Grow a cut flower garden to provide yourself with an endless supply of blooms for bouquets, wreaths and other creative projects. Planting a mixture of perennials and annuals will increase your odds of success in this endeavor.
Group your flowers according to their cultural needs; for instance, tall annuals like sunflowers and zinnias may require stakes as support. A well-draining location is also key – most flowers thrive best under full sun light conditions.
Sunlight
Locate a sunny area free from shade from nearby trees and buildings for your cut flower garden, where most blooms prefer full sun; some varieties will even thrive with partial shading.
Strive for arrangements that incorporate various colors, heights, and textures to achieve stunning effects. Consider including perennials and annuals with long bloom times so you will always have fresh flowers throughout the growing season.
If space doesn’t permit a separate cutting garden, add cut-flower plants to your vegetable or ornamental beds or landscape plans as part of an overall landscaping scheme. Spreading them throughout will make it easier to pick blooms when they’re ready; having plenty of garden paths around each bed can also allow for easy harvesting and weeding activities.
Soil
Cut flower gardens provide bee- and butterfly-friendly flowers in your landscape design, offering pollinators with regular access to nectar supplies while serving as a stunning focal point. While this type of planting doesn’t need its own dedicated space, for ease of maintenance it should be close to an accessible water source.
Before beginning to dig, conduct research on the types of flowers you wish to grow. Try to include both perennials and annuals as well as an assortment of colors, heights, shapes, textures, bloom cycles and sizes; planning your planting beds on paper could help prevent bare spots in your arrangements from emerging; you might even include some plants which dry well for indoor bouquets!
Water
When selecting plants for your cut flower garden, carefully read descriptions in seed catalogs and on plant tags. Certain flowers such as tall annuals such as zinnias and sunflowers may require stakes or other forms of support to prevent them from flopping over. Vining plants such as sweet peas or nasturtiums might also add height to your arrangements.
Planning a cutting flower bed so that all plants can be reached easily requires designing it with wide rows or providing access points via wide garden paths.
Set yourself up for success this summer and fall by selecting an assortment of easy-to-grow annual flowers and perennials with varied blooming times that will provide you with fresh cut blooms throughout. Select some eye-catching “thrillers”, like sunflowers, to use in color schemes while fillers add height, texture, and volume to bouquets.
Fertilization
Maintaining a flower garden requires time and dedication. To make watering and weeding simpler, plant it in rows or blocks for easier maintenance and harvesting flowers.
Search for varieties bred specifically to exhibit desirable cut flower traits such as longer vase life, stronger stems and larger blooms. For best results in planting, follow recommended spacing recommendations found on plant descriptions or seed packets.
To extend the lifespan of cut flowers, harvest early in the morning or after sundown and place in cool, clean water immediately for rehydration and bacteria prevention. Deadhead regularly to encourage new growth and more blossoms.
Pruning
An effective cut flower garden requires careful consideration to meet its health and watering needs of individual plants. Excess water may lead to root rot and wash away essential nutrients while under-watering could result in wilted blooms.
Keep in mind that certain flowers, like zinnias and sunflowers, require support through staking or other methods; while sweet peas and climbing nasturtiums grow on vines that need trellising so as not to topple over. Doing this will prevent their toppleover as the plants reach maturity.
An optimal cutting garden should include both perennials that come back year after year and annuals from seeds or plants, to provide a range of blooms with staggered heights and vibrant hues that stand out. Planting them in wide rows rather than tight clusters allows for easy picking with scissors when ready.