It is important to mix flowers into your vegetable garden or plant a separate flower garden for many reasons that we will explain, as well as how to grow the best flower gardens. The curb appeal to have a flower garden not only will be enjoyed by you and your family but everyone that passes by your house if you have it in the front yard.
There is nothing better than to be working in your garden and have people walking/jogging by thanking you for the flower garden that they get to enjoy.
Why Grow Flower Gardens and How to Grow the Best Flower Gardens
This flower garden is full of Zinnias and Day Lillies, the Day Lillies start blooming in early summer and last until late summer. The Zinnias are from seeds I collect at the end of each year to replant, as you can see they come in a multitude of colors and sizes. They are great to attract bees, butterflies and many other pollinators to help the garden produce lots of fruit and vegetables. They are also great to cut and bring in the house since the blooms last so long.
To pollinate your garden
In order to pollinate your garden, you need to have a mixture of plants to attract pollinators into your garden. Flowers can help to attract additional pollinators that are needed for your garden to grow the best and they add beautiful colors and scents.
Beneficial to reduce disease and pests
If you look at the companion planting guide it will provide you with details about how certain flowers can benefit your vegetables when planted nearby. When you have a particular pest in your garden the first line of defense is to plant companion plants that may deter those pests. Certain flowers and plants can help to promote good conditions both in the soil and provide shade to reduce diseases.
The improved flavor of your vegetables
Some flowers can add nutrients to the soil which benefit the vegetable plants and can enhance the flavor, a good example of this is planting basil around your tomato plants to enhance the flavor of your tomatoes.
Increase production of your vegetable plants
Particular flowers can add nutrients to the soil which will increase the production of your vegetable garden. Beans and Peas add beneficial elements to the soil which improves the soil for other vegetable plants by converting atmospheric hydrogen (N2) ammonium nitrogen (NH4) which is released into the soil.
Flowers will add visual appeal and fragrance to your garden
Your flower garden is like a paint pallet you can paint with any color you would like by adding flowers to your garden to improve the visual appeal.
Most flowers have fragrances that not only attract pollinators but also can improve our moods through these fragrances. Studies have shown that our moods are directly impacted by sight and smell. A colorful and fragrant garden can improve your mood.
The textures of the plant’s leaves and flowers add to the visual appeal.
Planting flowers will also add to your curb appeal for friends and neighbors as well as increase the value of your home.
Flower gardens improve your mood
Research has shown that gardening improves your mood and gives you a sense of accomplishment. These colors and fragrances produced by introducing flowers in your garden will also improve your mood.
By having a cutting garden you can bring these indoors to improve your mood all day.
How to Grow a Cutting Garden
Think of your cutting garden as a seasonal garden and mix with the different seasons that they would bloom from early spring to late fall.
To bring your garden indoors you can grow a cutting garden with an assortment of flowers, plan out the color garden by placing the tallest plants in the back.
Plant in blocks but make sure you mix in plants that bloom at different times to keep the cutting garden full of blooms throughout the season.
Design so that you have access to each of the flowers to be able to cut for indoor display.
Mix some of the flowers throughout the garden using companion planting to enhance your vegetable garden.
Soil should be enhanced to provide the best nutrients to the plants for strong plant and flower growth.
Best Flowers to Grow For Cutting Garden
Zinnias are typically 2-4′ tall with colors of yellow, orange, pink, red, and lime green. They are one of the easiest and best flowers for lots of blooms in late summer until the first frost. They are not fragrant.
Carnations are typically in the pink, red and white color pallet, they tend to grow12-18″ tall and are fragrant. They like a ph of 7-8 and alkaline soil.
Sunflowers are tall ranging from 2-3′ for shorter varieties to 5-7′ for the taller varieties. They are typically in yellows and orange but can also be found in deep red color with large blooms in late summer and early fall. They are not fragrant. Sunflowers like acidic, alkaline soil.
