How To Make A Backyard Cutting Garden

Breathtaking blooms to fill your cup this summer!

Photo by Borne Photography

Bringing flowers is a classy move when you’re headed to a dinner party, visiting a sick friend, or saying ‘Thanks’ to teachers on the last day of school. They also boost well-being in your own household: research shows that displaying flowers can make your family happier and more compassionate.

Here’s the catch. Store-bought flowers are really, really expensive. So, how can you have fresh florals on a budget? Create a small cutting garden! Spend a few dollars on certain seeds or seedlings, plant them in your yard, and you’ll have bouquet-worthy blooms all summer long.

For those with no green thumbs, the key is finding beginner-friendly plants that grow well in CNY. To make the process easy, we asked Stephanie Brainard, a Cornell master gardener volunteer, for help. She specializes in cutting gardens and offers these simple tips.

Planning Your Garden

1. Pick a place that’s about 4 feet by 8 feet or 3 feet by 10 feet. This should be a spot that gets at least six hours of daily sunlight.

2. Make your flower bed. You can get a raised bed kit or plant directly in the soil.

a. If you’re using a raised bed kit, fill it with a mix of top soil and compost.

b. If you’re planting directly into the ground, just add compost to your natural soil.

Choose Flowers

Head to the store and buy low-maintenance flowers, either seeds or seedlings that have already started growing. Using seedlings is the easier choice, but it does cost a bit more than using seeds.

Be sure that you are purchasing a tall variety that grows to at least 24 inches. You can check the label or ask a garden store employee.

Here a few recommendations:

Focal Flowers

These are the big, bold stars of your bouquet.

• Zinneas

• Marigolds

• Sunflowers

• Snapdragons

• Celosia

• Cosmos

Filler Flowers

These fill spaces while adding volume, texture, and color.

• Yarrow

• Feverfew

Greenery

Herbs are a fantastic, sweet-scented accent.

• Flowering Basil

• Mint

• Oregano

Planting

When you’re ready to plant your seeds or seedlings, place everything somewhat close together to encourage the stems to grow tall and straight. Give your focal flowers about 9 inches of space around each seedling. Give the sunflowers, filler flowers, and herbs 12 inches around each one. Finish up your planting by adding a fertilizer like Espoma Bloom.

Garden Care

Soon you will have fragrant flowers ready to be made into bouquets! Here’s how to keep your garden healthy and blooming all summer.

● Pull out weeds regularly.

● Deeply water your plants once or twice per week, depending on rain.

● Once the flowers are blooming, cutting them weekly keeps them healthy.

● Make your cut towards the base of the stem. This encourages more growth and gives you enough length for creative arrangements.

Long-Lasting Bouquets

Cut in the coolest part of the day: early morning or evening. This will help prevent them from wilting because they are most hydrated at this time.

When you cut, bring a jar or bucket of water to put them in right away.

Let them rest and rehydrate in a cool dark place for at least four hours before arranging them.

Once you’ve made your bouquet, keep it away from direct sunlight, high-humidity areas, and ripening fruit, which releases a gas that causes wilting.

Every two or three days, revive your bouquet by trimming the stems and putting it in fresh water.

Need More Help?

Check out Stephanie’s information-packed Instagram account @brainardfarmette and her hands-onbworkshops that cover cutting gardens, floral arrangements, and more