[Ed89]

Hi all,

First ever post.

I'm setting up a small vegetable, herb and cut flower garden at work to show the young people that go through our activity centre the advantage of 'growing your own'

Found quite a few places that do good value herb and veg seed collections to get me going, but not found any decent cut flower collections.

Do you know of any?

And has anyone got any opions on any collections they have bought?


All help and advise is very much welcomed!


Ed

[Yorkie]

Welcome to the site 

I've had a quick look round some of the more well known seed catalogues and can't see any seed collections which include a range of flowers good for cutting.

I suspect that you might have to get a number of single packets.

Do you have any ideas as to which cut flowers you might like?  Do they need to be grown from seed each year, or permanent plants / bulbs too?

[ulsterfairy]

Good luck with the project, I got thrown into doing gardening as part of a project years ago not really knowing anything!! It was fab for all involved 
 We did some veg in pots like spring onions and radish, if I had known more I would have suggested loads more for growing in pots like potatoes!!  We did manage to do some cookery sessions with the produce as well so doubly rewarding.

What about some edible flowers like nasturtiums?

The first thing I ever grew from seed on my own was sweetpeas - that was about 5 yrs ago and Ive been hooked since!! Since they need cutting loads to keep them flowering, and tying in there is always something to do with them as well - so maybe good to keep their interest??

If you havent already have a look at the frugal living bit on the site, Ive only just discovered it ans there are a good few ideas on there.

[Ed89]

So it all started when I asked if I could make my own tiny veg patch outside my flat on site, they said yes. Now I've got potatoes, parsnips, carrots, onions, cut and come again salad growing and in the ground, a small range of herbs in window boxes and sweet peppers, chillies and aubergines in my blow away greenhouse.

Yeah some permenant flower plants would work, what suggestions do you have?

 And hi ulsterfairy sounds like you've done exactly what I'm just getting started in! Edible flowers sound cool, can see the kids really enjoying that. I've actually just planted some sweetpeas I got from this months Gardeners' World.



Cheers

[Yorkie]

Dahlias aren't quite permanent, in that they need to be lifted every winter and stored somewhere dry and frost-free, but they are wonderful cut flowers.

I'm growing calendula, cornflowers, cosmos and sweet peas this year, as well as attempting sunflowers.

[richyrich7]

Hi Ed 
Tried your local wilko's ? 3 for 2 on seeds and catch them the right time of the year and they are quite often sold off cheap. Usually a decent range of flowers both annual and biannual/perennial.

 

[sclarke624]

Last year I found that cornflowers make excellant cut flowers and last at least a week in a vase.  Also babies breath or gypsophila (easy from seed), asters easy from seed,  I recently found you can use geraniums as cut flowers as well (also easy to grow from seed), wilko's freesia corms, I like sweet peas but they only seem to last three days in a vase with me.  Small gladiolas nanus range (you can get these in wilko as well, they are bulbs or corms 24" flower stem.

[Ed89]

I ended up going to PremierSeeds on ebay, couldn't really argue with over 100,000 reviews 98. something % positive!


Ordered easter Sunday so hopefully will be arriving soonish.


£22 on plently to fill up a 16 bed plot, and expect plenty left over for next year or to swap around when it's my turn to get hold of the seed pass the parcel!

Went for your advice on the cornflowers sclarke624, any growing advice?


Ed