The cut flower patch in June

The Cut Flower Patch in June

Seeing my cut flower bed coming into fruition, I review what I've learnt, and how you can still enjoy an abundance of cut flowers even with very little space.

By mid-June, the cut flower patch has really come to life and shows what you can do in just a year.

I've let a few things self-seed if they're going to be valuable, e.g. Alchemilla mollis and Ammi. Keep things that are valuable if you see seedlings. The more you garden the more you'll get to know what they look like and whether to weed them out or not.

Be Prepared for Surprises

• With my marigolds I thought I was sowing Calendula 'Touch of Red Buff', but they've come out as a mixture of Calendula officinalis and what I think is Calendula 'Indian prince'.
• Sometimes you'll find things turn out differently to what you expect, even from reputable suppliers, and you just have to embrace that.
• The florist's dill (Anethum graveolens 'Mariska') is taller than I thought it would be.
• The ones I've planted in the border are shorter because the soil isn't too rich.

Take Note of Successes and Things That Didn't Go to Plan

• The new cosmos 'Kiiro' and sunflower 'Ruby Eclipse' I've tried this year are both really lovely.
• The phlox has a lax habit and is using the Calendula as a climbing frame, so that was a good juxtaposition.
• Likewise, the Delphinium 'Misty Lavender' looks lovely weaving in with the dill.
• I was going to plant more cosmos, but everything's grown so much that I can't fit anything else in, so I will have a better idea of realistic numbers for next year.
• The direct-sown nasturtiums have taken a while to get going, but the marigolds I sowed direct in late March or early April are doing really well.

Growing a Lot of Flowers in a Very Small Space

My patch is only 2.6x2.4m, and yet I've managed to grow all these flowers in just a year. You can do so much in a short time with just a few packets of seed.

You can save so much money from growing from seed. I don't have to buy flowers to take to friends. I do cut from the border too, but if you have a devoted patch you don't mind taking the flowers so much.

I've actually grown far too much this year, and that's just from an average size greenhouse – which you don't even need – and a small bed. So don't be deterred if you don't have much space.

"It is amazing, the volume you can produce from such a small space"

Plant Directory

Alchemilla mollis

Lady's mantle

Herbaceous hardy perennial

Rosaceae

Ammi majus

False bishop's weed

Hardy annual

Apiaceae

Ammi visnaga: now Visnaga daucoides

Toothpick plant

Hardy annual

Apiaceae

Anethum graveolens 'Mariska'

Florist's dill

Hardy annual or biennial

Apiaceae

Calendula officinalis

Common marigold

Hardy annual or biennial

Asteraceae

Calendula officinalis 'Touch of Red Buff'

Common marigold 'Touch of Red Buff'

Hardy annual or biennial

Asteraceae

Calendula officinalis 'Indian Prince'

Common marigold 'Indian Prince'

Hardy annual or biennial

Asteraceae

Consolida ajacis 'Misty Lavender'

Giant larkspur 'Misty Lavender'

Hardy annual

Ranunculaceae

Cosmos bipinnatus 'Kiiro'

Mexican aster 'Dazzler'

Half-hardy annual

Asteraceae

Helianthemum annuum 'Ruby Eclipse'

Sunflower 'Ruby Eclipse'

Half-hardy annual

Asteraceae

Lathyrus odoratus 'Cupani'

Sweet pea 'Cupani'

Hardy annual

Fabaceae

Papaver somniferum

Opium poppy

Hardy annual

Papaveraceae

Phlox drummondii 'Crème Brûlée'

Annual phlox 'Crème Brûlée'

Short-lived perennial grown as half-hardy annual

Polemoniaceae

Tropaeolum majus cultivars

Nasturtiums

Hardy annual

Tropaeolaceae