Grow these cut flowers to have garden bouquets all summer long

THE FARMHOUSE

One of my favorite things to do in summer is head out to the garden with a pair of scissors and throw together a quick garden bouquet. When you have a nice selection of flowers growing in your garden it only takes a few minutes to put a fun arrangement together! So today I wanted to share which flowers we grow in the garden to make sure a quick bouquet is always at the ready!

Grow these cut flowers to have garden bouquets all summer long | the Grit and Polish

I just love being able to say, I grew these :)

garden bouquet with dahlias, zinnias, brown eyed girls, cosmos, bupleureum, and Chinese forget me knots in Farmhouse kitchen

colorful garden bouquet in Farmhouse pottery pitcher | the Grit and Polish

Brown eyed girl in garden bouquet | the Grit and Polish

I’ve been growing cut flowers for a few years now and each year we experiment and refine. We started with a massive cut flower field and went back down to three 4’x8’ flower beds last summer. But there really is no minimum size for growing cut flowers. A couple of containers will do. You just have to pick the right varieties. Here are our favorites…

Flowers types…

Large focal flower - dahlias

Medium filler flowers - zinnia, cosmos, brown eyed girls (we loved how many blooms these brown eyed girls gave us last summer!)

Filler/tiny flowers - Bulpleureum, soapwort, Chinese forget me knot. Herbs. I personally like a little whimsey and movement with filler and often forage from around our yard.

Here are the flowers from the large bouquet shown above…

Chinese forget me knots, bupleureum, cosmos, zinnia, and dahlias on marble countertop — chinese forget me knot and bupleureum, cosmos, brown eyed girls, zinnias, dahlias

And here’s a peek at our garden where we grow our flowers...

Farmhouse garden with sitting area and raised beds | the Grit and Polish

Aged wood table, umbrella, raised beds, and grapes on fence in Farmhouse Garden

Raised beds with flowers and willow pyramids in Farmhouse garden | the Grit and Polish

Monrovia's brown eyed girls in raised bed garden — Sunbelievable Brown Eyed Girls

Whicker basket full of zinnias | the Grit and Polish — Zinnias

Here are a few more photos of the flowers themselves, grown in our large flower field in 2020.

Dahlias grown in backyard flower field | the Grit and Polish — Dahlias

Dahlia varieties on marble countertop | the Grit and Polish — Dahlias

Cosmos in white and pink on marble countertop — Cosmos

Zinnias in pink and orange on marble countertop | the Grit and Polish — Zinnias

Freshly picked bouquet of white cosmos in backyard flower field — Cosmos

Other things to consider…

Color - I like to get a mix of colors but focus on soft hues. A little white and soft pink in a bouquet gives the eye somewhere to land.

Nostalgia - You guys know me, I’m always looking for a little nostalgia and love old-feeling anything, so I pick varieties that take me back to those childhood summers of years past.

What else do you want your flowers to feel like? - Personally I’m always looking for a sentimental, slightly-romantic, country feeling (with interiors and flowers) but nothing too precious or high-maintenance (yup, with interiors and flowers!). But if modern is your thing, search out stems that feel a little more now and a little less country.

If you’re short on space - I’d personally plant: a couple pretty dahlias in a neutral color (like cafe au lait), zinnias, and cosmos and plan to forage a little filler. Be extra careful with the color palette to make sure everything coordinates.

Where to buy

Your local nursery is a great place to start! They should have a variety of plants that grow well in your area and knowledgeable folks to help with any questions. For seeds and tubers, we usually order those from Johnnys, Floret, and other flower farms near us.