Food-Gardening Lessons From A Wartime Victory Garden

Articles

Tag: flowers

The Best Container Plants for July Heat

The Best Container Plants for July Heat

It is July, and there are so many plants in bloom on my deck that it is like a bonanza of color. It is so relaxing to sit there and be surrounded by containers that are bursting with flowers and watching the hummingbirds aggressively guard their territory.  There are also honeybees and bumblebees, as well as an occasional dragonfly.

In my containers, there are some plants that I always seem to repeat every year because they perform so well, and I don’t want to be without them. My deck receives quite a bit of sun throughout the day, including hot afternoon sun. That means the plants need to tolerate some hot conditions, and I have learned throughout the years which plants perform best.

Bonfire Begonia

Begonia Bonfire® is an outstanding nonstop bloomer. (Image care of Anthony Tesselaar Plants)

While we often think of begonias as being shade-loving plants, Begonia Bonfire® has been an excellent summer-blooming plant for our sunny deck. The summerlong flowers of bright orange fit the name, Bonfire®. Hummingbirds like them, and it has a trailing habit that makes it excellent for hanging baskets and tall containers. I have planted three of these begonias in the center of a pot with white Bacopa (Snowstorm® Snow Globe® Bacopa is a good choice) around the edge. The two make a nice combination.

Two Sweet Salvias

Proven Winners Rockin’® Fuchsia Salvia is a nonstop summer bloomer loved by hummingbirds. (Image thanks to Proven Winners)

Two salvias from the Proven Winners® brand are on my deck this summer, and they are both outstanding. Rockin’® Fuchsia Salvia (Zones 9-11) is a compact grower (24 to 36 inches) that is excellent for containers. The flowers themselves are dark fuchsia and supported by stems of lighter fuchsia. At the base of each flower is a persistent, beak-like calyx that is dark fuchsia, so when each flower fades and falls, the stems and calyces continue to provide color. The other salvia is Rockin’® Blue Suede Shoes (Zones 9-11), and, as the name implies, it has blue flowers. The stems and calyces on this are very dark, almost black. Hummingbirds seem to like both salvias equally.

Suncredible Sunflower

You can’t go wrong with the 2- to 4-foot Suncredible® Yellow Sunflower. (Image thanks to Proven Winners)

Another Proven Winners® plant on my deck that is new to me, is the annual Suncredible® Yellow Sunflower, which reaches just 2 to 4 feet. I first saw this in a trial garden last summer and knew that the following year it would be in my garden. It is a new type of sunflower that is very compact, everblooming, sterile, and loves the heat. The plants were in bloom when I bought them in May and have never stopped flowering. Sunflowers offer a bright spot of color, and each plant is covered in blooms.

Candy Corn Plant

Candy corn plant has unusual tubular flowers that are visited by hummingbirds. (Image by Mike Darcy)

If ever there was a bold container plant that was a prolific bloomer, hummingbird magnet, and heat-lover it would be candy corn plant (Cuphea micropetala, Zones 8-11). While not reliably winter hardy here, mine came through our mild winter. Earlier this season, it was scraggly, and a grower friend told me to cut it back halfway, which I did. Usually, they reach up to 3 feet or more, but the result has been a beautiful looking, very compact plant. Because I cut it back so far, it was late to bloom, but it is beautiful now. Its small tubular flowers are orange with yellow tips and held on stems that are almost like spikes. Flowering continues all summer.

Cleopatra Canna

Canna ‘Cleopatra’ is spectacular leaves with purple markings that look great even when there are no flowers. (Image by Mike Darcy)

Cannas are primarily known for their foliage and flowers, but my Canna ‘Cleopatra’ (Zones 8-11) has outstanding leaves–no flowers required. The large leaves have dark maroon markings that appear at random. Some leaves might have maroon stripes, while others might be half maroon. The red and yellow summer flowers are also impressive, and their coloring is as random as the leaves. I like the standard 4- to 6-foot variety in big pots, but gardeners that prefer more compact plants can buy dwarf Canna ‘Cleopatra’, which reaches just 3 feet.

