Cutting Garden

I made a 4 by 24 foot frame for a raised bed cutting garden behind the garage on the church grounds this past winter to grow flowers for arrangements.  Here are the before and after pictures.

Since I've never grown just a cutting bed I've learned a lot already. I started the flowing seeds in March:  Ageratum, Celosia, Zinnia, Aster, Rubeckia, Scabiosa and direct seeded sunflowers. I selected varieties that were good for cutting. I haven't had any crop failures but the Asters and Scabiosa are not profuse bloomers yet. The Celosia is much bigger than I expected and the stalks on the sunflowers are like tree trunks. I'd never grown a tall Ageratum but these are excellent long stemmed cut flowers. I'll make some adjustments next year. Here are some close ups.

This weeks church flowers and an arrangement.