One of my absolute favorite parts of growing hardy annual flowers is having so many options when it comes to arranging flowers. The garden is currently bursting at the seams with agrostemma and chantilly snapdragon flowers. Why not put them into a vase? The pink chantilly snapdragons have been one of the main flowers that I have been using this year. I’m so please with their height and with their overall appearance in the arrangements that I’ve been making. I’m also really glad that I chose to grow the pink ones – so many possible color combinations! This was also the first time that I’ve ever been marginally successful in…

For many, small bedding flowers like pansies, johnny jump ups, and violas are a must have to for annual flower beds. Surprisingly, they also look great in the cut flower patch and in small vases. With a little knowledge, growing pansies from seed is insanely easy. The first thing we’ll need to do is to decide when to plant the seeds. In general, pansies enjoy growing in cool weather. That means some growers will be able to plant them in the fall, while others may need to wait until spring. Here in zone 6b/7, I plant mine in the fall. The small pansy seedlings will remain green throughout my winter,…

The cut flower patch is in full bloom, and that means we’ve been making lots and lots of vases – and donating flowers, of course! Let’s take a quick look at the arrangement that I was able to make today. The pink chantilly snapdragons are so pretty. This is the first time I’ve been able to grow them successfully, and it has seriously made me so excited to grow many more different varieties. I also picked a bunch of the David Austin roses. Unfortunately, the stems aren’t very long. Maybe as the bushes get a little bigger, the stems will be a lot longer. Lady of Shalott (left) and Queen…

Agrostemma is one of my favorite hardy annual flowers for the cut flower garden. Even though they are considered weeds in many places, they behave themselves quite well when planted in my yard. Before planting, always make sure you’re reaching your growing area – just in case. Also, it should be mentioned that these flowers are toxic. As in previous years, I grew the ‘Milas Mix’. I was able to get the seeds from Baker Creek, though last time I checked their website they were no longer being offered. Either way, the flowers within this mix come in a range of a darker pink/purple, light purple (the most common), and…

I knew it was coming, but that doesn’t mean that I don’t feel disappointed. The ranunculus flowers have finished blooming. With the early hot weather this season, this flower vase marked the last of the usable ranunculus stems. Oh well, hopefully we’ll have plenty more gorgeous flower blooms to harvest from the yard into the summer. Check out these pink chantilly snapdragons! This is the first time that I finally grew snaps successfully – and they’re gorgeous. This pink color is so soft, feminine, and cute. I’m so excited! Here’s a closer look at the ranunculus and chantilly snaps. Even though I only planted white ranunculus this year, I’ve really…

After a long spring season, the spring blooming flower bulbs are finally coming to a close. The tulips have come and gone. As the weather continues to warm, that means things like the daffodils and the ranunculus will also stop blooming soon. I hope you enjoy the photos of this recent flower arrangement that I was able to pick from the garden.

I definitely got a little bit of a late start on the tomato seeds this year, but they’re finally going into the garden. This year, the tomatoes will be interplanted with the flowers. The main reason for this is to help save space. I should also mention that these sunflowers are a very short variety that is used specifically for cut flowers. When they mature in 50 days, the flowers will be cut, and the tomato plants will be able to take their place in the flower bed. Hence, the close spacing that you see  below. To transplant, I simply worked the soil and added a healthy amount of finished…