Big Container Bananas

Red banana is a very large container plant that needs an equally large container, but what a show! (Image by Mike Darcy)

I would be remiss without mentioning my three potted red leaf bananas (Musa ensete ‘Maurelii’ (syn. Ensete ventricosum ‘Maurelii’). These are in large pots because they grow so fast and get so big in just one season. They are not winter hardy, so each must be newly planted in spring. This year’s specimens were about three feet tall, and by the end of the summer they will be 8-10 ft tall. The large tropical leaves are tinged with red and have dark red leafstalks. It is an outstanding foliage plant. The large leaves can be shredded by the wind, so keep it in a wind-sheltered area.

Other gardeners certainly have their own lists of the best container plants for July heat, but these are my favorites for our summers in the Pacific Northwest. I enjoy sharing mine with neighborhood gardeners and learning what they are growing as well. Just walking around the neighborhood and looking at hot, sunny garden spots tells me what plants are performing. My list also grows. It is always fun to try something new, and this year the salvias and sunflower were my choices.

Enjoy the height of summer!

What Shrubs Have Year-Round Interest?

What Shrubs Have Year-Round Interest?

“What are some shrubs that add interest and color year-round?  For example, foliage that changes color in the different seasons.” Question from Alecia of Puyallup, Washington

Answer: There are loads of shrubs that remain attractive through the seasons. Here are four great selections for your region followed up by a video of my favorite shrubs that bloom all summer long. Many of these also look attractive through fall and winter.

Shrubs with Year-Round Interest

  1. Cardinal Candy® Linden Viburnum (Viburnum diltatum Cardinal Candy®) – Cardinal Candy has clusters of white flowers in spring and lustrous foliage and heads of greenish berries in summer that turn scarlet in fall and persist into winter. The fall leaves also turn beautiful burnished shades of dark red.

  2. Kaleidoscope Abelia (Abelia x grandiflora ‘Kaleidoscope’) – Beautifully variegated evergreen foliage and loads of flowers through most of the growing season make this compact shrub a real winner.

  3. Ruby Slippers Dwarf Oakleaf Hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia ‘Ruby Slippers’) – All oakleaf hydrangeas have all-season interest, but most become very large, which is why I like compact varieties like ‘Ruby Slippers’. It has beautiful oak-like leaves and clusters of white flowers in early summer that persist on the shrub into fall, turning shades of ruby-rose as they age. In fall, the leaves turn burgundy red and the flowers dry to tan. Through winter, the old flowers will remain and the stems have attractive peeling bark.
  4. Yak Rhododendron (Rhododendron yakushimanum) – For your region, yak rhodies are great garden performers. They bloom beautifully in spring with clusters of flowers in varying shades of pink and white, depending on the variety. They form lovely tidy, broad mounds of evergreen foliage with attractive felty new foliage. I just love them. To discover more rhododendron for your area visit the Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden website. The garden is also a real treat to visit in spring.

I hope that some of these shrubs appeal to you.

Happy gardening!

Jessie Keith

Black Gold Horticulturist

 

What Are Good Garden Flowers for Partial Shade?

Nothing beats classic impatiens for color in shady gardens. (Image by Jessie Keith)

“What are the best flowering plants for a mostly shady spot with some morning sun?” Question from Brigitte of Arnold, Missouri

Answer: There are so many wonderful garden flowers that grow well in partial shade but can tolerate a little sun, too. Here is a good list of long-blooming perennials and annuals that will grow well in your area under these light conditions. All of the annuals are also great for containers. Before planting any of these in the garden, I recommend amending your soil with Black Gold Garden Soil, which feeds plants for up to 6 months. Black Gold Moisture Supreme Container Mix is recommended for potted specimens.

