How to Grow & Arrange Your Own Fresh Flowers: A Recap from the BC Home + Garden Show
Did you miss my seminar at the BC Home + Garden Show? Or maybe you attended and want a refresher on all the tips I shared? Either way, I’ve got you covered!
At this year’s BC Home + Garden Show, I had the absolute pleasure of leading a seminar on one of my favorite topics: growing and arranging your own fresh flowers. From designing a cutting garden to assembling stunning, seasonally-inspired bouquets, I shared eco-friendly, beginner-friendly, and florist-approved techniques to help you create beautiful arrangements right from your own backyard.
Let’s dive into the key takeaways! 🌸✨
🌿 Why Grow Your Own Cut Flowers?
If you’ve ever picked up a grocery store bouquet, you might be surprised to learn that 80% of cut flowers in North America are imported—most from Ecuador, Colombia, and Kenya. While they may look beautiful, these flowers come with hidden costs like:
🚛 Carbon Emissions: Flowers travel thousands of miles by air, refrigerated trucks, and boats before reaching your vase.
☠️ Pesticides: Many imported flowers are sprayed with chemicals banned in Canada & the U.S.
💰 Ethical Concerns: Large-scale flower farms in low-wage countries underpay workers and provide poor working conditions.
✅ Solution? Grow your own—or support local flower farmers! Not only does this reduce your environmental impact, but homegrown flowers last longer, smell better, and bring more joy.
💡 Fun Fact: Studies show that flowers boost mood, reduce stress, and increase happiness—so growing your own is great for your well-being and the planet!
🌱 How to Plan Your Cut Flower Garden
Growing cut flowers isn’t just for farmers or florists—you can do it in any space! Here’s how to get started:
1️⃣ Choose Your Garden Layout
🔹 Dedicated Cutting Bed – Flowers grow in rows (like vegetables) for easy harvesting.
🔹 Mix with Veggies – Companion planting attracts pollinators and improves veggie yields!
🔹 Cottage Garden Style – A wild, layered mix of flowers for a natural look.
2️⃣ Know What to Grow
💐 Focal Flowers: Oriental Lilies, Hellebores (the "stars" of your bouquet).
🌸 Spike & Disk Flowers: Snapdragons, Stock, Anemones, Ranunculus, Daffodils (add height & texture).
🌿 Greenery & Fillers: Salal, Boxwood, Pieris, Ferns (structure & softness).
3️⃣ Plan for Blooms Year-Round
🌷 Spring: Tulips, ranunculus, daffodils.
🌻 Summer: Zinnias, cosmos, sunflowers.
🍁 Fall: Dahlias, rudbeckia, asters.
✅ Pro Tip: Start seeds indoors for an earlier bloom season (a greenhouse helps extend it!).
💐 How to Arrange a Stunning Seasonal Bouquet
During my seminar, I walked attendees through the Floret Flowers method for building a balanced, professional-looking bouquet. I HIGHLY recommend grabbing a copy of Erin Benzekein's A Year in Flowers or Cut Flower Garden. Here’s a quick recap!
🌿 The 50-30-20 Formula for Perfect Bouquets
✔ 50% Greenery & Fillers – Salal, Boxwood, Pieris, Ferns (creates structure & movement).
✔ 30% Spike & Disk Flowers – Snapdragons, Stock, Anemones, Ranunculus, Daffodils (adds shape & depth).
✔ 20% Focal Flowers – Oriental Lilies, Hellebores (the stars of your bouquet).
Step-by-Step Assembly
1️⃣ Start with Greenery & Fillers – These form the bouquet’s shape.
2️⃣ Add Focal Flowers – Place them first to define the arrangement.
3️⃣ Layer in Spike & Disk Flowers – Add height and contrast.
4️⃣ Finish with Airy Elements – Soft ferns & branches for a natural look.
💡 Fun Fact: Did you know that flowers should be 1.5 times the height of the vase for the most pleasing proportions?
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🌎 Sustainable Floral Design & Expert Hacks
Use mechanical supports to keep flowers upright and in place
✅ Chicken wire to structure stems.
✅ Floral frogs or pin holders (Lee Valley sells great options!).
✅ A tape grid across the vase opening for easy placement.
🌸 Keep Flowers Fresher, Longer!
✔ Extend Vase Life: Add 1 tsp sugar + 1 drop bleach to vase water (feeds flowers & prevents bacteria).
✔ Revive Wilted Blooms: Submerge hydrangeas, ranunculus, or roses in warm water for 1 hour.
✔ Speed Up Blooming for Events: Place tight buds (like peonies & lilies) in warm water to open faster.
✔ Keep Flowers Away from Fruit! Ripening fruit releases ethylene gas, which shortens vase life.
🌿 Final Thoughts: Bringing the Joy of Flowers Into Your Life
One of the best parts of speaking at the BC Home + Garden Show was seeing how excited people were to bring fresh flowers into their lives—whether by growing their own or arranging bouquets.
🌸 Challenge: Grow or buy just one flower this week and see how it makes you feel! Does it bring you joy, connection, or inspiration?
🌿 Want More Tips? Follow me on Instagram (@theknottygarden) for seasonal gardening advice, cut flower tutorials, and behind-the-scenes floral arranging!
A Special Thank You to My Sponsors
This seminar wouldn’t have been possible without the generous support of BC Greenhouse Builders and Lee Valley Tools—two incredible Canadian-owned companies that share my passion for empowering people to grow at home.
BC Greenhouse Builders has been a game-changer for my garden—I personally own their 8x10 Cottage Model greenhouse, which allows me to extend my growing season and get a head start on my cut flowers.
Lee Valley Tools is my go-to for high-quality gardening tools, including the pruners, floral snips, book, tote and pin holders I used in my demonstration. Their commitment to craftsmanship and sustainability aligns perfectly with my approach to growing and arranging flowers.
Thank you for supporting local businesses that help gardeners thrive!