Flowers

2023 zinnias!! & strawberries!

This year, I’m planting Benary’s Giants and the Queen Series zinnias again. I’m experimenting with two flats of China Aster but I haven’t had good luck with non-zinnia seedlings, so we’ll see how they do.

Our strawberry beds overwintered well. I removed their straw a few weeks ago, spent a few nights in between then and now babying them through the frost warnings, and now am pleased by how healthy and thriving they look. It’ll be fun to harvest our first (albeit, likely small) batch of strawberries this year.

2022 Flowers

Stay tuned… I’m honestly not sure about this year’s flowers. Hopefully, my zinnias and dahlias will make it, but I’ve been putting a lot of effort into starting a strawberry patch, so I wasn’t as attentive as I probably needed to be with my flower seedlings.

2021 Flowers

Zinnias! Always and forever! 🙂 Last year, my flower harvest was only slightly better than our honey harvest. Zinnias seem to be the only flower type I can consistently grow well, so I doubled down on them this year. I’m planting tons more Benary’s Giants and the whole Queen series (lime orange, red lime, and lime with blush).

Dahlias: I’ve always been intimidated by dahlias. It’s the tubers. I probably just need to get over it, and maybe next season I will, but for 2021, I chose to experiment with a hybrid mix that (supposedly) I can start from seeds. We’ll see…

Dianthus: Johnny’s “Volcano Mix” sounded fun and looks pretty.

Violas: also from Johnny’s, “Brush Strokes,” described as “artful” with splashes, stripes, and flecks of color. Not sure if this will make a good cutting flower. I bought these seeds because I wanted to try another edible flower.

Sunflowers: Strawberry Lemonade for the bees and because they look gorgeous! I also bought two large packs of “bee feed.” Each pack is full of nearly 20 different perennials and reseeding annual wildflowers. I haven’t decided where I’m going to plant them yet. Possibly in a new area near the hives.

Mixed marigolds, echinacea, and cleome: My wonderful neighbor gave me a bunch of hand-collected seeds from her garden last fall, so I’m looking forward to planting these. I heard that seeds that are harvested from your own garden (or a neighbor’s) often do very well. Fingers crossed!

Herbs: A friend of mine grows her herbs in large pots in her backyard. They always look so healthy and awesome.  Fresh herbs are great for cooking, but I also want to see if any of the flowering varieties might make good bouquet fillers. Maybe dill or sage? And lots of basil, for us — and the bees!!

2020 Flowers

Benary’s Giant Zinnias: a tremendously popular zinnia for good reason. They are large and come in a variety of jewel tones. Named after the German seed company that originally developed it. Word is, the founder’s son restarted the company after WWII by biking through Europe and hand collecting seeds.

Queen Lime Orange Zinnia: Last year, I planted “Green Envy” heirloom zinnias from Renee’s Garden. I liked them but didn’t love them. The color was unusual and neat to work with, but the blooms always looked sickly to me, not lush and full. So this year I’m trying a different green zinnia – the new queen lime orange from Johnny’s.

Rudbeckia Cherokee Sunset Mix: As a Marylander, I would feel compelled to plant Black Eyed Susans whether I liked them or not. Luckily, I do. You probably already know that Maryland’s state bird is orange and black (the Oriole), but did you know that our state insect and cat are also orange and black? (The Checkerspot Butterfly and Calico, respectively. Neat, huh?)

Calendula Flashback Mix: My mom planted marigolds every summer and I’ve continued the tradition. Last year, I planted African marigolds. They were supposed to be huge but turned out tiny, so this year I’m trying these. The seeds are organic and the petals are edible. They can be used to garnish desserts or brighten up a salad.

Tricolor Daisy Chrysanthemums: These “painted daisies” were first introduced from Morocco 200 years ago. Mums are popular cutting flowers, but I haven’t grown them yet. I chose this variety because the colors are absolutely stunning.

Sunflowers: What cutting or pollinator garden would be complete without sunflowers? This year, I’m planting at least four different kinds – Florenza, Autumn Beauty, the “Busy Bee,” and a deep red, rich maroon “Chocolate” sunflower.

Other flowers I’m planting this year, which aren’t for sale, include lavender and bee balm. We’re also going to experiment with crimson clover as a cover crop for our cutting garden for winter 2021. If you have any spare green space, consider planting some flowers for the bees!