Ok i need some ideas here. I have a bed that runs the front of my house about 3ft. wide x the length of the house. Anyhow i'm gonna plant this in annual flowers so i can change the color scheme every year. So next year i am gonna use mixed color zinnias as a backdrop (wifey loves them for using in the house) So my question is what other flowers would you use that (1) would put on a colorful show and (2) would make good cutflowers for the house. Any help would be great and i thank you in advance.
How about some Marigolds, Snapdragons, Salvia, Dahlia's, Glads, Black Eyed Susans, or Baby's Breath? (PS: Calendula officinalis (Pot Marigold, English Marigold)) (PS: Rudbeckia hirta (Black-Eyed Susan)) (PS: Gypsophila paniculata (Baby's Breath))
Black eyed susans are perenial, but do make for great cut flowers. Short sunflowers, gerbera daisy, osteopermum, carnation (are they annual?). (PS: Gerbera jamesonii (Gerbera Daisy))
Cosmos work well as cut flowers, long stems. For cut flowers, look for taller varieties of salvias (red and blue). Depending on your zone, Black and blue salvia, Pineapple sage (late season) (PS: Salvia guaranitica (Black and Blue Salvia)) Ditto on tall snapdragons like the "Rocket series" Ron
There is a Carnartion that gets to be about 15 inches tall and is annual: Carnation 'Victoriana'. Other annuals to consider are-- Salpiglossis sinuata (the Kew Blue is pretty striking), Amaranthus, the Helichrysum monstrosum (or other Helichrysums), Verbena bonariensis, any of the Lathyrus group, Tagates (African Marigold 'Crackerjack'), Matthiola incana 'Giant Perfection'. Non-annuals but nice as cut flowers: Gladiolas, Phlox, A Laurel bush (branches to use as 'filler'), Carnations and Chrysanthemums. Perhaps you could intersperse the annuals with perennials. Good luck!
Zinnias were the first thing that popped into my head. Gladiolas and snaps would be amazing too :-D Deanna :-D
I planted the Angelonia angustifolia hybrid common name Summer Snapdragon for the first time this year. I planted a white in the ground and it has really gotten nice and bushy. The purple I planted in a pot and just recently put it in the ground so it could fill out too. The pink I just bought yesterday. They are annuals since they can't take temps below 30F but I am hoping they will come back for me next spring since we get very few temps that low most winters. P.Allen Smith (has gardening shows on PBS and cable) says they can be cut and last about 10 days in water. But I haven't tried that yet.
Thanks for all the suggestions now i think i have a great idea of what will be planted there if'n i can find the seeds.
Ok here's my idea for the flowerbed! In the back of the flower bed will be Zinnias mixed colors of course, in the middle will be decorative peppers you know the ones and in the very front i would like to plant a shorter type marigold any suggestions?
Snapdragons are lovely and come in tons of great colors, but I don't know how good they are for cut flowers.
How about dahlia flowers? They come in different colors as well as in different size. Plus, they can be good cutflowers for your home.
Pepperdude--I would consider the backdrop to the flower bed. Is it your house? If so, you might want to consider the color of your house when picking flowers. You might want to consider how it will look from the road. Do you need short flowers, tall flowers, etc. I might employ my method which is to take a photo of the plot from your most common viewing point and then decide what height, shape, color would look good. Then, I would pick the flowers.
