Having gorgeous landscaping is only half of the gardening story, as you probably want to enjoy the fruits of your garden labor indoors as well as out. Cutting gardens make it easy to keep your home in beautiful floral arrangements all year long—but choosing the best plants for a cutting garden can be a hard decision to make.
We probably aren’t making it any easier for you, either. Here are some of the very best plants for your cutting garden, to help keep you in gorgeous bouquets all year round.
Tulips
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This gorgeous springtime bulb makes for long-lasting spring bouquets. Decide whether you want a monochromatic look or opt for a rainbow of colors to brighten up your home and garden.
Hydrangea
A floral arrangement star, hydrangea blooms from summer well into fall, with the blooms often changing color during that time—and the flowers are long-lasting in arrangements too. (Bonus: You can dry them for pretty winter floral bouquets.)
Peonies
These show-stopping perennials are a standout in bouquets, but enjoy them while you can: They only bloom in May and June.
Sweet Pea
Sweet pea doesn’t actually produce peas—but it does offer pretty flowers for your floral arrangements. This is an annual plant that produces pretty flowers in the summer and fall.
Ranunculus
The sweet, ruffled ranunculus blooms come in a rainbow of colors. You’ll see these blooms in early spring.
Daffodils
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Nothing will add a cheerful touch of spring to a garden (or a flower arrangement) like sunny daffodils. These spring garden favorites rebloom year after year.
Daffodil stems get slimy and can release a chemical that’ll kill the other flowers in your arrangement, fast. To avoid this, put the daffodils first in a separate container of water for a few hours, to allow the cut ends to seal and avoid damaging the other blooms. (Or, make one big bouquet of daffodils instead!)
Freesia
These heavily (and heavenly) scented flowers come in shades of red, pink, purple, white, and yellow, and are annual plants in most of the U.S.
Allium
This ornamental flower is related to onions, garlic, and shallots—but produces these dramatic spheres of tiny blooms. Depending on which variety you pick, it may bloom in spring, summer, or fall.
Aillium smells like onions or garlic. When the greenery is crushed, the scent can be pungent—so this may not be the best flower for places you don’t want that scent to linger.
Roses
If you think cutting gardens, you probably imagine these beauties, which can come in pretty much any color of the rainbow and depending on the variety, can offer flowers from late spring well into fall.
Black-Eyed Susan
These punchy perennials bloom all summer long, and add a touch of sunshine to your cutting garden and your bouquets. They’re also great for attracting pollinators to your garden.
Lilies
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Look for Asiatic (not day) lilies for your arrangements. Think Easter lilies and Stargazers. You’ll get these back year after year (often expanding in your garden), and bloom through midsummer.
Gerbera Daisies
Gerbera daisies come in super-bold colors and can bloom from spring to fall, so they’re a gorgeous addition to a cut flower garden. They’re perennials in hotter gardening zones, but will need to be potted and brought indoors in the northern parts of the U.S.
Cosmos
These annual plants produce blooms in a variety of colors, from pinks and reds to yellow and orange—and even a chocolate-like brown. They produce multiple blooms from summer into fall. Cutting flowers can actually encourage new growth and new flowers.
Delphinium
Delphinium (also known as larkspur) will bloom in early summer, and then rebloom in the late summer or fall. (Cutting flowers from the plants will encourage more blooms.
Poppies
Another bright flower for a cut flower garden, poppies usually bloom in the spring or summer. Most poppies are annuals, except California poppies, which can be perennials in warmer parts of the U.S.
Lisianthus
This pretty perennial features long-lasting, rose-like blooms that’ll grace your bouquets and floral arrangements from mid-summer well into fall.
Sunflowers
Usually grown as annuals, sunflowers are a gorgeous addition to cut flower arrangements from summer into autumn.
Zinnia
These bold-colored flowers bloom from summer until the first frost of the fall.
Coneflower
Also known as echinacea, this easy-to-grow perennial is a pollinator-favorite and blooms through the summer and into the fall.
Dahlia
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These vibrant annual flowers make a showy addition to your floral arrangements. They can come in a wide range of colors, from cream to nearly black, red, pink, purple, and yellow. Dahlias are another mid-summer-to-fall bloomer.
Anemone
Anemone are a pretty perennial that can bloom from spring through fall. The flowers come in a literal rainbow of colors—red, pink, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, and cream.
Calla Lilies
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Calla lilies bloom in early summer. White is the original color, but you can find purple, yellow, and orange hybrids. They’re a perennial in the very hottest parts of the country, but an annual everywhere else. (You can dig up the rhizomes before the frost to overwinter in a cool, dark, and dry area.)
Chrysanthemum
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This fall-favorite perennial has long-lasting blooms that come in a variety of autumnal hues, from purple to red, gold, and orange.
Pincushion Flowers
Also known as scabiosa, these bright flowers are a perennial in many parts of the country, and they’ll bloom from spring to fall.
Statice
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Don’t forget about filler flowers! A common floral arrangement filler, statice grows easily when planted in sunny locations throughout the summer and fall.
Baby’s Breath
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This traditional filler flower features dozens of tiny little blooms, available in summer and fall.
Filler flowers can be a gorgeous bouquet all on their own—just create a huge bouquet with just the baby’s breath!
Billy Balls
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Also known as billy buttons or craspedia, billy balls grow as an annual in most of the hardiness zones in the U.S. It blooms throughout the spring and summer.
Strawflower
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A colorful annual, strawflowers come in shades of orange, pink, purple, white, and yellow, and blooms from summer into fall.
Celosia
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Velvety celosia blooms all summer and fall, with bright feathery flowers that’ll be a perfect enhancement to your bouquet.
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