Product Description

Grow Your Own Cut Flowers distils everything Sarah Raven has learnt in five years of trialing, teaching, learning and cultivating the best possible cut flowers for growing at home. If you want to grow your own cut flowers, there could be no better guide in the world. The book ties-in with an eight-part five-minute mini-series on Gardeners' World in spring 2002. Grow Your Own Cut Flowers is for the flower arranger who wants to grow their own flowers, but has never gardened before, and for the gardener who knows how to grow their own flowers, but wants ideas to fill their house with their harvest.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #107984 in Books
• Published on: 2002-02-21
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 144 pages

Review
Everyone loves cut flowers in the house but many gardeners are loathe to cut flowers from their own gardens for fear of diminishing the dispay outside. Sarah Raven, doyenne of the cutting garden, attempts to dispel that myth in "Grow Your Own Cut Flowers", showing how the choice of plants grown affects their cutting and reflowering abilities thus getting the best of both worlds. From small town gardens to larger country gardens such as Sarah's, annuals, biennials and bulbs can be grown in such a way as to provide fresh cut flowers throughout the year. Either interspersed amongst existing borders or grown separately in a cutting garden, beautiful arrangements can be simply made whilst leaving a still colourful border intact. Easy to read, although at times more advanced than necessary for a newcomer, it gives clear instructions on how to grow the best plants, both floral and foliar, from seed, cuttings, bulbs and tubers. Cutting garden designs are included along with the best methods of sowing and aftercare. Comprehensive plant lists follow each plant type with descriptions, roles and uses together with any specific growing requirements. The book ends on examples of flower arranging and their techniques in typical Raven style - original, eclectic, bold and absolutely stunning. Beautifully photographed at Sarah Raven's house in Perch Hill, Sussex by Jonathan Buckley, the photographs inspire the reader to find out how they too can create such arrangements for themselves. As Sarah says in her introduction, "it is the generous gardener who has the most flowers" and by growing the plants in this book not only will you have a house full of flowers but a garden full too.

Customer Reviews

Not what I thought
I just thought I would write a review for this book incase anyone makes the same mistake as me. I bought this book thinking that it would be a comprehensive guide to growing cut flowers with detailed information on lots of plants, cultivation, disease, storage, etc. For someone who wants specialst advice, has gardening knowledge and who wants more detail and information on producing cut flowers this is not the book for you. However although a lovely book,this is more a book for someone who likes to look at nice pictures, wants a brief idea of how to lay out their back garden to grow a few detailed flowers for their kitchen table. The idea is great but if you are passionate and wnat more than a browsing book I think this one may let you down - if you have average gardening knowledge, an idea of flowers you like and know how to continually cut flowers so they keep producing over a long season, then this book won't give you any more useful information. It would be good for someone who has never contemplated cutting a flower before and needs to be tempted to do so.

"practical as well as inspirational"
This is a follow on to 'The Cutting Garden', not an alternative version. It reflects Sarah Raven's concentration on growing bulbs, annuals and biennials to give cut and come again flowers for the house. As well as beautiful and inspirational photographs there are masses of practical tips, clear instructions and an honesty about what Sarah Raven has learned from experience. Her views on planting distances, feeding plants and siting bulbs have changed during since writing 'The Cutting Garden' and the results of her experiments appear here.
An enjoyable and encouraging book to read while dreaming of harvesting armfuls of flowers.

Refreshing, modern and inspirational
I picked up this book because of the vivid colours on the front and was not disappointed with the insides. This is a brilliant and stylish guide to growing flowers, in your garden and even in windowboxes, and to cutting and arranging them for the house and for friends. The plant lists are particularly good, with tips and recommendations from Sarah Raven, who has such a warm, personal writing style, and pictures of every one mentioned. The book focuses on the simple aesthetics of flowers - colour, smell and texture - with stunning pictures, many of them taken from Sarah's own garden. All in all this is a highly original book, full of ideas and practical information, but a joy to look at as well.