Beginner’s Guide to Cut Flower Gardening
For as long as I can remember, I’ve held a deep passion for gardening.
I delight in planting seasonal flowers in containers and flower beds around my home for my entire family to enjoy.
A few years ago, I decided to branch out — pun intended — and try my hand at growing flowers that I could cut in the summertime to bring inside and enjoy.
After the first season, I was hooked.
Along my cut flower garden journey, I have learned a thing or two and know what has worked for me — and can work for you, too.
The following guide dives into the exact steps on how to plan and begin your own summer cut flower garden using annual types of flowers.
Note: These flowers are not hardy in the Midwest and must be replanted each season.
Ready to get started? Keep reading to learn how you can create a flourishing cut flower garden this summer in your own backyard!
What You’ll Find Below:
Where to Start
What to Grow
How to Start Seeds
When to Start Seeds
Cut Flower Garden Advice for Beginners
Where to Start with Your Cut Flower Garden
The first step in beginning a cut flower garden is to decide which areas of your yard can be utilized for growing. Look for areas that have:
Full Sun: You’ll want your flowers to receive 6-8 hours of unfiltered sunlight.
Good Drainage: Cut flowers don’t like wet feet! Select an area that will drain thoroughly after rain or a good watering.
Adequate Space: Select an area that has enough room for the types of flowers you decide to grow (see next section about “What to Grow”)
Discreet Location: Cut flower gardens can be somewhat of an eyesore when it’s not growing season. You may want to find an area that is more functional than pretty or also consider interplanting cut flowers in your landscaping.
Easy Access to Water: When rain is not in the forecast, your cut flower garden may need supplemental watering. Ensure the sight can be easily accessed with a hose or other water source.
Healthy Soil: A rule of thumb for any gardener is to test the soil in the location you’ll be growing in. Your local county extension office can test the soil for you and advise what amendments or nutrients might be needed to add to your garden to achieve healthy soil for the crop you want to grow.
What to Grow in Your Cut Flower Garden
There are several types of summer flowers you can grow that are suitable for cutting. Keep the following factors in mind as you decide which flowers to add in your cut flower garden:
Growing Zone: Be sure to shop from seeds that are suitable to your growing zone. Our summer growing season runs from about May-October with minimal threat of frost/freeze in the beginning and end months. You’ll want to select crops that will thrive in your area. Here in zone 6, I have grown zinnias, cosmos, and sunflowers. This year I expanded my area for growing flowers and will add bachelor’s buttons, forget-me-not, and celosia to the mix.
Growing Space: Look for flower varieties that will fit in the area you designate for growing. Keep in mind height, as well as spread to ensure they have enough room to mature. Trust me, you do not want to overcrowd your cutting flowers. Overcrowding can cause disease and insect issues.
Bloom Period: Which part of the season do you want to have blooms? Will the flower variety continue to give you blooms all summer long or will they bloom once and be done? All questions to ask when selecting which varieties you want to grow for cutting.
Flower Growth Habit: Select flowers that have a growth habit and form suitable for cutting. You’ll want long stems to put in a vase and blooms that hold up in water when cut.
Care Level: What is the level of care for the flowers? Will you be able to monitor the garden and provide the level of attention it needs to be successful?
Cut Flower Garden Tip: Most flower seed packets provide this information so you don’t have to guess! When in doubt, read the back of the seed packet.
How to Start Seeds for your Cut Flower Garden
Now that you have a designated space in which to create your cut flower garden, and you have selected the varieties of blooms you will be growing, it’s time to get them planted!
There are two ways in which I begin growing my summer cut flower garden.
Method 1: I sow 90% of them directly in the ground. The other 10% I start indoors and plant outside as seedlings. The reason I sow most of mine directly is based on the type of flowers I grow; this method seems to work best for zinnias, cosmos, and sunflowers.
Method 2: If you’re growing slower paced flowers and plants for your cut flower garden, you may find that starting the seeds indoors is most beneficial.
There are pros and cons to both methods, but it really comes down to personal preference and what works best for the type of flowers you are growing. Here’s a quick look at some of the benefits and drawbacks of both:
Seed Starting Cut Flowers Indoors
PRO: Your flowers will generally grow larger more quickly. Once the threat of frost has passed, you can plant larger plants in the ground, rather than waiting on the seeds to sprout.
CON: Starting seeds indoors takes space, and you’ll need additional materials — including soil, containers, possibly lights and grow racks —to grow seeds indoors.
Direct Seed Sowing Cut Flowers Outdoors
PRO: Planting directly in the soil removes additional materials and costs needed for starting seeds indoors.
CON: Flowers get a slower start on growing as you must wait for the threat of frost to be past before planting.
Cut Flower Garden Tip: You may also find that buying plant or flower starts is the way to go for you. In that case, you would plant your flower starts directly in the ground once the danger of frost in your area has passed. I prefer starting my cut flower garden from seed as it is more cost efficient, and I’m able to find more varieties of seed available.
When to Start Seeds for Your Cut Flower Garden
The timeline for starting seeds depends on the amount of time it takes for them to germinate and become established, as well as the last frost date in your area. Use the information on the back of the seed packet and your hardiness zone historical frost date to calculate when seeds should be started.
Weather is also a major factor for your cut flower garden timeline! Here in Missouri, we can have snow as late as April or May and 80 degrees the following week. Pay attention to the weather forecast instead of simply following hard set dates.
Cut Flower Garden Tip: If you plan on growing cut flowers on an annual basis, consider keeping a garden calendar or journal. I like to make notes to refer to year after year so I can track dates and growth progress to help me plan better for the future.
Cut Flower Growing Advice for Beginners
Feeling overwhelmed with all of the options and details? My best advice is to start small!
You don’t have to grow ten different varieties and have an acre of land to get started. Pick one small area of your garden and one packet of seeds, and just begin! Build your skills in the first season and take notes about what went right and what you could do differently. Keep those notes and apply them the following year. Gardening is not a stressful, fast-paced race; it’s a slow and steady journey that should be fun and inspiring along the way.
More Cut Flower Gardening Information
If you found this information helpful, but want an even deeper dive, I created my new course just for you! “Cut Flower Gardening for Beginners” leads you through each step of growing bouquet-worthy flowers you’ll love to enjoy and share.