Annual Flowers for Shade

Endless™ Illumination Bush Violet thrives in partial sun or shade. (Image thanks to Proven Winners)

Begonias: You can’t go wrong with begonias, as long as you provide them with good moisture, especially through the hottest summer days. Two showy high performers are Bossa Nova® Red  Begonia and Illumination® Golden Picotee tuberous begonia. Classic wax begonias that you can purchase in flats at every garden center are also inexpensive and excellent.

Bush Violets (Browallia hybrids.): These annuals are just beginning to gain popularity due to their nonstop summer flowers. Try the true-blue Endless™ Illumination Bush Violet.

Classic Impatiens (Impatiens walleriana): Pick up a flat of impatiens at the garden center in your favorite color, and plant them for all-summer color.

New Guinea Impatiens (Impatiens hybrids): These impatiens are generally taller and tolerant of a little more sun than classic impatiens. One that I will be planting this year is the tangerine-orange Infinity® Orange. 

Torenia (Torenia hybrids): You cannot go wrong with any of the spreading torenia in the Summer Wave Series. They spread and bloom from late spring to frost. Summer Wave® Large Blue is probably my favorite.

Perennial Flowers for Shade

Pink Diamonds fern-leaved bleeding heart is a great shade flower. (Image thanks to Proven Winners)

Rozanne Hardy Geranium (Geranium ‘Rozanne’): Purplish-magenta flowers are produced by this hardy geranium throughout summer.

Pink Diamonds Fern-leaved Bleeding Heart (Dicentra hybrid): Standard varieties of this pretty woodland bloomer just flower in late spring or early summer, but ‘Pink Diamonds’ offers showy pink flowers all summer long.

Wild Blue Phlox (Phlox divaticata): Blooming in mid to late spring, wild blue phlox bears airy stems of five-petaled, pale violet-blue flowers that are visited by butterflies and long-tongued bees. The variety ‘Blue Moon’ has especially large flowers of violet-blue Plants will naturalize over time.

Foamflower (Tiarella spp.): These pretty perennials have attractive foliage and foamy flowers that appear in late spring. Try the new Proven Winners variety ‘Cutting Edge’.

Heuchera (Heuchera hybrids): Here’s another for both beautiful flowers and foliage. There are hundreds of varieties on the market with beautifully colored (gold, orange, burgundy, purple, red, etc.) and textured leaves and wands of colorful spring flowers. The variety Dolce® ‘Spearmint’ coral bells is a very strong bloomer. Terra Nova nurseries develops the most fantastic forms of this garden favorite.

Happy flower gardening!

Jessie Keith

Black Gold Horticulturist

Award-Winning Flowers for 2020

Echinacea Sombrero® Baja Burgundy (Image by AAS Winners)

The beginning of the year is always filled with award shows to highlight the best-of-the-best. In the entertainment industry, there are the Oscars, Grammys, Emmys, and Tony Awards. In the horticultural world, there are All-America Selections, Fleuroselect, RHS Award of Garden Merit (UK), and other more regional awards for the best-of-the-best garden plants. Plant introductions that receive awards are marketed as having better flowers, stronger stems, disease resistance, unique foliage, and different growth habits. Overall, they are somehow improved or different relative to what is already on the market. Growers and garden centers then sell winning plants to lucky gardeners.  The following is a small fraction of new or notable plants that have received some kind of award for 2020.

All-America Selections Winners

Tip Top Rose nasturtium (Image thanks to All-America Selections)

One of the most active organizations for plant trials and awards is the All-America Selections (AAS). Founded in 1932, it has introduced award-winning annuals, perennials, and vegetables ever since. Its mission statement is, “To promote new garden varieties with superior garden performance judged in impartial trials in North America.” The AAS has about 200 display gardens coast to coast, which include those in public botanical gardens, arboreta, retail garden centers, university gardens, and municipalities.  Where I live in Oregon, there are AAS display gardens at Clackamas Community College in Oregon City, Oregon State University Extension Service in Redmond, and Territorial Seed Company in Cottage Grove. Most states have comparableble publically accessible AAS trial gardens.

