flower

The summer flowers are putting on a show before they turn to seed in autumn.  It’s a great time to harvest them for the purpose of bringing their beauty indoors.  Cut flower bouquets are a wonderful way to enjoy the flowers that adorn the landscape..  Here are some great flowers to grow for their beauty outside and in.

Zinnia – Bright and colorful, these flowers are tall and plentiful.  Cutting them back encourages double the regrowth and double the flowers!  Zinnias are best planted by seed, although they do come in annual packs as well.  If you leave the dead stalks over the winter, they will not only feed birds but also reseed and return the next year.  Zinnas prefer full sun.

Hydrangea – The big, large, fluffy blooms of the hydrangea shrub make beautiful bouquets. The shrubs are so plentiful with flowers that cutting several for a vase of water will not affect the overall look of the bush.  Hydrangea are available in bot shae and sun loving.  

Dahlia – Oh the lovely large blossoms of the dahlia.  There are so many colors and flower shapes.  Dahlias are mostly bought and planted by tubers, just after the last frost.  Most will need to be dug up and overwintered in a cool, dry place.  Although they can be tricky to grow, the outcome is spectacular with some of the best cut flowers out there.  Dahlias prefer full sun.

Peony – These spring bloomers sport huge, fluffy, beautifully colored flowers that are just begging for a gorgeous vase to reside.  Peonies are easy to grow but do suffer from powdery mildew so make sure to have treatment on hand for the disease.  Plant peonies in full sun so they can produce many fragrant and colorful flowers.  

Pennisetum – Grasses can make great cut flowers as well, adding more texture to a bouquet of blooms.  Use either the actual blades of the grass or the fluffy seed heads in your next bouquet.  Pennisetum prefers full sun.  

These are just 5 choices for cut flower gardens.  There are many more annuals, perennials and shrubs that can be used in making a beautiful flower arrangement.  Come check out our selection at Guilford Garden Center and ask one of our associates about the best cut flowers we have in stock!

If you don’t have these plants in your garden now, consider coming to our workshop tomorrow where we will be learning to make cut flower arrangements with Deep River Flower Farm!  Register Here.