Weddings are expensive, and you’ll do anything to save money, right? While growing your own flowers sounds like a great way to cut costs, you need to be smart about it. I’ll show you all the things you need to consider, plus link to some fabulous DIY’s for your cake, boutonnieres, centrepieces, and bouquets.
Have you always wondered what flowers keep bugs away from the vegetables in your garden? Today we’re talking about companion planting flowers and vegetables, and which flowers can keep the bugs at bay in your garden naturally.
If you’ve been reading this blog or following me on Instagram for awhile, you might have noticed that #ihavethisthingwithflowers. I am obsessed. To feed my obsession I need a garden filled with cut flowers that will hold up well in my various arrangements.
Here are my favourite plants to keep me in floral arrangements from June to September.
Disclaimer: I am writing from USDA Hardiness zone 2-3, so all plants listed will grow in this location. The good news is that if you live almost anywhere else, you should be able to grow these flowers. The bad news is your success with these flowers can vary depending on your area’s growing and soil conditions.
A cut flower garden should have a nice mix of annuals and perennials to help ensure that there will be something to cut all season. Annual flowers will not come back again the following year they are planted, but generally provide blooms all season long. Perennials will come back every year once they are planted, but usually have a much shorter bloom time.
Annual flowers are cheaper to purchase, but you have to purchase them every year. Perennial flowers are more expensive to purchase, but you usually only have to purchase them once.
With that out of the way, let’s get on to my favourite cut flowers!
Daisies are beautiful, simple, and look good on their own or with any colour flower. They can have a spreading habit, so be ready to divide them up and pass them on to a friend or neighbour.
More commonly known as Baby’s breath. They make a beautiful filler in any arrangement.
Larger varieties like the Mary Helen variety look better in floral arrangements.
Even thought some sedums flower only in one part of the year, or even not at all, I love using them all year round for their interesting shapes and textures.
These grape hyacinths are the ones most commonly grown in zone 3. I love them in a small teacup arrangement. Warmer zones can grow many more and larger varieties of hyacinths.
Lilacs are actually a shrub, and not a perennial. However, I just had to include them, as spring wouldn’t be the same without a large bouquet of them sitting on my kitchen table.
Lily of the Valley is fragrant and beautiful, but it spreads if left unchecked. Worried about planting something you might regret later? Check out my list of 28 perennials you’ll regret planting.
I am obsessed with peonies! We have 8 bushes of them and I can’t bear to give any of them away. . . although I probably should. Did you know that when you get a new peony plant it won’t bloom for 3 years!?!? Learn what you need to know about taking care of peonies here.
To me, tulips are the ultimate floral expression of spring. I loved our simple yellow and red ones growing up.
Asiatic lilies are so easy to grow and come in an endless variety of colours.
Makes a gorgeous filler plant!
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Shopping for a bellflower plant? Make sure to get the clustered variety and not the regular bellflower. The regular kind is more weed than flower and can easily take over your flower bed in a few years.
Coral bells can tolerate a bit of shade and make a stunning filler.
So many dahlias, so little time. Dahlias come in practically every colour of the rainbow, and the sizes can range from 1 inch to the size of a dinner plate. They’re a must have for the garden, although the bulbs must be dug out every fall and replanted in the spring.
Glads are a staple of late summer floral arrangements. In colder climates you’ll need to dig the bulbs out every fall and replant in the winter.
Be careful of what you purchase in zone 2 or zone 3! Often the hydrangeas in the big box store will not be hardy enough for these climates. Check on the tag that the plant is hardy to at least -30 degrees celsius.
There are many type of coneflowers and all of them are good candidates for your next cut flower arrangement. Check for black eyed susan’s in ditches along the road.
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Sunflowers come in so many different heights, and even in shades or orange and red. Plant at least one every spring for the children in your life.
See coneflower above.
You know it’s fall when the pots of mums appear at the big box stores.
See dahlia above in the summer section.
Golden rod grows wild where I live. Hurray for free cut flowers!!
Strawflower is one of my new favourite flowers. Light as air and super pretty!
Zinnas hold a special place in my heart and I go a little crazy each year planting them. So worth it once they bloom!
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Are you dreaming of warmer days yet? My dreams tend to be made of all the beautiful perennial flowers, trees, and shrubs that bloom in Spring. Best of all, every one of these picks is hardy to zone 2 or zone 3!!