Thus far, 2020 has given us three new AAS award-winning flowers. These are Sombrero® Baja Burgundy coneflower (Echinacea Sombrero® Baja Burgundy), Tip Top Rose nasturtium (Tropaeolum minus ‘Tip Tip Rose’), and American Gold Rush black-eyed-Susan (Rudbeckia ‘American Gold Rush’). (Tip Top Rose nasturtium also happens to be a 2019 Fleuroselect winner.)

Sombrero® Baja Burgundy coneflower has deep violet-red blossoms and makes an excellent cut flower. It was trialed over three tough winters, and the AAS Judges noted that was a standout for hardiness, heavy flowering, and showed very sturdy branching. All coneflowers (Echinacea spp.) are good wildlife plants that attract many pollinators and seed-eating birds.

Tip Top Rose nasturtium, another AAS winner, is a compact, bushy bedding plant with rose-colored flowers that rise above the green foliage. The flowers do not fade as they age, and the strong, uniform plant continues to flower well through the season. Nasturtiums are also excellent choices for pollinator gardens, and both the leaves and flowers are edible. (Click here to discover more edible flowers).

Fleuroselect Winners

Silene ‘Sibella Carmine’ (Image thanks to Fleuroselect)

Fleuroselect is another plant trial and award organization that is international but based in Europe. The current membership is comprised of about 75 bedding-plant breeders, producers, and distributors with a goal of evaluating new bedding plants and contributing to the development and advancement of the industry as a whole. Two promising Fleuroselect Gold Medal Winners for 2020 are Shasta daisy Madonna (Leucanthemum x superbum ‘Madonna’) and nodding catchfly Sibella Carmine (Silene pendula ‘Sibella Carmine’).

Fleuroselect refers to ‘Madonna’ one as the next Shasta daisy star. Unlike most other Shastas, it reblooms. The easy-care perennial forms new flowers over the fading ones and blooms from summer to early autumn. It looks good in pots and containers as well as beds and landscape areas.

When spilling from a hanging basket or pot, ‘Sibella Carmine’ looks spectacular. It bears loads of reddish-purple, semi-double flowers that bloom all season and don’t require deadheading. This is one that will most certainly become a common sight at garden centers across the country. It requires regular moisture to perform to its fullest, so I recommend planting it in Black Gold® Moisture Supreme Container Mix for best success.

Oregon Association of Nurseries’ Winners

Hibiscus moscheutos Summerific® Evening Rose (Image thanks to Proven Winners®)

On a more local level where I live, the Oregon Association of Nurseries (OAN) has its list of winners. Every August, the OAN has a large grower-oriented trade show called the Farwest Show, which Black Gold attends every year. Within the show, there is a section called New Varieties Showcase where growers feature some of their best new plant introductions. This is one of my favorite areas to visit at the show, and I always learn about new plants on the market. Show attendees vote on their favorites, and winners are selected and given an Award of Merit.

Last year, one of my favorite plants from this display was the hardy hibiscus Summerific® Evening Rose (Hibiscus moscheutos Summerific® Evening Rose), which won an Award of Merit. This hardy hibiscus has bright rose flowers and near-black foliage. Hardy hibiscus is becoming more popular in our area, and I now often see it in gardens. They are easy to grow, prefer full sun, and bloom late in the season, giving the late-summer and autumn garden a splash of color.

All of the plants mentioned should be available at garden centers this spring. Many will have special tags to let potential buyers know that this plant has been selected for an award. Award-winners are a safe choice for gardeners looking for something sure to perform beautifully. I always like to try new plants in my garden each year and with offerings like this, my list for 2020 continues to grow.

Click here to read more about award-winning annuals that you can grow from seed.

What Seed-Grown Plants Attract Honeybees?

