Gr o w yo u r o wn F l owers H e l e n Ye m m
Gro w y o ur o wn F l o wer s H e l e n Ye m m
M i tc h e l l Be a z l ey | O c to p u s P u b l i s h i n g G ro u p Ltd
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table of contents 06
I n t ro d u c t i o n
09
P l a n t i n g Sty l es
15
A-Z F l owe rs
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Bu i l d a Ra i se d Be d
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introduction MAKING A BEAUTIFUL GARDEN FULL
Whether you realize it or not, your gardening
of fl owers takes careful planning, an
aspirations are shaped and colored by nostal-
honest appraisal of the realities of
gic fantasies of the gardens of your childhood and by romantic images in the picture books.
your site, intelligent observation of
In that fantasy world of effortless planted flow-
how plants work, and a little hard work.
er gardens filled with glorious sights, sounds,
Even if there were such a thing, instant
and scents, lofty verbascums and phalanxes of perfect hollyhocks and delphiniums all stand
gardening this is not. But the rewards
to attention above unblemished hummocks
for effort are infi nite. Gardening with
of fabulous daisies. The air was always heavy
fl owers gives you an endless amount
with the scent of old-fashioned pinks; immac-
of opportunities for self-expression and a sense of achievement.
ulate lavender hedges swayed and sagged under the weight of countless bees; every day was sunny, and the summers were endless. You may, therefore, feel that a garden without an abundance of flowers just isn’t a real thing. Perhaps in a tiny backyard or in a front yard that has to double as a parking area–one that is largely devoid of the things flowers require to grow successfully–it may be appropriate to have a neat, wood, stone, gravel, and potted spiky-things setpiece garden. It is cer-
me-quick annuals, dark-horse biennials, and
seedings and taking cuttings? And, finally, the
most importantly crescendos of perennials. Of
all-important gardening question is how do
course, much of gardening simply has to be
you successfully achieve what you want, that
learned by experience. And experienced gar-
is growing the flowers you love in the space
deners will all stress that, even when you have
you have, given its various limitations—light
got to grips will all the essential everyday hor-
levels, soil type, soil quality—and all the other
ticultural nuts and bolts, the learning process
things that plants are fussy about? The aim of
never, ever stops.
this book is to help you find some answers.
tainly better than having no outside space at
When faced with a burning ambition to grow
all. However, since the very specific title of this
flowers that are intensely satisfying to you be-
book–Grow Your Own Flowers–attracted you,
cause they are where they want to be, where
probably such a modern minimalist garden
you have to go right back to some fundamen-
just doesn’t, quite literally, give you the right
tals. What kind of flower garden do you want?
buzz. What you really hanker after is some-
Are the flowers for you to smell, touch, pick,
thing altogether more complicated, more per-
or wander among, or just to sit and enjoy?
sonal, and more beautiful, even though this is
Are you at heart a gardener who prefers for-
harder to achieve. For so many people the very
mal, straight lines and neat edges or one who
essence of a garden is the annually burgeon-
opts for blowsy designs with the plants falling
ing and daily changing abundance of color and
all over the paths? Do you crave the peace of
scent that flowers provide.
a softly colored site or the shouting drama of
This book concentrates on suggesting
primary-colored exotica? How much time have
flowers that are appropriate for the job—kiss-
you got, and do you enjoy fiddling around with
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planting styles “A garden requires patient labor and attention. Plants do not grow merely to satisfy ambitions or to fulfill good intentions. They thrive because someone expended effort on them.” —Liberty Hyde Bailey
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FOR YOUR GARDENS YOU CAN CHOOSE
Before making any decisions it is helpful to
from styles that range from the very
understand the influences that have resulted
formal through varying types and
in your current garden style. And it is worth remembering that the style you might now
degrees of informality and cottage-
visualize for your site may be dramatically at
style gardening to woodland planting
odds with what you can realistically achieve.
and gardens that are no more than
You may have to adapt your ambitions to cope with the site and its specific conditions.
stylized versions of ideas normally kept firmly outside the yard. For most people,
Formal
however, gardens end up somewhere
Flower gardens in the ultra-format style
in the middle of every style, with
have beds set out in a decorative and often symmetrical way divided and intersected by
an individual atmosphere that is an
grass—or, more often, stone or gravel—path-
inevitable compromise.
