Grow Your Own Cut Flower Garden – Tuesday, April 7th, 1-3 pm

Join us for this hands-on workshop where guests will learn all the basics of growing cut flowers and will seed and take home a tray of warm season annuals that will be great for cutting! We have chosen varieties that are easiest to germinate and grow into seedlings including sunflowers, zinnias, cosmos, basil, rudbeckia, celosia, marigold, and  even purple hyacinth bean to grow up a trellis. These seedlings should be ready to transplant into the garden just about the time of our last expected frost. Each participant will seed into a 72 cell plug tray filled with seed starting soil, and in addition to the tray, seeds, and seed starter, each participant will receive a handout that covers everything from seed to vase and a few extra seeds for later!

There will be lots of discussion and demos of how to be successful at growing cut flowers. that will include:

• What to plant when – frost dates, warm season annuals, cool flowers etc.
• How to read a seed packet and seed catalogue
• Seeding in trays or soil blocks vs direct seeding and timing for each
• Conditions needed for best germination and growing (water, heat and light)
• Caring for a seed tray
• Watering your tray – bottom or overhead
• Bed preparation – composting, fabric? till or no-till?
• Transplanting seedlings into the ground and watering-in
• Building fun garden structures
• Caring for plants after transplanting – watering, fertilizing
• How to fight weeds – weed barrier, weeding, garden tools
• When and how to cut your flowers – we’ll see what’s blooming in the hoop house
• How to preserve in vase
• List of local resources
• How to share – Growing Kindness Project

We will meet at the Homeplace 399 Bruce Doan Rd., or  Aunt Willie’s 207 Bruce Doan Rd., Blountville, TN, 37617 depending on the weather. We’ll let attendees know closer to the time. The is the day version of the workshop. Material is identical to the March 9th workshop.

Registration cannot be refunded but we will meet rain or shine. If for some reason you cannot attend you may gift your spot to a friend or pick up your tray later. See below for more details. Space is limited.