Exciting news! We are going to be growing cut flowers for the very first time this year at Terra Growers where they will be available at their self serve farm stand, where you can also grab eggs, honey, plant starts and veggies. We’re also thrilled to be at the East Side Farmers Market at McPike Park with flowery goodness this summer. Here’s a fun look at some of the flowers I’ll be growing this year. I borrowed Select Seeds pics, since I went nuts last fall during their after season sale. Click on the pic and it will hook you up with a link to buy seeds. There’s also some fun stuff from Johnny’s.
It’s not secret that I LOVE zinnias. Here’s a taste of my zinnia insanity. They’re also super easy to grow.
Amaranth is another easy one to start from seed that comes in all kinds of fun shapes and sizes. I never had the space or heat to grow these in SF.
I’ve been a sucker for cold hardy annual cornflowers for a long time now it’s another crazy easy one to start from seed.
Word on the street is that cosmos are pain in the ass to harvest for cut flowers, but I’m growing a few for the heck of it. They were easy to get started, so there’s that.
I’d never started Scabiosa before, but it was easy!
Gomphrena is a goody.
Another good one for drying that I have a ton of are strawflowers. I even collected seed from last years flowers for a fun mystery mix.
Snapdragons were kind of a bitch to start. Anything with teeny tiny seeds that like light to germinate are a little tougher than the big seeded stuff. I started a second round after being disappointed with my first, and got more. Next year I’ll do more and not screw them up. Kopke’s Greenhouse has a bunch of really cool ones I may just have to go buy for fun. They have so much cool stuff it’s crazy.
Celosias were another one that did so-so, but compared with my dismal results from last year I should have a decent amount. Klein’s should have a bunch of plumey ones in three packs soon, too.
I went Cuckoo for cantaloupe Calendulas or pot marigolds, but I’m growing a orange ones, too.
I love my tall growing marigolds and pretty much any orange flower.
Another one I had never tried to grow from seed before is Ageratum. I kind of messed up my first round, but figured out what I was doing wrong before it was too late.
Cerinthe is one I’ve grown in California for years, so I gave it a shot here in Wisconsin last year and the midwest bumblebees love it just as much as the west coasters. It’s another one that’s cold hardy, I’ve yet to find out if it reseeds in these parts.
Nigella is pretty with it’s lacy leaves and spikey seed heads. I’ve been slacking a little, but I should have these guys.
There will be more than pictured here over the season, but the above are the main flowers for this season in addition to lots and lots of sunflowers and Dahlias. I’m especially excited to grow Sunflower Steve’s Van Gogh’s Fantasy along with these and more. Starting out with mostly easy annuals this year, but I have plans to get a bunch of perennials going once I kick these babies out in to the real world for next year.
