Book Review of The Cut Flower Patch by Louise Curley

If you would like to grow your own cut flowers - then this book is for you!

I'm always very happy when the postman delivers new books and this turned out to be a little treasure.

The Cut Flower Patch is written by Louise Curley -  who also writes the blog Wellywoman and it's published by Frances Lincoln. Louise is a trained horticulturist and also writes for The Garden Illustrated and the Guardian newspaper's garden section.

The beautiful photographs are taken by Jason Ingram - a Bristol based photographer who has worked with a lot of big names in the gardening world.


Louise takes you through step by step how to create a cut flower patch. Starting with basics and the importance of doing some planning as well as different planting plans depending on the size of your plot. 

She recommends what flowers to choose - everything from annuals, biennials to bulbs, corms and tubers, 35 in all, as well as foliage and fillers.

Louise takes you through how to make your patch and how to maintain your flower garden.

My favourite chapters are the last three called Cutting Time, Showing Off and Rich Pickings. In Cutting Time she gives advice on how and when to cut your flowers and how to condition the flowers to make them last longer.

"Daffodils look good arranged on their own but the addition of some zingy green young foliage can increase interest"

  

The chapter called Showing Off is all about making quick and easy arrangements.

"Simple arrangements are often the most pleasing. Small bottles and jars make perfect receptacles."

"Among this hand-tied mix of seed heads and grasses are to be found teasels, honesty,love-in-the-mist, poppies and the orange seed pods of montbretia.

In Rich Pickings Louise mixes flowers from the cutting patch with other stuff you might have growing in your garden or find elsewhere - season by season.

Just like with growing your own vegetables you need time and patience to produce flowers from a cutting patch - but with the enjoyment you get while doing it and when the end result is buckets full of flowers - it's all worth it in the end! 

"Keep your flower arrangements simple by using only a few stems of flowers such as chrysanthemums, and enjoy the fruits of your labour."

Have a Wonderful Floral Day!

See you later in the week!

xoxo Ingrid 

Florets - Floral Quote - # 54 - by Louise Curley

"Use your imagination when it comes to what to put your flowers in. Although you may have a suitable tall plain glass vase in your home, there are so many other containers you could use that will add a touch of individuality and quirkiness to your display. 

The only really essential requirement of a vase is that it is watertight. It is best not to pick something with a wide neck or one that is very big. It will take a considerable number of flowers to fill them, and they will be difficult to arrange and will tend to be quite floppy, because the container will not be able to provide enough support."

~ Louise Curley ~

[Louise Curley: British, freelance writer & journalist, gardener and author of The Cut Flower Patch. She has also been writing the blog Wellywoman since 2011.]

[Quote: From The Cut Flower Patch by Louise Curley.]

[Containers: Vintage bottles and jugs.]

[Other props: Fabrics by Sarah Hardaker.]

[Styling and photography © Ingrid Henningsson for Of Spring and Summer.]

Wishing You A Wonderful Floral Sunday!

Hope to see you back here soon!

xoxo Ingrid