The Summer Flowers I'm Breaking Up With Next Year

How is everything going in your garden lately? The word I would use to describe mine? W I L D

It’s getting to be that time of year where it’s pretty toasty here in zone 10B (San Diego, CA), and the seeds that I planted many months ago have already been blooming for quite some time. While I did some succession planting, I didn’t do enough, so in one of my beds, I’m holding onto some flowers that I should have pulled a while ago just to have some color. Oh well - lesson learned!

Today I wanted to share some summer flowers that I can’t live without and some that I vow not to grow again.

While they look really pretty and have that “true blue” that you can’t get from most cut flowers, they are a real pain to harvest. I’ve noticed that as the plants get older, it gets harder and harder to get a good stem. They also need to be pruned all the time in order to look pretty. Unfortunately, I’m going to have to pass on them next year.

In theory, I love amaranth. It has the coolest texture and is so unique in the garden, but when I try to add it to arrangements, it never quite works. As a very amateur floral designer, when I add this droopy flower to my arrangements, I often take one look, tilt my head to the side, trying to decide how to make it work, and promptly remove it. I originally thought this was more of a “me” problem, but after talking with some florists, many have agreed that they aren’t the easiest flowers to work with.

While growing calendula can be amazing if you’re doing it for the herb (I use it as a salve all the time), as a cut flower, it’s not quite working for me. Their stems are super sticky and once harvested, they have a very short vase life. I’ve also found that they attract aphids. I’ve started using it as a trap plant, so that the bugs go there instead of my other plants. As beautiful as it is, I won’t be planting this again next year.

I love dahlias, roses, and hydrangeas as focal flowers in the summer, but here are 3 supporting flowers that I get excited for every year.

See my previous post, “7 Must Have Cut-Flowers to Grow in Your Garden For Gorgeous Summer Blooms,” for more info on these three flowers :)

What about you?

How is your garden looking lately? Are you riding the "wild" wave with me, or do you have everything under control? I’d love to know if you’ve grown any of these "farewell" flowers, or if there’s a bloom on your blacklist for next year. Let’s swap notes in the comments!