From Cutting Garden to Dried Flowers

One of the things I love about growing flowers is being able to enjoy them long after the fresh flower season has finished. Some of the flowers I grow in my cutting garden are chosen specifically for drying, allowing me to continue using them throughout the year.

Growing Flowers for Drying
When planning what to grow, I include flowers that are particularly suited to drying. Some of my favourites are Helichrysum Straw Flowers, Statice, Gomphrena, Ammobium Daisies, Acroclinium, Zinnias and Dahlias, along with grasses and seed heads.

Growing these specifically for drying means I can enjoy them both fresh and as part of my dried flower work later in the year.

From the Cutting Garden to Harvest
Choosing the right time to cut the flowers is an important part of the process. Each variety has its own ideal stage for harvesting, and getting the timing right can make a difference to how the flowers look once they have dried.

The Drying Process
I air dry my flowers naturally in a warm, dark location, mainly hanging them upside down while they dry.

The finished result isn't always predictable, which is part of the process. Flowers can change as they dry, and sometimes they don't turn out quite how I expected. I enjoy seeing how each variety changes and what the finished flowers look like.

Why I Grow My Own Flowers for Drying
Being able to follow the flowers from seed to finished flower is one of the things I enjoy most about growing them myself. I know exactly where they have come from and can use the flowers I've grown in my own cutting garden in my floristry work.

 For me, that’s one of the lovely things about dried flowers. They allow the work that starts in the cutting garden to continue throughout the year.

From Dried Flowers to Floristry
Once dried, these flowers become part of my floristry work in lots of different ways. I use them to create wreaths, bouquets and bunches, garlands and flowers for my workshops.

I particularly enjoy seeing how flowers that have been grown in the cutting garden can be transformed into something completely different once they have dried.