ways wide enough for two people to move
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Sissinghurst Castle in Kent, U.K.
around comfortably and, just as importantly,
Skillfully planted and managed formal
to allow access for wheelbarrows. Formally
gardens have layer on layer of planting, with
arranged beds and borders are often planted
flowering plants following in quick succession
with brightly colored bedding plants (although
through the season: daffodils are superseded
the fashion for these has waned in recent
by tulips, then annuals, perennials, and
years). One of the best-known examples of a
foliage foils, and often something taller as
formal-styled garden is the White Garden at
a permanent centerpiece to each bed. At
Sissinghurst Castle, in Kent, U.K., where the
the flower’s seasons end, when everything
monochrome of the flowers is enhanced by
is pulled out and cut down for winter, the
the greens and grays of the foliage and their
essential formal framework remains—still neat,
contrasting texture.
simple, and pleasing to the eye.
For the past century or so, such an English-
of the basic informal style and much more
garden style has graced the outside of small
suitable to a smaller yard. Everything is
and not-so-small manor houses in the U.K. It
planted in small groups or, where space allows,
is, therefore, somewhat ironic that in the 21st
in huge drifts, to create maximum impact.
century many gardeners try hard to emulate
Generally, small plants are placed at the
the same look in their tiny patches outside
front of the border, serving to hide the lower
modest houses that are much more akin to the
stems of the taller ones at the back. Getting
size of the lowly, original workers’ cottages.
components and the balance of a mixed border
Informal
gardener several years to achieve. Even after
right can take even a relatively experienced Purely
herbaceous
borders—those
that
contain only perennial plants—were popular
that, the planting plan may well be subject to changes year by year.
until the early 20th century, but they are now few and far between because their creation
Cottage-Style Garden
and maintenance are highly labor intensive.
A house with roses, hollyhocks, and honey-
Furthermore, unless you take pleasure from
suckle around the door is today’s rose-tinted
the sight of the neat, naked soil, this kind of
and very much stylized version of the English
border provides little in the way of visual
garden.The cottage-style garden was adopted
treats in the winter. However, there are still
in the early 20th century as a reaction to the
some impressive herbaceous borders around
Victorian fashion for garish, hot-housed beds
to admire—one of the most significant being at
and borders. Where exponents such as William
Arley hall in Cheshire, U.K.
Robinson and Gertrude Jekyll led, other gar-
A mixed border contains shrubby plants
den designers—most recently and notably Pe-
that can create interest even when there is
nelope Hobhouse—have followed, expanding
precious little in the way of flowers to look at.
the theme.
It is therefore a more user-friendly adaptation
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Wildflower Meadow A natural summer meadow consists of a profusion of wild grasses and native wildflowers, locally different according to the soil type, moisture levels, and the cutting or grazing regime of its custodian. If you want this sort of meadow in a garden setting you first need to impoverish the soil and get rid of coarse grasses by regularly close mowing for a season or two. After that you can gradually introduce patches of wildflower seed, removing small areas of turf first, or
Beth Chatto’s garden at Colchester in Essex, U.K.
plant young wildflower plants, chosen from those appropriate to the local soil and climatic
writing and from the garden of Beth Chatto’s
difficult. You can, however, create a truly mag-
conditions. A simply spring meadow, which will
lovely woodland garden at Colchester in Essex,
ic woodland garden by carefully identifying
consist many of grass, cowslips or primroses,
U.K., a whole generation of gardeners has
patches of ground that receive more rain and
and early-flowering bulbs, is slightly easier to
become inspired to plant up and enjoy parts
more sunlight than others and by carpeting
establish than a summer-flowering one.
of their gardens they might previously have
them with large swathes of appropriately cho-
considered inhospitable. It can, moreover, be
sen plants. You will need to nurture the plants
quite a challenge to get plants growing happily
painstakingly while they get establishe d, and
in dappled shade under and between trees.
mulch extensively with natural leaf mold. In
Wo o d l a n d There is something deeply peaceful and satisfying about gardening in shade as
This style of gardening is restricted by lack
time you can enjoy your own leafy, flowering
opposed to concentrating all your efforts
of light in summer, and, worse, a woodland’s
glades—a woodland garden that looks and feels
on the floral hurly-burly of a sunnier garden.
fundamentally root-filled soil, which makes
totally natural.
