If you’ve ever thought about planting a cutting garden, but don’t have the right place for one, I’d like to share an idea that might work for you.
I’ve never had a dedicated space for a cutting garden. Maybe that’s because my idea of the perfect bouquet of flowers is actually one I can create by cutting stems or branches from one of my flowering shrubs.
Many years ago I opened an issue of Martha Stewart Living magazine and saw a photo of Martha with an armful of snowball virburnum branches. I remember thinking how fun it would be to create large arrangements from blooming branches!
Today, thanks to the previous owners, I have my own very large snowball viburnum that I use for arrangements in late spring. For a shrub this large, I simply choose several flowering branches and cut them so that I have around 3 feet of length to work with. I have a large, heavy vase that I bought years ago at Pottery Barn that works well to anchor this type of arrangement. Once inside, I cut the branch ends on a diagonal and strip off any leaves that would be below the water line once I fill the vase. I do change out the water every day to prolong the life of the arrangement.
Before I give you a list of my favorites, let me share some of the reasons you might want to add flowering shrubs to your landscape.
First, if you have deer or rabbits that like to nibble on your garden plants, there are many shrubs that are less likely to be damaged by these critters. This is the reason that my own garden is filled with so many shrubs, which not only give it structure, but give me some peace of mind, knowing that what I’ve worked so hard to create will be there, unscathed, the next time I walk outside.
If you are a homeowner, it’s likely that you’ll add to or change the shrubs in your foundation plantings or in your backyard space in the future. When you’re considering options, think about including both evergreen and flowering shrubs, like virburnums, abelias, or hydrangeas, and there are many to choose from.
Here are some for you to consider:
Gardenia. These bloom in early summer, and my goodness, those blossoms smell like heaven. While they’re blooming, I try to cut a handful every week to keep on my bedside table so I can enjoy their fragrance as I drift off to sleep.
Wiegela. This is an old-fashioned shrub, but the newest cultivars are wonderful plants, and while I have ‘Sonic Bloom Pink’ in my garden, there are others to choose from. These blooms will knock your socks off. The flower buds look like large rubies, and once those blooms open in late spring they will stop you in your tracks.
Quince. Flowering quince is another old favorite and I have two in my garden, a white that blooms very early, beginning in February most years, and then a deep coral quince that blooms in March and April. If you like, you can force these stems once you see evidence of buds forming by cutting them and placing them in a large bucket of water in a cool, dark place. I typically just cut a few long branches once I see them blooming well, and bring them indoors to put in a large glass vase. Stunning.
Hydrangea. My favorite for cutting is ‘Limelight’, but any of these charming shrubs would be wonderful in your garden. I prefer the hydrangea paniculata cultivars as they shrug off our heat and humidity here in Georgia. The huge blooms make flower arranging simple.
Callicarpa. Beautyberry is a stunner in late summer, with neon violet berries along every branch.
Abelia. I’ve written about this shrub over and over again, but it is my absolute favorite for a number of reasons, one being the blooming branches that I can bring indoors all summer. Blooms begin appearing in June, and with regular water they just keep coming, to the delight of the monarch butterflies that appear every day to feed on the sweetly-scented nectar. The flower bracts stack up as they fade, creating baubles of tawny peach and copper as the season ends, and they are beautiful.
My particular favorite is ‘Canyon Creek’ because it grows taller than some of the new cultivars and also produces more flowers than others I’m growing at the moment. ‘Edward Goucher’ is another older cultivar that flowers well. Other newer cultivars such as ‘Kaleidoscope’ just don’t have the same flower power, though I do use them in my garden. If you want flowers, the key seems to be to allow the plant to have some height, so consider carefully where you plant yours. I keep mine at about the five to six foot mark when I prune in late winter by taking out the oldest branches each year.
There are so many more to consider. Camellia, caryopteris, buddleia, bridal wreath spirea, forsythia, and lilac all are wonderful for cutting. Don’t limit yourself to flowering shrubs for arrangements. Cuttings from trees such as Japanese maples or evergreens also work in a pinch.
If you’ve never created arrangements using branches and stems from your woody or flowering shrubs and trees, I hope you’ll give it a try. Happy Gardening!