“I would like information on ordering flower seeds that would attract honey bees to my garden.” Question from Randy of Bastrop, Texas

Answer: There are loads of garden flowers that are easily grown from seed and especially attractive to bees. Considering your location, your bee plants should also be heat and drought tolerant. Here are a few easy-from-seed plants that will grow well in Bastrop. (There are many great catalogs for flower seeds. Select Seeds is a great option.)

Each year I grow my favorite flowers indoors from seed in Black Gold Seedling Mix under fluorescent grow lights, but a few of those on this list can be directly sown outdoors. (For a full seed-starting tutorial, click here!) Some of the easiest bee flowers for you include:

Purple Cosmos (Cosmos bipinnatus)

The colorful, delicate pink, rosy-purple, or white daisies of cosmos attract bees and butterflies. They also sprout and grow quickly.

Seed Starting: Lightly cover seeds with seed starter, keep them slightly moist until they sprout. These can also be started outdoors in spring after frosts have past. Work up your garden bed, sprinkle seeds across the weed-free ground, and then lightly cover the seeds with peat moss and gently water them in. Keep them lightly moist and expect sprouting within a week or two.

Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)

These tough, native perennials flower in the first year from seed and last for years in the garden. Their large, purplish-pink flowers bloom through summer, attracting bees and butterflies. If fall, goldfinches and other songbirds eat their seeds.

Seed Starting: Lightly cover seeds with seed starter, keep them slightly moist, and maintain a temperature of 68º F. Germination should occur within three to four weeks, sometimes earlier.

Blanket Flower (Gaillardia x grandiflora)

Few summer bloomers can top the resilience, beauty, and ever-blooming nature of this tough, North American native, which is also a Texas native. It blooms in the first year from seed, and bees love it.

Seed Starting: Lightly cover seeds with seed starter, keep lightly moist and maintain a temperature of 68º F. Germination should occur within one to two weeks, sometimes a bit longer.

Sunflowers (Helianthus annuus)

Everyone loves sunflowers, and so do bees. Watch the video below to learn how to grow them.

Marigolds (Tagetes spp.)

Whether you prefer tall African marigolds or short French marigolds (Tagetes hybrids), these heat-loving annuals for bees sprout from seed in a snap. Start them as you would purple cosmos.

Zinnias (Zinnia elegans)

Zinnias come in low-growing forms fit for sunny border edges or containers. Tall forms are better for cutting gardens or large flower beds. Start them as you would purple cosmos.

Happy bee gardening!

Jessie Keith

Black Gold Horticulturist

How Do I Stop Powdery Mildew?

This zinnia has a severe case of powdery mildew.

“Every year I get white mold on the leaves of various plants in my vegetable garden. I don’t use any fertilizer or pesticide, other than an organic compost in the soil. It usually doesn’t cause a great deal of problems but is there something I could or should be doing?” Question from Lynda of West Warwick, Rhode Island

Answer: It sounds like you have powdery mildew, a common fungal infection that attacks leaves, causing white, powdery looking surfaces and blotches, particularly towards late summer. Some flowers and vegetables are more prone to it than others. For example, squash, melon, zinnia, and cosmos leaves typically develop powdery mildew, unless you have chosen mildew-resistant varieties.

The disease acts on leaf surfaces, disabling a plant’s ability to respire and gather sunlight. This weakens them and reduces productivity. Severe cases will kill plants. Here are four things that will stop or reduce the disease.

1. Choose powdery-mildew resistant varieties. Before buying a garden flower or vegetable that typically gets this disease, search for resistant varieties. Choosing vigorous, highly disease-resistant varieties will always result in a happier garden. You can often find lists of resistant varieties at university websites, like Cornell University (click here to view).

2. Provide plenty of sun, water, and airflow. Take good care of your plants and give them lots of sun and air, two things that discourage mildew development. Refrain from planting too closely together.

3. Remove diseased leaves as you see them. Simply prune off bad leaves on sight. Be sure to clean your pruners well after cutting any diseased plant.