Indeed, having taken inspiration from the
digging and getting new plants established
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It is interesting that Patrick and Sylvie Quibel,
mindset of many gardeners who otherwise
the designers and keepers of this highly re-
regard themselves as traditionalists. In the
garded, 21st-century garden, acknowledge the
1980s, on being presented with a flower color
influences of all that had gone before, specifi-
combination of magenta, orange, and scarlet
cally the informality-within-formality of Chris-
you may have winced. Now you might gasp,
topher Lloyd’s garden at Great Dixter, in the
nod sagely, and acknowledge the great and
U.K. with its essentially traditional bones.
innovative color wisdom championed by the late Christopher Lloyd at Great Dixter.
Exotic For some gardeners, style is all about shock and awe. The shock is at the sight of plants with alien foliage shapes and textures and with
Naturalistic
dazzling flower colors sitting cheek-by-jowl
The style started to engulf gardeners and de-
with bright, bold, but familiar garden staples
signers in the last year of the 20th century.
in a cool-temperate landscape. The awe is that
Taking inspiration from the textures, colors,
anyone painstakingly manages to manipulate
movement, and effects of changing light in
many of these alien plants into coping with
nature, designers used plants—mainly her-
an unsuitable climate. Indeed, many of these
baceous perennials and grasses with strong
exotic plants are extremely high maintenance,
shapes and colors—en masse in great inter-
needing overwintering under cover between
locking swathes. Such a naturalistic style re-
mindful and early summer. Even once they are
ally works well in a rural setting, under big
moved into the garden they require the shelter
skies and on a big scale. An intriguing example,
of warm walls and careful summer fertilizing.
however, of naturalist planting within a formal
This is a style that has in recent years subtly
layout is Le Jardin Plume in Normandy, France.
embedded itself ever more deeply into the
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a-z flowers “If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.” —Marcus Tullius Cicero
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ALCEA H O L LY H O C K
THIS SHORT LIVED, COTTAGE STYLE
quently fail to meet the characteristics prom-
has a reputation for bad behavior but
ised on the label.
are almost universally loved by  ower An essential ingredient of every cottage style garden are the crepe paper flowers of the hollyhocks, which just keep on coming for weeks in summer.
and colors are bought. Such plants all too fre-
garden perennial of magnifi cent sizes
gardeners. Belonging to the large family that also includes herbaceous and shrubby mallows, hollyhocks are European and Asian natives, where they
Plant Care Snails can be very damaging to the first leaves produced in the spring, so be extra vigilant and take protective measures. If hollyhocks are grown on a windy site, tall flowering stems may need to be tied back
are to be found on rock, dry, and grassy
gently to a wall or be supported by stakes to
waste land.
which stems can be discreetly and individually tied. Cut down all the stems at the end of the growing season.
Site and soil
The main enemy of hollyhocks is rust, which
Grow in full sun and moderately fertile soil.
is ultimately terminally debilitating and makes
Treat hollyhocks as biennials if rust is an insur-
plants ugly in the bargain. Rust is symptom-
mountable problem. Hollyhocks are suitable
atic of rainy spring weather, as overwintered
for planting in the back of a mixed border or
spores splash up from the soil to infect lower
for growing in minimal soil along the base of a
leaves. One way to combat rust therefore, is
warm, and sunny wall. Sow seeds in containers
to remove all the lower leaves from plants as
in spring or in situ in mid- to late summer.
their stems start to grow upward. Young plants will flower a little in their first
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Buying guide
summer, extremely well in their second, and
Purchase and plant hollyhocks in spring or the
possibly in their third year, but may go down-
early fall. A certain amount of pragmatism is
hill after that. It pays to allow plants to self-
required if young seedlings of named varieties
seed fairly freely or to save seeding every year.
