Your ultimate cut flower guide
Gardeners World|August 2022
Bring the garden into your home with Louise Curley's guide to growing, cutting and arranging homegrown flowers. In this first of a two-part series, she looks at what to snip in the garden, how to condition stems and the best dahlias for the vase
Your ultimate cut flower guide

Louise Curley is the author of the award-winning book The Cut Flower Patch. She writes about gardens, nature, and wellbeing, and is currently creating a new garden at her home in West Yorkshire.

Filling your home with freshly picked flowers that you've grown brings just as much pleasure as digging up potatoes or harvesting some peas. At the same time, you're reducing your carbon footprint, as many shop-bought blooms have been grown abroad. In this two-part guide, I'll share tips and tricks on conditioning your flowers so that they last for as long as possible, how to arrange them in a variety of different vessels, the best plants to grow for picking, and how you can start your own productive flower patch.

How to condition stems

It takes time and effort to nurture plants to the point where they flower, so it's important to cut and condition them carefully so that they look good for as long as possible. Pick stems when it's cool, using sharp, clean secateurs to prevent damage to stems and to avoid the build-up of bacteria, which will shorten their vase life. Once picked, conditioning can be the difference between flowers that wilt within a day and those that last more than a week.

When to cut

This story is from the August 2022 edition of Gardeners World.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the August 2022 edition of Gardeners World.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM GARDENERS WORLDView All
Travel Ideas For Garden Lovers
BBC Gardeners World

Travel Ideas For Garden Lovers

Looking for green-fingered holiday inspiration? The GW team share recent destinations for garden getaways

time-read
8 mins  |
December 2023
Your wildlife month
BBC Gardeners World

Your wildlife month

December is a time for reflection in the garden. What worked for wildlife in 2023 and what didn't? How could you do more? Looking at the bones of the garden now, is there space for more plants? Are your fences bare? Are there enough berries and hips? You have until March to plant bare-root trees and shrubs. What would look good? What would better serve wildlife?

time-read
1 min  |
December 2023
The Full Monty
BBC Gardeners World

The Full Monty

I can, and occasionally do, manufacture jobs in a kind of gung-ho, boy-scout spirit

time-read
3 mins  |
December 2023
Expert's choice
BBC Gardeners World

Expert's choice

Smaller variegated ivies still pack a big punch all year round, says Graham Rice

time-read
2 mins  |
December 2023
YOUR PRUNING MONTH
BBC Gardeners World

YOUR PRUNING MONTH

Frances Tophill explains what to cut back now, including grapevines and hardy shrubs

time-read
3 mins  |
December 2023
Hardwood cuttings
BBC Gardeners World

Hardwood cuttings

It's the zero-fuss way to make free new shrubs - just follow our guide from Nick Bailey

time-read
3 mins  |
December 2023
Hassle-free harvests
BBC Gardeners World

Hassle-free harvests

While veg-plot activities slow down in winter, there is still plenty to do, from planting fruit trees, and harvesting sprouts and salads to taking stock of your growing year so you can plan next year's crops, says Jack Wallington

time-read
3 mins  |
December 2023
The happy house plant guide
BBC Gardeners World

The happy house plant guide

In the first of a seven-part series, Jane Perrone shares expert advice on how to give your house plants the best start to a long and healthy life in your home

time-read
4 mins  |
December 2023
The science of soil
BBC Gardeners World

The science of soil

Healthy soil is teeming with life - Becky Searle delves below the surface to explore how this fascinating system works and how it can benefit our plants

time-read
3 mins  |
December 2023
'It's like another lung - like having oxygen on tap. It makes you breathe in a different way'
BBC Gardeners World

'It's like another lung - like having oxygen on tap. It makes you breathe in a different way'

Helen Maxwell's garden in rural Carmarthenshire surrounds the house that her husband (who's an architect) designed.

time-read
4 mins  |
December 2023