21 Flowers For Your Cut Flower Garden
Are you looking to grow a garden that produces an abundance of flowers for stunning cut flower arrangements? This blog post will help guide you through which flowers to grow so you have a good supply of cut flowers throughout the summer. Whether you are a professional flower arranger or an amateur you will get great joy from arranging these beautiful flowers. Apart from having a wide variety of cut flowers to choose from your garden will be bursting with colour throughout summer.
Cosmos are a longtime favourite of home gardeners, and many cosmos require little effort for maximum reward. Cosmos are tall or short and bloom through a long season, and range in colour from white to cream to bright yellows and oranges, and in pinks and purples. All are beautiful, and will add something beautiful to both your garden or flower arrangement. Choose from Cosmos Sensation Mix (pictured below) or Bright Lights mix for very different colours but equally rewarding.
Flowers in the dianthus family are also known as Sweet William. Dianthus make excellent cut flowers, and many carnation varieties have a beautiful spicy fragrance in addition to an extraordinarily long vase life. Dianthus are in large part easy to grow, and come in a very wide variety of colours and textures. Add some garden-grown dianthus to your garden and they will reward you with a bounty of cut flowers. Dianthus baby doll mix (pictured below) is a great choice.
This mixture of large double flowers comes in a lovely range of colours, many of which are sweetly scented. Beautiful in the garden and stunning in your flower arrangement. Carnation Giant Chabaud (pictured below) is a great choice.
Beautiful and elegant, lisianthus resembles a softer version of a rose. They come in all shades of white, pink, purple, and even peach and butter yellow. Lisianthus make excellent cut flowers and can last for up to two weeks in a vase if cared for properly. Lisianthus looks beautiful in pots or in your garden. Lisianthus Carmen blue rim (pictured below) is one of the most beautiful of all the Lisianthus species.
Many varieties of poppy exist. Poppies are some of the garden’s most spectacular show-offs, and luckily many varieties of poppy work just as well cut as on the plant. Poppies can vary from simple to complex, come in sizes from smallish to huge, and can resemble peonies or carnations. Consider planting poppies to add show-stopping colour, size, and texture to your garden and your table. Mixed Peony Poppies (pictured flower), Flanders Poppies and Shirley Poppies are all great additions to a cutting garden.
Underappreciated and lovely, stock’s unattractive name belies a beautiful line flower with an amazingly spicy fragrance. Stock, known as gillyflower in the UK, makes an excellent fragrant addition to a cut arrangement and comes in shades of white, cream, apricot, pink, magenta, and purple. Stocks grow best in cooler climates and attract butterflies and bees. For a tall backing to an upright arrangement try Stocks Giant Imperial Mix (pictured below).
With such beautiful and vibrant colours we stock the most beautiful mixes of Aster. These are easy to grow and are generally late season bloomers and a perfect choice for your later summer and autumn bouquets. Harvest asters once the flowers have fully opened. To encourage the growth of more blooms, pinch back the stems several times before mid summer. Aster California Giant (pictured below) is a great choice for your floral arrangement.
These are tried-and-true garden performers which come in a large array of colours, shapes and sizes, and just a few plants will give you loads of blooms. Since dahlias don't open much after they’ve been harvested, wait to pick the flowers when they are fully opened. For the best flower production, pinch or cut back your plants early on—when they are about 25-30cm tall which will encourage the growth of multiple stems. We sell Dahlia’s in seeds and in bulbs. If planting by seed try Redskin or Unwins mix (Pictured below) for a beautiful splash of colour.
Bulbs are only available for a very limited period between October and November and wow do we have some absolute show stoppers coming soon. Dahlia Edinburgh bulbs (pictured below) are simply stunning with their two tone colours.
Delphinium
The beautiful and striking spikes of delphinium bring stature and elegance to flower arrangements because of their striking colours and upright form. To get a second bloom from your plants in late summer or early autumn, cut the stalks back immediately after flowering. For a stunning mix try the Delphinium Pacific choice mix (pictured below).
