A New Twist on Flowers for Mother’s Day

by Mary Barnhill

Instead of a traditional bouquet of flowers, this year give Mom something more endearing and certainly longer lasting. For about the same cost as shipping a dozen long stemmed roses, you could plant for her a colorful cutting garden of her own. Think of it as “the gift that keeps on giving”, producing bouquet after bouquet throughout the year.

In my work with The Green Scene, I am often asked to design such a cutting garden into our client’s landscapes. Many people want to be able to walk out to their own back yard and snip a few flowers for inside their homes. When you have your own cutting garden, it’s so easy to keep fresh flowers on display. Just a few blossoms and a little greenery can brighten up any room and create a nice ambiance. Unexpected dinner guests? Just pop outside to create an instant flower arrangement for the table.

The process is really quite simple and if you follow a few basic gardening principals, you are sure to please Mom with a successful bed of colorful plants. Properly combine sun, soil, food and water and your efforts will surely reward you. Select a site that gets plenty of sun, at least six hours. Amend the entire bed with lots of decomposed mulch by “turning it in” to a depth of at least 8-10 inches. Well-amended soil allows for water penetration and retention and makes for happy plant roots. Add a complete fertilizer per the directions when you mix the soil to prepare the bed. Be sure that you have good coverage with automated sprinklers. You don’t want to saddle Mom with the job of watering several times a week!

Now you’re ready to go the nursery to select plants. At The Green Scene, we use only quality material and I suggest you do the same. Be sure that plants look healthy and robust. For a little extra splurge, you could start with a background of several fragrant rose bushes. (After all, it is Mother’s Day.) For other great long lasting blossoms choose from Iris, Alstroemaria (one of my favorites), Cosmos, Purple Cone Flower, Gerbera Daisy or Sweet Pea. For larger bouquets and unusual blooms and greenery try Kangaroo Paw, Papyrus (gets huge!), Gladiolus bulbs, Breath of Heaven, Sun Flower, Sea Lavender or Bells of Ireland. On the wild side there’s Yarrow, Jupiter’s Beard, Coreopsis, Sea Holly, Baby’s Breath, Lavender and Penstemon. If your garden is shady you can still get lovely blossoms from Gardenia, Camellia, Queens Tears, Calla Lily and Anthurium. And don’t forget to consider color. You may want to select hues that blend together and will match the interior of the home, or create a kaleidoscope of color with everything Mother Nature has to offer.

Planting is easy when you know what to do. First, lay out the plants on the prepared bed—taller ones in the back. Keep the mature size in mind so that you give each plant enough room to grow.  Carefully remove the plant from the container (recyclable at your nursery!) and loosen the roots if they are pot bound. Place the root ball into the soil. It is critical that you not plant any deeper that the original soil level in the container, otherwise the stem may rot. Once you have finished planting, gently water the entire bed with fine spray. Stand back, look your work, and feel good about what you have done for Mom. She’ll love it!