It's Not Too Late for A Dreamy Summer Cutting Garden

Are you worried it is too late to start the summer-cutting garden you have been dreaming about? All is not lost! There is still time to plant and grow an abundance of cut flowers that you can enjoy in summer and into fall.

When planting late in the season, I look for flowers that grow fast, handle Oklahoma heat, and keep blooming for months. Follow these tips to get started on a quick-grow summer garden.

Maturity Date The maturity date is how long it will take the plant to flower from seed. This is important because you do not want your plants to be killed by frost just as they begin blooming.  If you are planting in May, look for plants that will bloom in less than 90 days. You can find this information on the seed packet or with a quick Google Search. Our average first frost in central Oklahoma is in the last week of October. If you plant now, you will be able to enjoy your plants early August through October! That is a great growing season.

Heat Tolerance Oklahoma summers are no joke. You want flowers that survive hot, windy days yet still provide you with armfuls of blooms in the evening. A good way to see if a plant can handle our weather is by looking up the plant’s USDA hardiness zone. Most Oklahoma gardens are somewhere in between Zone 7 and Zone 8, meaning they tolerate higher temperatures. Plants that are listed in lower numbers, such as zones 3, 4, or 5, will not tolerate heat well.

Pro tip: Make sure your cutting garden has easy access to water. In high heat days, you may need to water every single day!

Blooming Pattern If you want a garden you can cut from often, look for plants that bloom repeatedly, not just a couple of times a season. In the flower farmer world, we call these “cut-and-come-again” plants, meaning the more you cut them, the more the plant works to send up new flowers.

The plant’s main job is simple: make seeds for the next generation, which is why “cut-and-come-again” flowers respond quickly when you cut them by sending up even more blooms.

Does all this new information make your head spin? No worries! Here are five of the BEST flowers to grow that fit all three of these criteria:

Zinnia The Queen of the Oklahoma summer garden, the zinnia checks all the boxes. These plants come in every color imaginable (except blue – not yet!) from soft, pastel palettes to bright, saturated jewel tones. She grows quickly and vigorously and can grow very tall.

Zinnias can produce up to twenty stems per plant! A zinnia that is well watered and cared for in the first few weeks can produce for you abundantly throughout the season. I cannot imagine a summer garden without zinnias. We grow many Benary’s Giant and BluePoint Dahlia Mix zinnias.

Basil On our farm, we use basil as a bouquet filler. Basil is one of the quickest plants to bloom in the garden and when cut it will continue to bloom all season. We like basil because it adds an irresistible and fresh scent to our market bouquets (look for Cinnamon Basil and Mrs. Burns Citrus Basil!). It is also very beautiful. The lush leaves fill in bouquets beautifully, and if you let it bolt, it produces dainty spikes of flowers that add texture and romance to a bouquet.

Salvia I admit I was surprised by Salvia. I initially grew these to attract friendly pollinators but also found it to be a beautiful accent to summer bouquets. Most salvia come in purple and blue tones, producing beautiful fluffy spikes of flowers. If you are looking for an easy to grow plant that elevates your bouquets, salvia is a great choice (bonus: deer hate it!). Marigold Confession: I used to think marigolds only consisted of those sad bedding plants with boring yellow balls. Like salvia, I first grew these to balance our insect population, but man, was I surprised by them as bouquet flowers! Look for the botanical name “tagetes erecta” to ensure you get the tall, cutting flower variety, not the landscape variety.

Over the past two seasons, we have grown the Coco series and they are HUGE! The colors are brilliant yellow, gold or orange and will instantly bring cheer and sunshine to any bouquet. They last around 10 days in the vase as well. These are always sold out at the farmers’ market and people request them often. Marigolds are a great cutting garden choice.

Dahlia You can grow dahlias from tubers but growing them from seed is quick and economical. You may not get the fanciest hybrids this way, but you will get very healthy, stunning blooms that produce all season. I love growing a mix because I never know what will come up – some are pom poms, some are daisy like, some are huge and frilly, yet they are all beautiful.

Once established, dahlias do very well in the summer garden. Make sure you plant them near basil and marigold to keep off the bad bugs that like to munch on their luxurious petals. I can promise that no one is ever sad with a bouquet of dahlias.

(Honorable Mention) Sunflower The sunflower is an honorable mention because they do not fit into the category of “cut-and-come-again.” In fact, just one plant produces one flower (unless it is a branching variety). But with one of the shortest maturity dates (around 55 days!), you can get a couple of flushes of sunflowers in your summer garden. They are one of the most heat-tolerant plants and will handle almost any kind of basic, moist soil. And of course, they look amazing in a bunch in your favorite vase. Sunflowers are a summer garden favorite!

Pro tip: If you want the heads to be a smaller, more bouquet appropriate size, plant them about 6-8 inches apart.

Conclusion I hope this list of easy-grow summer cutting flowers inspired you to go ahead and start that dream garden! The best part about these flowers is that you do not need a ton of space to get armloads of blooms. Consider starting with just a four-by-eight or ten-by-ten space. In a few short weeks, you will be amazed at what your garden can produce.

It is not too late to realize your garden goals. Start small and see what happens. A few months from now, you could have a magical moment in your own sweet little garden, snips in hand, choosing your favorite blooms to bring inside.

Starting a cutting garden does not have to be complicated. You can do this!

About our farm

Thank you for choosing to join our family on this grand adventure, as we grow something beautiful, meaningful, and good. If we haven't met yet, I am Sara Wilson, and my husband Teddy and I own Oklahoma Cut Flower Company in Norman, Oklahoma. We are a micro-farm that grows specialty cut flowers to educate and inspire our local flower-loving community. We offer flower subscriptions, educational workshops, and you-pick flower events. We are members of the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers.

You can learn more about us and join our adventures by subscribing to our email list and following us on Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook.