My Tiny PlotEchinacea – Fab Cut Flower
I do love Echinacea. Some people say they look like wilted daisies and I suppose they do really but if you get up close, they’re sooo beautiful. I actually like the way that their petals hang towards the ground. It makes them look even more delicate and exotic than other flowers.
I have one sturdy perennial plant in the garden, grown mainly for cutting purposes (everything must work for its place here at mtp!) It’s definitely going from strength to strength. I’d say the plant has doubled in size since I planted it last year and it has also given me double the number of cut flowers. Perfect.
It’s also perfect for a kitchen garden because it doesn’t take up much room. The plant is pretty sturdy and all the flowers grow straight up on a long stalk. It hardly takes up any room at all – unlike my Lavender which is sprawling all over my pathways and consequently is on the ‘might have to dig you up and move you soon’ list.
I’ve no idea which variety it is (possibly Summer Sky) but it’s beautiful and will always have a place (albeit a sunny one) in my kitchen garden.
What cut flowers would you recommend? Are you growing any?
Lovely photos Gillian. I must get me some of these. I had thought about it before when I kept seeing the flower on my bottle of echinacea drops. I do like a nice perennial flower.
I particularly like Astrantia, both pink and white as they last right through the summer but I have noticed that just this year when cut and brought into the house they have an odd cheesy smell which is not attractive!
These are my most recent gatherings from the garden: with Lupins, Foxgloves and Alliums all lasting quite well. I am also a fan of a Rose and Lavender combination.
Glad the Summer Camp went well.
Hi – love this site to pieces!!
I love my veg, but I do need flowers too, and can’t do without something to cut and bring into the house! The ones I can’t imagine doing without are sweet peas, cosmos and zinnia’s. I mix these with the fat seed heads and fluffy foliage of the ‘love in a mist’ that are still hanging around and hey presto – lovely posies!!
Nice photos, Head Gardener.
So far my attempts at growing this lovely flower has been nought. So I’ll just have to enjoy yours instead.
I’ve dug a flower bed at the allotment and have planted some lilies. They’re just about ready for cutting for the house now.
Jo,
Be careful with the lillies. The pollen stains whatever it touches so be careful not to set it in the middle of a gorgeous wooden dining table without something under it!!! (A friend of mine did that and was devastated!!) Also… I’ve been told that lillies are poisonous to cats and dogs and can kill them. Not sure if it’s certain types or what, was just told lillies.
As for cut flowers, I love sweet peas (Spencer mix). I mix them with gypsophilia and they make a lovely splash of colour. They flower for a long time if you keep up with the cutting and deadheading.
I have tried to grow these from seed but have failed miserablely this year. I think I will just buy a plant and cheat. Sweet peas are my favourite cut flower because of the lovely scent. I have planted cosmos from seed this year and they have worked really well, they are everywhere now! I am also hoping for some vebena flowers, these plants seemed to work well from seed for me too, they are growing very tall but no flower yet.
I love echinaceas too, and there are loads of different coloured varieties around these days. The only trouble is, the slugs and snails love them too, especially the newly emerging shoots in the spring. So that might be why some people assume they’ve just died. I’ve grown sweet peas on my allotment this year and they’ve been fantastic, and such a lovely sweet smell that fills any room. But you do need the space to grow them. I’m also growing my own chrysanthemums for the first time, and I’ve recently sown some sweet williams, which will be planted this autumn and ready for picking next year. They’re old fashioned but I love them.
they are one of my favs too, and I managed to grow lots from seeds this year, – so will hopefully have lots of fab flowers next year, – the variety that i’ve grown from seed are Magnus, – and I got 18 to germinate for a pack of seeds at £2.25 – I also love the new colours like Sunset, but can’t afford the £7.95 per plant price tag.
I love cosmos, zinnias and sweet peas.
I you fail to pick an echinacea flower before it starts to wilt, leave it there for the finches, who love them.
I’m currently enjoying drinking echinacea and blackcurrant tea! I have an echinacea plant growing in my front garden, but it’s a bit rubbish because every year the blackfly seem to home in on it. And I’m too much of a live-and-let-live vegetarian pansy to flick/squash/spray them off. Ah well, such is life!
Has anyone else tried leek flowers as cut flowers? If you leave a few leeks to bolt at the end of the season they produce massive flower heads like alliums that turn white and purple and are fabulous for flower arranging around this time of year.
Could you post a picture of you whole garden at this time of year? I’d love to see the whole picture to see how it’s maturing. Still really enjoying the website.
Once again, some brilliant photos mtp.
I love sweetpeas – mine are blooming beautifully at the moment.
But one disappointment has been anemones. I’ve grown single and double flowering ones (in my opinion the single look much prettier).
They appeared, looked lovely and then all the petals fell off within a few days. I’m just left with some tall, green stalks. Not so lovely! Not sure if I’ve done something wrong or if this is just what anemones do, particularly after torrential rain. Any tips with anemones, anyone?
I’m loving leucanthemums at the moment – sturdy and lasts for absolutely ages in water!
Didn’t realise that echinaceas were good for cutting – your photos are absolutely fab. :)
I love echinacea, rudbekia, daisies, cosmos….I think they make a smashing combo….
But I cannot do without dahlias! Any color, any type. I don’t like the dinnerplate size because they droop terribly.
Andrea,
Thanks for the warning about the lilies. I did know about the staining aspect, but I’m being very careful.
I grow sweet peas and dahlia’s. They are doing really well this year ans la st yaer. I have a very small plot in my back garden so not too much room for flowers.
I can’t get enough of sweet peas. They are great for cutting, smell delicious and bring bees and other pollinators into my Kitchen Garden. Take a look at my blog http://hollygroveimages.blogspot.com/
and we can compare vegetable growing ideas.
Can you publish a picture of your whole garden? Autumn is the best time of year for this type of flower. The changes in colour in autumn are amazing