4. Apply an organic fungicide. The all-natural product, Green Cure, stops powdery mildew. Apply it when you first see any signs to stop the disease in its tracks.

I hope that this information helps!

Happy gardening,

Jessie Keith

Black Gold Horticulturist

 

Is Bat Guano Good for Flower Beds?

“I have a large amount of bat dung in our barn and have heard that it is an excellent fertilizer for flowers. Is that true?” Question from Catherine of White Cloud, Michigan

Answer: Bat guano makes an excellent plant fertilizer once it has been composted. Fresh bat guano is rich in nutrients, particularly nitrogen, but it needs to be broken down and mellowed before use. This is the same for any manure (cow, horse, etc.) that you may want to add to the garden.

To compost it, pile up the guano, layering in grass clippings, dry leaves, vegetable waste, and/or straw as you go. The higher the pile, the better. Do this in a composter, if you have one, or in a convenient spot outside of your barn. Once the pile is complete, moisten it, and allow it to naturally compost/decompose for a couple of months. In this time, the pile will heat up in the center. Turn it with a spade or garden fork every two weeks and keep it moist to ensure that the whole pile gets composted. Once it is ready to use, it will be cool in the center and very crumbly and soil-like.

To reduce its high nutritional punch, consider cutting your composted guano with standard compost, such as Black Gold Garden Compost Blend, before use. Because guano is high in nitrogen, which encourages foliage growth rather than flower development, mix in a granular fertilizer formulated for flowering plants before adding it to your beds.

Keep gathering and using your guano! It’s good stuff for the garden.

Happy gardening,

Jessie Keith

Black Gold Horticulturist

What Can I Plant in Midsummer For Fall in New Jersey?

“What can I plant now – mid-July – to avoid having empty sections in my garden?” Question from Glenda of Sewell, New Jersey.

Answer: Choose cool-season vegetables and flowers that look good until frost. These perform the best as fall temperatures drop. Most even withstand frost. You probably won’t start to see frosts until mid to late October, depending on the year, so these should color your garden for a while. Here are my suggestions.

Flowers

There are quite a few high-performing flowers that shine fall. Some are commonly known, like pansies, chrysanthemums, and other common nursery fare. But, there are others that you can plant now to fill open spaces now for fall.

Dahlias are a great choice. They can tolerate hot summers but really bloom gangbusters in fall. Plant a few tall or compact specimens in empy garden areas now, and you will be rewarded.

Spike celosia: These colorful, upright bloomers will look beautiful until frost.

Marigolds: Most marigolds will continue flowering until fall.

Salvias: Lots of salvias bloom and continue to feed hummingbirds until frost.

Annual cut flowers are lovely fall garden additions and include sweet peas, love-in-a-mist, and others. (Click here to learn more about seed-starting flowers for fall.)

Perennial fall sedums are also great choices that will fill spaces year after year and offer big color late in the season. (Here’s a great piece on tall flowering sedums.)

Vegetables

Rotate cool-season vegetables into your garden now. These should be planted in midsummer or late summer for fall harvest. Here is the standard list.

Cole crops: cabbage, cauliflower, collards, broccoli, broccoli rabe, kohlrabi, and kale.

Greens: arugula, endive, lettuce, mustard greens, radicchio, and spinach.

Root crops: radishes, scallions, carrots, turnips, leeks, parsnips, and rutabagas.

Peas are another good option. For ornamental fall edibles, choose colorful swiss chard, kales, cabbages, and ornamental hot peppers. (Click here to learn more about seasonal rotation of vegetables.) (Click here for beautiful container designs with ornamental hot peppers.)

Growing Tips

All of the flowers and vegetables mentioned prefer full sun and fertile soil. Good yields and successful flowers will grow best in beds amended with Black Gold Garden Compost Blend and good, all-purpose fertilizer. Container plants really thrive in Black Gold Natural & Organic Potting Mix.

I hope that these tips help!

