Best Flowers to Plant in a Cutting Garden

I love gardening, but until I moved onto our current property, I only ever planted practical plants like berries and vegetables. As much as I love the fresh produce, I decided that this year I wanted some long lasting cut flowers as well.

And since we often buy bouquets for the dining room table from flower shops like https://www.flowerchix.com/, I thought I’d save money and beautify our house and yard by planning a cutting garden! The term is given to a garden that’s planted mainly so the flowers can be cut and arranged into bouquets.

If you want to plant your own cutting garden, these are some of the best long lasting cut flowers for bouquets. Choose flowers in a variety of colours and decide if you’d prefer complimentary hues or a more varied mix of different shades for your garden.

Anemones

This perennial grows from tubers, so after planting, the flowers can be enjoyed year after year. Most commonly, anemones are red, blue or white. More exotic colours like yellow and purple can also be popular. Choose between either early-blooming spring flowers or later blooming varieties to enjoy flowers in late summer.

Calla Lilies

These stately flowers look modern and dramatic when just a single bloom is placed in a bud vase. The flowers grow between one and three feet high and come in a variety of colours including red, white, pink, yellow and orange. The Canadian climate is too harsh for Calla Lilies to be winter hardy, so dig up the bulbs in the fall and replant them in the spring.

Daisies

Personally, I’m a huge fan of the classic Shasta daisy, and it makes a great addition to any cutting garden since the flowers grow bigger and better each year. Shasta daisies are hardy perennials and are grown quite easily from seeds. Sow the flowers in the spring for blooms in the late summer, or start the seeds indoors to enjoy the flowers earlier in the year.

Day Lilies

The colourful and dramatic flowers of the day lily make it a perfect choice for flower arrangements and vases. Day lilies are grown from bulbs and many are hardy right down to Zone 1, making them a great choice for Canada’s cold climate.

Tulips

Tulips are generally planted in the fall, so now is a great time to start browsing the different varieties and choosing the ones you want for your cutting garden! Available in both single shades and beautiful multi-coloured varieties, tulips are a wonderful choice for bouquets since they can be planted in colours that match interior décor or personal preference. And the fact they bloom in spring instead of summer means fresh flowers in the house earlier!

Gladiolus

Tall and stately, gladiolus flowers are a top choice for summer bouquets both for their elegant appearance and their sweet fragrance. Available in a wide range of colours, they can either be combined with other flowers in bouquets or grouped on their own for a dramatic look. Plant the bulbs first thing in the spring to enjoy summer flowers, then dig up the bulbs in the fall and store to plant again next year.

Sweet Peas

Unlike most of the other flowers on this list, sweet peas are an annual that need to be replanted every year. But the climbing vine is easy to grow and will provide beautiful blossoms right up to early fall. Make sure to plant the seeds first thing in the spring for the best results. If you have a lattice or similar structure on your property, sweet peas are a great way to make use of it and be rewarded with fragrant flowers for a summer bouquet.

Daffodils

A traditional spring flowers, the vibrant yellow or white of daffodils is a sign that winter has truly ended. Bulbs can be planted in the fall for flowers all spring and are generally hardy down to about Zone 3. To enjoy these flowers longer, plant a variety of early, mid and late-blooming varieties. The flowers make gorgeous Easter bouquets!

For my own cutting garden, I planted a variety of bulbs including gladiolas, day lilies, calla lilies and anemones. I also bought some daisy seeds and tulip bulbs for fall planting; they won’t grow the long lasting cut flowers I love this year, but will be beautiful next year.

To plant all my flowers and then do my weeding so they grew well, I protected my hands and nails with my Dig It gardening gloves. The padded fingertips ensure that my nails don’t split or break when digging in the dirt, and the grip on the palms lets me pull out the most stubborn weeds.

My flowers have been blooming wonderfully all summer, and I’ve already started planning the spring-blooming flowers I’ll be adding come late September. With my Dig It Long Cuff High 5 Gardening Gloves and a bit of planning, I’ll have beautiful long lasting cut flowers to enjoy both outdoors and in for years to come!