The ultimate luxury of gardening, for many gardeners, is being able to repurpose what you grow outside. Harvest the fresh flowers from your garden to make beautiful bouquets to give away or create beautiful centerpieces for your dinner table.

Every flower has a meaning when made into a bouquet.  Here’s our list of garden flowers that make great cut flowers.  If you didn’t grow these, don’t worry, they’re available in our floral departments during August.

Sunflowers

Sunflowers are known the world around as one of the most joyous and flamboyant flowers. They’re very popular as cut flowers for bouquets and flower arrangements as well as enjoying in the garden. Sunflowers are symbolic of adoration. Sunflowers turn their heads to the sun, which is the origin of their common name. 

Gladiolus

Named for the shape of their leaves, gladioli comes from the Latin word “gladius,” meaning sword. Giving a bouquet of gladiolas to someone symbolizes infatuation and passion. Striking and colorful with towering stems, gladiolus are also considered the August birth flower and the 40th wedding anniversary flower.

Lilies

Globally, Lilies rank fourth among cut flowers in popularity.  Lilies come in many different shapes, sizes and colors. The Lily flower symbolizes purity and refined beauty. Based on the color or type, the Lily flower can convey different meanings: White for modesty, Orange for passion, and yellow for gaiety.  Lily of the Valley is a symbol of sweetness and purity of heart, while the Easter Lily is a religious symbol for the Virgin Mary.

Roses

Roses have inspired people over the ages to develop a language of roses by giving meaning to color, variety, and even number of flowers. Traditionally, the rose is considered the flower of love. A red rose is an unmistakable expression of love. Red roses convey deep emotions – be it love, longing or desire. White is the color of purity, chastity and innocence. White flowers are generally associated with new beginnings and make an ideal accompaniment to a first-time bride walking down the aisle. Yellow roses are an expression of exuberance. Yellow roses evoke sunny feelings of joy, warmth and welcome. They are symbols of friendship and caring. Pink roses are used to convey gentle emotions such as admiration, joy and gratitude. While a yellow rose reminds us of the sun, an orange rose reminds us of a fiery blaze. These fiery blooms signify passion and energy. A Lavender rose like its color conveys enchantment. It also expresses “love at first sight”. By mixing rose blooms of different colors purposefully, you can create a bouquet of emotions, while creating a beautiful arrangement.

Hydrangeas

Hydrangeas were discovered in Japan and named referring to the hydrangea’s need for plenty of water and its cup-shaped flower. With wooden stems and lacy, star-shaped flowers packed closely together in a pompom, hydrangea colors ranges from white to blue to pink and purple. Hydrangeas symbolize gratefulness and heartfelt sincerity. The hydrangea is also considered the 4^th anniversary flower.

Cut Flower Care

Keeping cut flowers fresh is easy with these tips:

• Cut stems should be placed in water immediately, as air rapidly moves into the water-conducting tissues and plugs the cells. If cut flowers have been out of water for more than a few minutes, you should re-cut the stems. Cuts can be made under-water to assure the no air enters the stem.
• Use floral preservatives to increase the life of cut flowers. You can purchase bottles of this at English Gardens.
• Clean the flower vase or container and change the water when it becomes dirty.  
• Remove all leaves on the stems below the water surface.
• Check the water level of the floral container or vase daily, and add water with preservative as needed.
• Keep cut flowers away from hot or cold air drafts and hot spots (radiators, direct heat, or television sets).