Happy fall gardening,

Jessie Keith

Black Gold Horticulturist

Petal Heads: Flowers to Grow for Colorful Dried Petals

Cornflower and pot marigold petals are some of the best and brightest for drying.

Flowers are gorgeous in the garden and freshly cut for indoor arrangments, but their benefits go beyond the beauty of the fresh bloom. Dried petals are a wonderful material to have on hand for craft projects and homemade skincare recipes.

I keep a whole collection of jars of different dried petals on hand in my home apothecary to use throughout the year. You can use them to make pretty greeting cards, frame them to create wall art, sew them into fragrant sachets, mix edible petals into herbal teas for a custom blend, or—my favorite thing to do—add them to your own natural skincare recipes! They bring gorgeous color and healing properties to bath salts, bombs, or infuse the oil to add beauty, and sometimes fragrance, to recipes.

How to Dry Petals

For all petals used for craft projects, especially in skincare recipes and teas, be sure that the flowers come from an organic source and have not been sprayed. Many florist’s blooms are heavily chemically treated, so you are much better off growing and harvesting flowers from your home garden or buying them from an organic flower farmer at the local market.

For petals used for paper-crafting purposes, press them between the pages of a large book or in a wooden flower press. If phone books are still being distributed in your town, pressing flower petals is a perfect way to reuse them. You can fit quite a few petals between the pages, and then top them with some heavy books to press.

When you don’t need the petals to be flat, you can spread them out on a large flat screen like a window screen. Space the petals out so they are not piled up on top of each other and have good air circulation. Leave them in a dry area away from direct sunlight. It can be tempting to dry them in the sun, but this will cause their color to fade and leave you with a less-than-impressive end product. When they are completely dry (they will feel crispy), store them in an airtight container away from direct sunlight.

Which Petals to Dry

Pot Marigold (Calendula officinalis)

Bon Bon Yellow Pot Marigold (Image by Jessie Keith)

These flowers with their striking orange, yellow, or deep golden petals are more than just a pretty face; they have also been prized for centuries for their healing properties. I love to add the petals straight into my favorite summer lotion bars, infuse the oil with calendula petals, and use it to make healing salves and balms for minor cuts, scrapes, and bruises.

Roses (Rosa spp.)

Improved Lafayette Rose (Image by Jessie Keith)

Deep-colored rose petals look beautiful when added to craft projects or floating in a bathtub. I choose red, pink, and coral petals to dry because the pale lavender, white, and yellow ones fade and brown too much. Also, look for fragrant varieties as they will impart scent in the projects. The petals are wonderful in tea, bath salts, and bath bombs where they are presented dried and used submerged in water. Rose petals will not hold color in soap projects but they can be used to decorate the top of soaps. (Click here to learn how to make your own fragrant rose water.)

Cornflower (Centaurea cyanus)

Cornflower Mix

Cornflower petals hold their bright blue, pink, and purple colors beautifully and have a lovely delicate shape. I like to add them to bottles of homemade perfume to give them a pretty botanical look. My favorite mix to grow is the Classic Artists’ Mix (which can be seen in the Garden Therapy’s Natural Beauty Seed Collection). With a seed blend, you get a huge variety of colorful petals that range from deep tones to pastels in blue, purple, and pink.

Goldy Double Sunflower (Helianthus annuus ‘Goldy’)

Goldy Double Sunflower (Image by Stephanie Rose)

Sunflower petals are just gorgeous in rich yellow, gold, or russet colors that remind me of the late summer sun. They smell faintly of sunflower seeds, but their value is mostly in their bright hues. Use them for adding natural color to bath salts, adorn homemade bath bombs, or soap. Add them to anything that needs a pop of color. Look for those varieties with fully double blooms for the most petals. I love to grow ‘Goldy Double’ or ‘Teddy Bear’ double varieties.

