One of the many great pleasures of gardening is being able to assemble your own home-grown bouquets to brighten up indoor spaces. Guaranteed to be totally unique, your beautiful arrangements will also make wonderful gifts for friends and family.

Let’s face it, we could all do with a bit of cheering up at this stage, so what better way of looking forward to brighter days than by planning your very own cutting garden. You will have a constant supply of blooms to fill your vases with fresh flowers and foliage, sure to put a smile on any face!

When choosing a spot for your cutting garden, the most important things to remember are to make sure it gets a good amount of sun, that you have a water supply fairly close by and that you can actually get around and through the bed to cut the flowers. Raised beds work well as you can easily reach the plants and they allow a good depth of soil.

Before getting started, your plot will benefit immensely by improving the quality of soil with compost or manure. All weeds should be removed to ensure that your flowers don’t have to compete for any essential nutrients, then organic matter can be added and raked finely.

When planning what to plant, it’s worth keeping in mind the desired result and selecting flowers that you love, otherwise you won’t want to pick them. Include a variety of shapes and textures, long, straight stems, some with scent and don’t forget the value and beauty of foliage as well.

The following tips for maintenance will also apply to all of our herbaceous favourites:

Deadhead flowers regularly and keep up the weeding and watering.

When watering, don’t shower plants from overhead, but water carefully with a steady flow at the base of the plant.

The best time to water is in the evening as it allows the plants to soak up what they need overnight.

Mulching is valuable to retain moisture and suppress weeds.

We’ve recently added a wide variety of stock to our website, some delightful Delphiniums, luscious Lupins, handsome Hydrangeas and radiant Rhododendrons!

All ready for you to take your pick 🙂