Deadheading
Propagation
Hollyhock flowers, like foxgloves, open in suc-
Hollyhocks are extremly short-lived perennials
cession up each lofty stem. Once the main
and where disease is a problem it is perhaps
stem has finished flowering, it can be but backs
best to replace them with young seedlings
so that the secondary flower stems (which will
every two years or so.
very probably still be flowering well) become
Sow seed in spring or mid- to late summer.
more visually prominent. Whether you go to
Yound self-seeded plants develop deep roots
the trouble of doing this is all about aesthetic
quickly and resent being transplanted once
rather than about prolonging the season.
they have started to grow upward and make their flower stems. It is therefore, safer to
Overwintering
transplant hollyhocks to permanent sites, if
Hollyhock stems are tough and wook and
needs be, when they have developed three of
should be cut back with pruners or loppers in
four true leaves, in early fall.
the late fall.
varieties
A. rosea Some gardeners prefer this old-fashioned, single hollyhock in every shade of pink, red, and even white.
A. rosea Chater’s Double Group The very double, peony form flowers come in very diverse colors, including apricot, pink, and lavender-blue.
A. rosea “Nigra” Slightly shorter-stemmed “Nigra” bears flowers that are deepest chocolate-maroon (so called “black”), with yellow throats.
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HELIANTHUS SUNFLOWER
NATIVE TO NORTH AND CENTRAL America and parts of South America the familiar, giant, annual sunfl ower is grown widely in Europe and elsewhere for seed and oil crops, as well as for its dramatic, cheerful, decorative fl owers. Although still rather coarse and tall they are a lot more subtle than their annual relations and form a useful addition to the fl ower garden in late summer.
varieties
H. “Lemon Queen” This is perhaps the least coarse of the perennial sunflowers, with its pale yellow flowers that are darker in the center. It spreads sideways, via its rhizomatous roots.
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H. “Capemoch Star” This is perhaps the least coarse of the perennial sunflowers, with its pale yellow flowers that are darker in the center. It spreads sideways, via its rhizomatous roots.
Site and soil
Plant Care
Grow in moderately fertile, well-drained,
Apply an annual fertilizer in spring, to make
neutral to alkaline soil that has been amended
these plants perform even better.
with organic matter. Sunflowers flourish in full
In midspring, shorten tall varieties by one
sun and flower most prolifically during long,
third, which will make them flower at a slightly
hot summers.
shorter height and slightly later.
Plant them at the back of a large border. Use spreading varieties, which given ideal
To maintain their vigor, lift sunflowers every 3 to 4 years and replant in amended soil.
conditions can be slightly invasive in a border, in difficult areas of a sunny, wild, and grassy
Deadheading
yard. Although these sunflowers make good
Sunflowers make good cut flowers, and by
cut flowers, those with sensitive skin should
cutting them (or deadheading them) you will
avoid contact with their coarse and slightly
persuade them to flower over a longer period.
abrasive foliage.
Overwintering Buying guide
The recommended varieties are frost hardy.
Perennial sunflower plants can be hard to find in run-of-the-mill garden stores, which seem
Propagation
determined to sell dwarf, annual sunflowers
Divide plants in spring or fall. Left in situ, an-
already in flower. Source them instead online
nual sunflowers will self-seed. You can also col-
or by mail order, in the fall.
lect and store seed for sowing in spring under glass or late spring in the ground.
TA G E T E S MARIGOLD
THE SHARP COLORS AND AROMATIC, even pungent foliage of annual marigolds. While native to South and
There is no denying you get a lot for your money with annual marigolds. From a packet of seed (and with a little effort) you receive a brilliant flower that simply goes on and on.
Central America and Africa, they are
have densely double, single-colored,
not to everyone’s taste. However, there
pompom fl owers in yellows and oranges.
is no denying that these easy-to-grow
French marigolds carry smaller, double
annuals are useful for adding long-
fl owers that are colored and marked
lasting splashes of orange and russet-
yellow, reddish-brown, and orange. Afro-
red to a hot, sunny planting from late
French marigolds have characteristics
spring to fall. Marigold hybrids fall into
of each, bearing numerous, smaller,
several groups. African marigolds all
semidouble, yellow/orange fl owers.
