cut flower plot

[smallfrog]

Dear Veggie allotment owners,
I have sin,
I have stepped away from the vegetable path of the old 'uns' and joined the Kath Kidston welly wearers please forgive me. I have embraced being a yummy mummy and want to grow cut flowers ALOT. I'm going to give over a fair chuck of my second plot to these pink and pastle beauties. I have set seeds at home of zinnia's, Chrysanthemums, snap dragons, stocks and sweetpeas you get the picutre. The thing is, the soil do i improve the soil compost etc or do i just leave it how it is. It had courgetts on it last so was fed with compost and there was some straw on there as well or should it be poorer soil like a meadow? Happy with growing flowers at home but i want them to crop and crop well. Shall i skip over the the flower bed forum and hope they take me in, Or do you all secertly don the flowerly gloves from time to time.
Thanks all

[Martin H]

I like to grow flowers for cutting on the allotment. This year I will have dahlias, yellow chrysanthemums, gladioli and freesias. Any spare perennials from the garden will go in there in the autumn, as will a big bargain bag of daffs as soon as the garden centre starts selling them off cheap before Christmas.

The sweetpeas will be in the garden at home where I can get to them every day.

Stocks are a nice idea, might see if I can find some seed and start some off.

No need to do anything special with the soil unless it is very poor. The things you mention will do fine regardless.

[SarzWix]

I'd really like to do this too, but I'm terrible for missing the boat on when to sow the seeds I have managed to sow some really bright Cosmos, and some sweet peas, but my branching/small flowered sunflowers have failed miserably, as have the Echinacea from seed. Wouldn't mind some ideas for quick-growing annuals?

[stella]

I grow masses of flowers as well as veg as I love them in the house, like veg home grown is much better than shop bought. The garden is a picture at the moment with all the different colours in it. As I type this on the table next to me is a vase with a bunch of daffys in it and sprigs of Rosemary and the pruned branches of the red dogwood threaded through them, looks great.

[Two_Sheds]

Wouldn't mind some ideas for quick-growing annuals?

Cornflowers, poppies* (I prefer the opium type), sunflowers, calendula, limnanthes, scabious, nasturtiums, verbena bonariensis, viola all self-sow on my plot.
They can all be sown now, into 3" pots or modules. Harden them off as usual if you start them under glass, to accustom them to the windy old wind and cooler temps of the outside.


* except poppies, they don't transplant because they have a big tap root like a carrot

[WPG]

Smallfrog, your post made me laugh! Good for you, it's lovely seeing flowers on the allotment.

I've got a mini wildflower garden (approx 20x10 ft), so I had to leave the soil there in as poor quality as possible. Some other flowers like nasturtiums do better in poor soil too.

For annuals though, it sounds like your ex-courgette bed would be fine - as far as I know, annuals don't need too rich a soil or they get too leafy. I've grown stocks and snapdragons before and they've done fine without any special attention. Not sure about the chrysanthemums though, I've never grown them and think they're a perennial, so might need more care?

[veggiechicken]

Can I recommend Higgledy Garden for an entertaining read and good advice on growing flowers for cutting, as well as good value seeds. No, I'm not on commission but Ben's articles make me laugh

[vikkib]

I'd really like to do this too, but I'm terrible for missing the boat on when to sow the seeds I have managed to sow some really bright Cosmos, and some sweet peas, but my branching/small flowered sunflowers have failed miserably, as have the Echinacea from seed. Wouldn't mind some ideas for quick-growing annuals?

Ditto!

This is the first year I've managed to sow any flower seeds at all... usually miss the boat too!

I've got some French Marigolds germinating on the windowsill (free pack with heated prop purchase!) but they will be for in between the toms.

I've sown some Cherry Brandy Rudbeckia which are starting to germinate in a heated prop and I'm very excited about those!

I've got a tray of 30 odd sweetpea seeds in loo rolls sitting in the greenhouse (unheated) all of which, bar 2, are stubbornly refusing to germinate.

I've got a few sunflowers in pots on windowsills which I need to harden off, most of them, however, got too leggy and collapsed!

Same request as Sarz please... ideas for quick growing annuals please!

Edit: I started this post at 8.30am before work got away... I like the suggestions so far! ; )

[alldigging]

April is the usual time for sowing annuals so not late ...?

[smallfrog]

I'm going to keep you all updated on my progress there might even be a blog. Lots of the flowers have started to come up so am hopeful might get some flowers this year at the very least.
Two sheds do poppies work as a cut flower? I know some plants just don't like being cut hellebore's don't last in a vase although if you cut just the flowers and float them in water they last a fair bit longer. Also love using herbs have masses in the summer as foliage. I normally have a jug of herbs in the kitchen to snip at so maybe an edible bouquet might be lovely too.

Note the "lovely" I swear getting older (32) being a mum to a girl (3) is not helping me keep to the harden tomboy image i have worked on so so long.

ps love my new pink gardening gloves from wilkos. Keep my hands lovely ad clean.
xxx

[lottie dolly]

I to have got a lot more flowers this year,or will have when and if the bulbs and seeds grow ,have had a planting and sowing of them to day,

[Two_Sheds]

do poppies work as a cut flower?

No, they drop their petals soon after cutting.

Flower and veg growing shouldn't be separate tasks: pollinating insects will be attracted to your veg garden if you can provide year-round food (flowers) for them.

[SarzWix]

I found a packet of mixed sunflower seeds and sowed them last night, along with calendula, cornflowers and some more cosmos. I think germination will be hit and miss with the sunflowers because they're so old, but worth a go. The calendula is a bit of a mystery because the seeds came free with a bean order from Graines Baumaux, and looking on their website I can't find the specific variety, but 'Souci' which it says on the packet, comes up with what looks very like calendula in the pics. (I don't speak much French )

[smallfrog]

Dont fear two sheds not giving up on my veggie roots just expanding my softer side. Have grown nasturtium more for food, already have daffs dotted about and sunflower more for the kids than the bees. Just going to give myself a cut flower bed or two. Have been reading Higgledy garden blog thanks for the link veggiechicken and he thinks you can use california poppy as a cut flower if you scold the stem striaght after picking.

[Martin H]

you can use california poppy as a cut flower if you scold the stem striaght after picking.

I've also seen it recommended that you scorch the end of a poppy stem, e.g. with the flame of a cigarette lighter, immediately after picking. Never tried it though.