Dahlias
The Dahlia in this photo measured 9 inches across and was loaded with flowers. We got this Dahlia at a nursery for 75% off since it was wilting very badly, but we nursed it back to health, and is doing great now.
Dahlias are tall flowers that can grow 4-6′ tall and has flowers of all shapes, colors, and sizes. They bloom mid-summer until the first frost. They are not fragrant. They like acidic soil that is well-draining.
Coneflowers are a great addition to your garden for color and are easy to grow, and they can reseed themselves.
Lillies are one of the most fragrant flowers to have in your garden, they typically are 2-4′ tall and have a wide range of colors from white, pink, red, and yellow.
Sweet Peas are an early flowering plant that can flower throughout the summer and it has a very sweet fragrance to enjoy as well. Sweet Peas are great to attract, hummingbirds, bees, and other pollinators. These flowers can be cut and brought into the house for some added fragrance and color. Sweet Peas can be planted as early as February to have them bloom in early spring.
Daffodils are a bulb that is one of the first flowers to come up in the garden. They even will sprout through with snow on the ground and will have flowers until early to mid-spring. They typically are white, yellow, or orange in color and they are not fragrant.
Tulips are another bulb that arrives in mid to late spring and have a large variety of colors to chose from anywhere from solid colors to blended colors from Purple to Red and Pink as well as many other colors.
Delphinium are not just blue in color, now they have purples and many other colors, they can be annuals or perennials. They add great height to your flower garden with vibrant deep colors.
Echinacea
Peony This flower is a little more delicate to grow but has wonderful large blooms in late spring to early summer. The flowers can be 3-6 inches in diameter and have many colors and textures to chose from. There are also Peony bushes that can grow larger than the smaller ones from tubers.
Salvia comes in many colors and are a great border perennial to have in your flower garden and enjoy from Summer through Fall. They are drought-tolerant and have an abundance of flowers for cuttings. In this photo, there are two salvia colors, pink and red.
Black-eyed Susans
Roses are great to have in the yard for enjoying in the yard as well as cuttings to have in the house. They not only add great color but also have incredible fragrances to enjoy and draw many pollinators such as ladybugs and bees.
Asters are a great perennial with many colors for your garden. They are good flowers for adding many colors and textures.
Sea Holly
This is a new plant that I grew this last year, it has a flower spike that grows to about 12-16 inches with purple to blue flowers. This is the color coming out of winter and into spring, it weathered well in temperatures down to 18 degrees.
Flower Seed Saving, Cuttings, and Dividing
One of my favorite things to do at the end of the flower garden season is to go through and collect seeds to dry for next year’s planting. Most of the flowers I will grow this year are from the seeds I have collected, some of the easiest to collect are Zinnia’s, Marigold, Sunflower, Sea Holly, and Sweet Peas.
The other way to save money on plants is to take cuttings or divide plants. This last year all of my Snapdragon plants survived over winter so I have taken cuttings to give me additional plants. Our Daylilies have been divided to give us additional plants and the Dahlia’s we have dug up and divided the tubers.
This is also a great way to share some of your favorite flowers with others or exchange for a favorite plant they have.
Edible Flowers
Many flowers are edible and can add not only beautiful colors but also great flavors that should not be overlooked. Here are just a few that are great companions that add great benefits for your garden.
Sweet Potato flowers
Nasturtiums
Marigolds
Pansies
Day Lilies
Discounted Perennials at Garden Centers
Another great way to save money when shopping for plants is to look for discount areas that are full of plants that have been stressed and need some extra care to nurse them back or sometimes just overstock that they deeply discount. Last year we purchased most of our perennials at 75% off and now have many plants that will fill our garden. Remember perennials will come back whereas annuals die after one year (annuals you can collect seeds).
I hope that these tips on How to Grow the Best Flower Gardens will help you to grow the best flower garden to view outdoors as well as the cuttings you bring indoors.
