zinnias and sunflower varieties work great when planted in containers like old teapots or mason jars.
Cut flower plants often don’t last through a full growing season, so regular deadheading is necessary to ensure constant fresh blooms. If a plant doesn’t produce many seeds, collect dry seed heads from past years and reseed them next season – this is a great way to replenish your garden without spending extra money on new seeds!