Ranunculus
These stunning spring bloomers have long been a favourite of commercial florists because of their brilliantly colored rose-like flowers and long vase life. Because of their early bloom time, they are a great alternative to roses or peonies in spring bouquets. Ranunculus Mache mix (Pictured below) gives you a wide range of colours for a stunning flower bouquet.
Salvia (ornamental sage) has a long bloom time, aromatic foliage, and spiky flowers. For beautiful red flowers plant Salvia Blaze of Fire (Pictured below) and they will make a great addition to your flower arrangement.
Sunflowers
Sunflowers when used in flower arranging are the focal point of your arrangement. In addition to the classic bright yellow blooms, you’ll also find varieties with deep red flowers and dwarf flowers as well as ridiculously massive giant sunflowers. Varieties with large flower heads look great gathered together in large bunches, while those with smaller blooms work nicely in mixed bouquets. The most beautiful of our sunflowers has to be the Red Sun Sunflower (pictured below). Keep in mind though that sunflowers are notorious cross pollinators so please don’t be disappointed if you get the odd yellow sunflower or blotchy sunflower as they are all beautiful!
Sweet Peas
Dainty ruffled flowers in a wide range of colours have an irresistible scent of honey and orange blossoms. Sow seeds in late Autumn or early spring. To get the longest season of production from your sweet pea plants, do not let the flowers go to seed. Cut them regularly to keep the blooms coming. Old Spice Mix (pictured below) have stunning colours and that irresistible scent of honey and orange!
Zinnias
One of our favourites and the best cut-and-come-again flowers, offering great variety in colour and form. Once they get established and start growing, these amazing plants will keep on producing nonstop if you harvest the blooms regularly. Be sure to cut the stems just above the leaf nodes because this is where new growth and flowers will form. It is not surprising that it is one of our favourites because we have over 20 different varieties in stock. From dwarf to tall in an array of single colours and colour mixes you are sure to find your favourite. One of the most stunning is the Candy Stripe Zinnia (Pictured below).
Gypsophila
Most commonly known as Baby’s Breath. These dainty little flowers make a beautiful filler in any arrangement. Try Gypsophila single white or Gypsophila rosea (Pictured below) in your next flower arrangement.
Marigolds
Large varieties like the Bonita Mix or Crackerjack varieties look stunning in floral arrangements. Easy growing they provide flowers for a long period. Marigold Bonita Mix (Pictured below) adds a beautiful splash of colour to a summer flower arrangement.
Lupin
A lovely spike-type perennial that gives your flower arrangement a great backing. Easy to grow they look stunning in the garden too. Lupin Giant King (Pictured below) will make a great addition to your cut flower garden.
Bachelor Buttons
Equally as attractive in the garden as in your flower arrangement. Both the mixed colour and aptly named “Blue Boy” (Pictured below) are great choices.
Helichrysum
Helichrysum are an old time favourite. Light as air and super pretty! They last forever in and out of the vase. Helichrysum Swiss Giant Mix (Pictured below) is hard to beat for an abundance of colour and beauty.
Gladiolus
We stock Gladiolus / Gladioli in seeds and in bulbs. If planting by seed try Gladioli liliaceus (Pictured below) for its stunning flowers that change from rusty red in the day to bluish-mauve at night.
Bulbs are only available for a very limited period around September. Choose from single coloured flowers to the more exotic multicoloured variants. Want to make a statement Gladioli Red Matador (Pictured below) pops with its bright red blooms.
Foxglove
Dainty flowers but stunningly beautiful in your garden or flower arrangement. The cute named Dwarf Foxy Mix (Pictured below) is a good choice.
About the Author
Grant Muller is an avid gardener with over 30 years experience having grown a wide variety of plants from seed with a special emphasis on growing your own fresh food. Grants' ethos is that growing your own should be a natural part of life and should encompass the whole family. Grant also has a special interest in growing chillies, succulents, ornamentals and trees.