Scarlet Beebalm (Monarda didyma)

Scarlet Beebalm

Grow and harvest scarlet beebalm for the bees, but also leave plenty of bright-red petals to harvest and dry for craft projects. The petals have an almost minty fragrance (the plants are in the mint family) and hold their color well when dried, although they become quite small and thread-like. They look wonderful in a mix of other dried mints for homemade tea blends, bath salts, and a fragrant, relaxing foot soak.

Peonies (Paeonia spp.)

Rosy Pink Peony

The large, colorful petals of peonies are perfect for making wreaths, wall art, greeting cards, and other pretty crafts. Collect and dry them from the flowers just as they are falling to the ground but before they start to turn brown. You will get to enjoy the bloom in the garden and save the mess that they create. Darker flowers yield prettier dried petals. Dried peony petals set in a dish make for a fragrant and decorative air freshener.

Pansies and Violets (Viola spp.)

Johnny Jump Up Pansies

These sweet little flowers are best preserved by pressing. Try to keep the whole flower intact by keeping a bit of the stem in place. When they are completely dry, they will hold their colors well for many years. They look lovely adorning homemade greeting cards or pressed into bath bombs as decoration.

Lavenders (Lavandula spp.)

English Lavender

One of the easiest and popular flowers to dry, lavender has the most heavenly scent that lasts long after it is dried. Make lavender sachets to keep linens fresh. The scent will also help to promote a night of relaxing sleep. The floral stems can be made into wreaths, dried flower arrangements, or used to decorate homemade candles. If you want your lavender buds to retain their purple color when dry, choose a dark-colored variety like Lavendula angustifolia ‘Thumbelina Leigh’,  which keeps the deep purple buds many years after harvest. Harvest the stems when the buds have formed but before the flowers have opened. Bundle the stems and hang them in a dry, cool location.

All of these flowers need fertile to average soil with good drainage. Black Gold®Garden Soil is high in organic matter for increased fertility and has the added bonus of fertilizer to ensure good establishment. Fortify your petal garden soil, and your flowers will shine!

(Want to learn more about the best edible garden flowers? Watch this video!)

Can I Plant Annuals and Vegetables Together?

Can you plant annual flowers and vegetables in the same raised bed? Question from Diane or Newark, Ohio

Answer: Sure! In many cases, annuals can be beneficial to vegetables by warding off pests (click here to read about the protective power of marigolds) and/or attract pollinators. Compact flowers that will not compete for too much sunlight or water are best.  Here are some of my favorite flowers to plant in my vegetable garden for beauty, cut flowers, and to feed pollinators. These sun-lovers are all effortless to grow.

  1. Cosmos (dwarf): The pretty daisy flowers of these annuals are good for cutting and attract bees. Try the compact varieties Sonata Mix (2-feet high) or the fully double pink ‘Rose Bonbon‘ (2 to 3-feet high).
  2. Calendula: These cheerful yellow or orange daisies are grown as herbs as well as flowers because they have edible petals that can be used to make tea or soothing balms.
  3. Dahlias: There are hundreds of amazing dahlias to choose from and all make excellent cut flowers. Bees and butterflies also love them. Choose compact varieties for easier care. Check out Swan Island Dahlias to choose the best dahlia for your taste.
  4. Marigolds: I love tall marigolds in the vegetable garden. The large flowers look pretty through summer, and these Mexican natives just thrive in the heat. ‘Kee’s Orange’ is a brilliant variety with deepest orange flowers.
  5. Compact Sunflowers: There are loads of spectacular sunflowers for the garden, and all are very easy to grow from seed. I suggest choosing compact varieties because they won’t shade out vegetables or fall over in wind. (Click here to learn all about growing sunflowers.)
  6. Zinnias: Any tall or medium-sized zinnia will add color and cut flowers to your garden. Check out the new Zinnia ‘Zinderella Purple’ or  Zinnia ‘Queeny Orange Lime’. Both are beautiful and some of the easiest flowers that you can grow from seed.

Try adding any of these pretty annuals to your vegetable garden this season for functional color.

Happy gardening!

Jessie Keith

Black Gold Horticulturist