Okay, seriously, celosia is the best kept secret for cut flowers! This year we planted two different types: red flame (which is the cockscomb brain looking thing) and pampus plume. There are many different mixes and colors, so I am looking forward to adding a few new ones next year. I saw a bright orange plume at another farm I visited, and I fell in LOVE! Check it out  http://www.harrisseeds.com/storefront/p-14067-celosia-sunday-mix.aspx 

Celosia keeps going and going...I feel like I am in a sea of celosia. It lasts long, it adds brightness, and it just grows so well here that there is no reason to not grow just as much celosia as I do zinnias! 

Which color combination do you like best? It was fun putting these themed arrangements together. It seems like the possibilities are endless! 

Nicotiana, a tobacco plant, has these gorgeous blooms that make a great cut. They are such a nice addition to arrangements because they add direction. The flowers are naturally angled downward and steer your eyes around the bouquet as they loft overhead.

 This year I started seed indoors and transplanted them out in May. Wow, these plants grew like crazy and are now at least four feet tall and producing tons of shoots! I may direct seed another batch for a  fall crop tomorrow, as they do pretty well direct seeded as well.  

There is plenty of feverfew to be picked at the farm nowadays. We overwintered some that bloomed in early June, our first spring planting came into full swing about two weeks ago, and I just picked two buckets off the second planting this weekend.  This is the first year we have succession planted feverfew, and it is working out nicely. Including the patch we overwintered, I estimate that we will have feverfew consistently for about two months. 

Feverfew makes a great filler for arrangements, it has a great vase life, a nice smell, makes a good dried flower, and is even treated as a medicinal herb!  And don't forget how adorable the little white flowers are!!

This is the first year we have had a market booth just for flowers, as the flowers were set up along with produce before.  At the Deerfield Twp. market, flowers get their own stand! Now you can visit That Guy's Family Farm and That Girl's Flowers right next to one another. 

Green gold it plentiful right now! You can see how it is all coming in at once next to the larkspur patch.  

I love green gold because it provides an excellent filler for arrangements. It adds structure, height, and and elegance with its tiny yellow flowers. I always find the width and branch habit of green gold to be helpful in the process of bouqueting. It is the first flower I pick up, and I work in all the other flowers around it. 

Green gold can be planted in the fall. It overwinters along with other flowers such as bachelor's buttons, larkspur, and nigella. It is great to have green gold as one of the first flowers to bouquet with in the spring.  And don't forget- it also dries well! 

For the past four or five years we have grown a crop of zinnias in a hoop house. We plant in April, allowing the plants to get a head start.  I planted three rows of sunbows, which is a miniature zinnia (on right) and three rows of Johnny's giant dahlias (on left). The zinnias are starting to take off! 

The key to picking zinnias is making sure they a have strong stem, otherwise they will bend if you are not careful with handling. Before I pick a zinnia, I always wiggle the stem close to the flower head. If it is sturdy I pick it, if not, I wait a few more days. 

I have the best company when I pick flowers! Bodie loves hanging out and finding a nice place to lay down (he also enjoys eating flowers...) 

On the right, you can see Red Husker Penstemon is blooming, showcasing off its tall burgundy spikes. You can also tell the paprika yarrow is just about ready to explode on the left. It is amazing the difference one year can make for the establishment of perennials. Last year both of these were planted, and they have come back in beautiful, tall bushes this spring. 

We planted peonies last fall, and they are blooming! This is so exciting, as it is our first attempt at growing them. You can see how a first year peony bush is quite small, only supporting a few blooms. The variety pictured is called "coral charm," and we also planted deeper pink colors as well as some white varieties.  

The benefit of having peonies is that they are one of the first cut flowers to bloom in spring. Peonies need about three years to establish themselves. As much as I want to pick these beauties and put them in a vase, I will just have to enjoy their essence as I walk past the patch!