You’ll be surprised at how many beautiful plants you can grow, many of them with pink and white blossoms. Whether you’re planning out your front yard, landscaping a back yard, or looking for some flowers to grow in pots, there’s something for you on this list.
Shade is the enemy of every beginner gardener. It seems like your eye is drawn to every sun loving plant in the greenhouse and there are no exciting options for your shady flower garden.
I’ve compiled 17 shade-loving perennials that are easy to grow in your landscape.
Disclaimer: I garden in USDA Hardiness Zone 2/3 and my advice and plant selections are based on my experience in that growing zone. The good news is that unless you live in the Arctic or the Desert, my picks should work for you! Please let me know in the comments if you have any plant suggestions for your particular growing area.
While a tag on a plant may claim to tolerate full shade, even shade loving plants like some morning or evening sunshine.
Will the shade plant live in true full shade? Of course. But it won’t thrive.
If you are trying to create a flower bed in an area of your yard that never sees the light of day, you are better off to put in a rock garden, deck, or some sort of hardscape.
A medium-sized plant that comes in lovely shades of white, pink, red, and purple. Very hardy summer blooming perennial that likes moist to well-drained soil.
Bergamots also come in white, pink, red, and purple, and will tolerate all light conditions. It can spread out easily, so make sure you remove any unwanted plants every year.
Bleeding hearts hold a special place in my heart. My family has a plant that was my great-grandma’s and everyone in the family has gotten part of it over the years whenever it needed to be divided.
This stunner comes in pink or white and blooms from late Spring to Early Summer.
Orange daylilies (like the one pictured) get a bad rap for taking over a yard if not maintained.
Any other colour of day lily is more well behaved. I highly recommend picking out something unique from your local greenhouse or a seed catalogue.
They flourish in any kind of light condition, although they may not bloom if they have too much shade.
16 Shade-loving perennial plants for your next flower bed.Click To TweetA Spring-blooming plant with lovely green foliage and delicate white blooms.
Hostas come in so many beautiful shades and variations of green, you’ll find it hard to choose just one! A great shade plant for almost any soil condition.
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Goat’s beard comes in all sizes and looks lovely paired with astilbes or underneath a tree.
Need a plant that you can’t kill that will grow anywhere? Goutweed is for you. Just be warned, it can easily spread where you don’t want it, so either plant it in a contained area or be willing to dig out rogue plants every year.
Goutweed is hated so much by flower gardeners that it is the most hated perennial on my list of most regretted perennial flowers.
Japanese Spurge or Pachysandra is a good ground cover for underneath a tree. Be warned, it is has a habit of spreading and sends out lots of runners.
Laminum comes in many colours and makes an attractive groundcover under a tree. It can be invasive, but the flowers provide an important source of nectar for bees.
A lovely, tall plant with pretty yellow flowers. Keep it in part shade for more height and blooms.
One of the first Spring flowers to bloom in the garden. The delicate white flowers have a beautiful scent. Lily of the Valley makes a great ground cover underneath a tree, but can be invasive if unwanted new growth is allowed to grow.
Think you can't have a beautiful flower garden in the shade? Here's 15+ plants you'll want to growClick To Tweet
Many of my readers love ostrich ferns, but they are my most-hated perennial.
Why?
Try pulling out over 300 of them in your backyard.
No, I’m not exaggerating.
I’m sure I’ll still have tons this Spring. Anyone want a fern?
The purple bellflower will grow in almost any light or soil condition. Avoid the variety shown if at all possible, unless you have a patch of soil that everything else dies in. (If I sound negative, it’s because it’s my second most hated perennial that I’m currently doing battle with in my backyard.)
The clumping purple bellflower is much better behaved and is beautiful in floral arrangements.
Saxifrage works best in rock gardens or at the edge of a flower bed. There are a huge variety of colours to chose from, you’ll want to grow them all!
You can use it as a ground cover or grow it between rocks in a pathway.
Put mulch over the plant in winter to ensure it survives.
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Siberian Bugloss is an excellent ground cover under trees. You’ll want to try the Jack Frost Variety for it’s variegated leaves and delicate blue blossoms.
A beautiful plant for a woodland garden. It does well as a ground cover or in a flower bed. Beware the berries, as they are poisonous to animals and children.
Whether you’re looking for a ground cover or something stunning for a front yard flower bed, there’s sure to be a flower in this list for you.
Have any suggestions? I’d love to hear them! Please make sure you state your location and hardiness zone if you know it. (I’m writing from zone 2/3.)