Flowers for Mum: Some lessons learned


I'm still getting to grips with dahlias as a cut flower and it's important I do as they're the one flower still pumping out masses of blooms this late in the season. I've found picking time is crucial to success - too early and the flowers don't open; too late and they simply fall apart. They're not the longest lasting bloom either, but they form an important connection with mum as dad used to help organise the annual dahlia show where he worked.

Reaction has proved key to success for my Flowers for Mum project this year. As well as the dahlias, bright blooms get a thumbs up, as does anything with a scent or strokeable leaves. Sadly mum's special Portmeirion vase has gone AWOL for the time being; she loves pointing out the bee and butterfly in the design, so I hope it returns to her room soon.

My kitchen windowsill is now a colourful laboratory where I test which flowers last well in the vase. Whilst I have plenty of cut flower books to guide me, it's still good to see which ones perform well before I use them in the more demanding conditions at the home. Room temperatures are far higher there, so - dahlias apart - only the longest lasting blooms will do.

My star turns for the year include:

  • Daffodils - not home grown, but a plentiful supply of British grown flowers are available from January until early April. They're a welcome start to the year.
  • Alliums - a surprise hit and not a long lasting flower, but their seed heads go on and on and on. It meant mum still had something of interest in her room when we went on holiday.
  • Stachys byzantina - added as a bulking agent to a rather meagre bunch of flowers for my Wild and Woolly edition and mum loved the strokeability of the leaves.
  • Alstroemeria - I knew these would be a good doer as blooms last up to three weeks at home.
  • Perennial cornflowers - long lasting and foraged from my back lawn where they've self seeded themselves.
  • Lavender - mum loves the scent, so I've also dried the flowers along with some lemon balm to make some sweet smelling sachets for her room.
  • Hyacinths - these were a Christmas present from the home last year and her positive reaction to their scent inspired me to start my Flowers for Mum project
I've also learned it's wise to strip the leaves and trim the stems to size at home beforehand and I can check for stray insects at the same time. Roses are a no-no as they're a bit too fiddly to trim without pricking myself, plus their petals drop off too readily. A spray gun container forms my improvised vase for the journey to mum; its narrow neck prevents any spillage and the flowers are kept beautifully fresh.

When the dahlias stop flowering (probably later this month), I'll forage for suitable plant material to add to the echinacea and scabious flower heads I have drying upstairs. There are some teasels growing nearby and there's always silvery Euonymus to add from the front garden. I really must grow some Statice next year to add a floral note to my winter posies. Then there are paperwhite daffodils and hyacinth bulbs to succession plant ready to take us up to Christmas.

Have you grown cut flowers this year? What's worked well for you?

Comments

  1. I'm loving the sunflowers I've grown at the allotment this year. The variety is 'Earthwalker'. It is not as tall as some sunflowers, but has lots of branching sideshoots, making it good for cutting. The colours are lovely, they range from dark brown to bronze and yellow.

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    Replies
    1. *Adds 'Earthwalker' sunflowers to next year's seed list* Thanks Margaret, several people have mentioned sunflowers are good for cutting and I was in need of one which is multi-headed for me to try next year :)

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  2. Very pretty bouquet
    When I was at a garden center yesterday, I noticed they had amaryllis bulbs packaged with small pretty pots and a potting mixture. Just pot up the bulb, water it, and have blooms in a few weeks!
    Lea
    Mississippi, USA

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    Replies
    1. I love Amaryllis Lea, but mine usually grow too tall and flop over :( I've gone for paperwhite daffodils and hyacinths instead because both of them have scent as well as flowers.

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  3. I don't grow flowers for cutting, but every March when I cut back my Cornus I bring the stems in and put them in a vase. I love the bright colours and they last for ages (and generally I've left it a bit late to cut them back, so I get some little white flowers as a bonus).

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    Replies
    1. That's one of the first things I did when we moved here Juliet! Mine have lasted years because I dried them instead of putting them in water. I must try that as well.

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  4. Hope the vase is making its way back ...
    Reminds me I have Portmeirion honeysuckle plate I need to display.

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    1. Oh so do I Diana - I'll be hunting for it again this afternoon...

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  5. I am surprised that daffodils last a long time on the warm conditions. I have found clarkia lasts a long while for us. Surprisingly dahlias last well for us. Chrysanthemums are good on autumn but they may not be great if it is too warm.

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    Replies
    1. They just about last a week Sue. I had some top tips from one of the flower farmers a few years ago. The trick is to choose the ones on sale that have the straightest stems as they're the freshest.

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  6. I had a lovely conversation with Marigold on Twitter who recommends shasta daisies and says they "last surprisingly well as cut flowers (discovered after a storm bashed the unsupported plants to the ground!)", plus a great suggestion for some helichrysums alongside statice for winter bouquets :)

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  7. Grew and cut my first dahlias this year - with a hard freeze likely in the next couple of weeks, I'm taking advantage where I can! I'm also cutting sedum blooms which seem to last for a good, long time in a vase.

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    Replies
    1. That makes sense Margaret - they last well into the winter outside as well. I wonder how long our dahlias will last - it seems cooler this year than the past few have been.

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  8. The Portmeirion vase is back! I took the latest bunch of flowers for mum today and there it was 😊

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    Replies
    1. Glad the vase returned. Have been thinking of you and your flowers for Mum

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    2. It's amazing how a simple white jug makes me happy because it's her jug and no-one elses. There's been more bought flowers this year due to not being able to garden much, but at least that jug has been kept filled. Thanks for the good thoughts, that makes me happy too :)

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    3. I should explain that the vase got replaced by a jug just in case the vase wandered again and that seems to wander much less than its more decorative cousin did. The vase is now on my windowsill so I remember to take flowers to mum.

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