Tip #1: Know Your Frost Dates
Identify not only your hardiness zone, but also your historic average first and last frost dates. Your hardiness zone can only tell you which flowers you can plant in the fall to winter over. To figure out when you need to plant, in both spring and fall, you need to know your historic average first and last frost dates. There are several websites that provide this info by zip code, you can find them with a Google search, or you can contact your local county extension agent for that info.
Tip #2: Make Your Beds Early
Prepare your growing beds ahead of time! On the day that you’re ready to plant your Cool Flowers outside, often the conditions are not ideal (frozen or too wet) to work the soil. You don’t want to miss your direct sowing window or your ideal transplanting date because your garden beds are not prepared. Once prepared, you can cover a bed with a silage tarp until you’re ready to plant.
Tip #3: Learn How Flower Seeds Want to be Sown
If growing from seed, identify how the flowers you’re growing prefer to be started: direct sown in the garden, or started indoors for transplants? Some, like poppies, really are best started with seeds sown directly in the garden. Some, like snapdragons, really are best started indoors as transplants. Knowing the best seed-sowing method for each flower tells you when and where you need to plant them, so you can create a schedule. We offer that info for every seed we sell, check our website product pages for details, on The Gardener’s Workshop.
Tip #4: Give Each Flower What it Needs to be Happy
Give your Cool Flower seeds what they need to germinate, and your Cool Flower seedlings what they need to thrive. Recognize that different varieties of Cool Flowers will have different environmental requirements for germination, and that the seedlings will need grow lights, regular watering and fertilization before planting out. There is so much to learn here! My book Cool Flowers is a great place to start – it comes with a free book study video series! There are also TONS of free Cool Flowers resources on my website, The Gardener’s Workshop.
Tip #5: You Don’t Have to Start ALL the Seeds Yourself
Realize that you don’t have to grow all of your Cool Flowers from seed yourself. Is your home/patio/greenhouse too hot to start Cool Flowers indoors in the fall? Are you too busy cutting summer flowers to think about starting Cool Flowers? In some cases, purchasing plugs (small transplants) may be the best option for you and your situation. There are plant brokers who sell plugs wholesale to large growers, but now there are also some retail greenhouses/online stores that offer plugs in smaller quantities for home gardeners and those with limited growing space. A Google search should help you find both options.
So those are my top 5 tips for Cool Flowers Success – I hope they inspired you!
About The Author: Lisa Mason Ziegler – Is a leader in the cut-flower growing industry, author, accomplished speaker, virtual course instructor, & the owner of The Gardener’s Workshop. Click Here To Learn more!