Site and soil Grow in full sun and moderately fertile soil. Sow seeds in a seed flat or pot filled with loam-based seed or cutting starter mix, in early spring. Cover them with glass until they germinate. Harden off seedlings before planting them out once there is little risk of frost. You can also sow marigolds in situ in late spring, but they will flower later than those raised under glass.
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Buying guide
Plant Care
Deadheading
All the major seed companies sell wide selec-
Pinch off first flower to make each plant bush
Remove marigold blooms constantly to ensure that they keep flowering through to fall.
tion of seeds, most as mixtures, some as sin-
out and become sturdier. During growing sea-
gle varieties. New varieties carrying interest-
son, give container-grown marigolds a weekly
ing, different color variations are produced by
feed with a soluble, high-potassium fertilizer,
Overwintering
seed companies almost every year.
to encourage the continous growth of flowers.
Marigolds will have died back completely
Marigold seedlings, sometimes already pre-
Towards the end of the summer, pom-pom
maturely in flower, can be bought in midspring
flowered marigolds may fall victim to downy
before winter.
from garden stores, mail-order companies,
mildew after periods of wet weather. Cut off
Propagation
and online. If appropriate, pot them up so they
and destroy all affected flowers at once.
Seeds from hybrids will not come true, so
can develop more until it is time to plant them
Once marigolds have become unslightly,
there is no point in saving seed to sow the fol-
up so they can develop more until it is time
pull them up and put them on the compost pile.
lowing year, unless a seriously dizzy mixture is what you want.
to plant them in the garden. Gradually harden them off first, however.
varieties
T. Patula “Favorite Red” The single, mahogany-red and yellow center flowers, are borne over a long period on this French marigold of some elegance.
T. Patula “Mr. Majestic” Mahogony-colored stripes on yellow petals make this French marigold particularly an eye catching flower.
T. Patula “Lemon Gem” This small marigold makes a mound of fine foliage that is almost hidden, from late spring to early fall, by the masses.
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build a raised bed “Raised beds are any gardener’s dream come true: From weeding to harvesting, in cool climated and waterlogged soils, raised beds remedy a great deal of problems.”
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Step 1. Mark it Off
S t e p 2 . C r e a t e Wa l l s
S t e p 3 . C o n n e c t Wa l l s
Start by determining how big you want your
Start with four, 1-foot-long 4x4s for the corner
Stand the sidewalls upright and opposite each
raised bed to be. If you’re not sure, start with
posts; eight 4-foot-long 2x6s for the side rails;
other, with the posts on the outside. Screw the
a 4x4-foot square, a distance most people can
and four 2-foot-long 2x2s for the center stakes.
two side rails to the posts to form the other
reach the middle from both sides of. Then rake
Position your 4x4s on each corner of your
walls of the raised bed. Again, the ends of the
and level the ground so that your raised bed
square. Then pick a wall to start with and screw
rails should be even with the sides of the posts.
will lie flat.
your first 2x6 to connect the corners. Stack a second 2x6 on top of the first. The ends of the 2x6 boards should be even with the sides of the post. Use an angle-square to make sure the rails and posts are lined up at right angles.
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Step 4. Square it Up
Step 5. Make it Sturdy
Step 6. Fill it with Soil
Measure diagonally both directions across the
Take a 2x2 stake and place it at the middle
Once you’ve built your raised bed, fill it with
planter bed to make sure the frame is square.
point of one of the outside walls. Then dig or
topsoil. If you wish, amend the soil with lots of
Adjust the raised bed until both diagonals are
pound it into the ground so the top of stake is
organic matter, such as compost or peat moss.
level with the top of the side rails. Fasten the
Then water it well and you’re ready to plant.
equal in length.
stake to the side rails with deck screws. Repeat with each of the remaining three walls.
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Raised beds are among the popular techniques that may gardeners use due it its functionality and various visual options.
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Let your garden flourish with flowerfilled beds and breathtaking borders • The essential guide to sowing, growing, and propagating 100 of the best flowering plants. • Vital techniques are explained and illus trated in step-by-step sequences. • Features an invaluable year planner, a problem solver, and useful plant lists to help you choose flowers for sun, shade, damp, and dry conditions. • Includes information on planting styles, creating a cutting garden, and knowing your yard.