Bishy Barnabee’s Cottage Garden

Cutting Garden Seeds

Long stems, generous harvests, vase-ready blooms

Quick picks
Sow this monthSpring favouritesCut flowersFor the vasePollinatorsBees and butterfliesHardy annualsAutumn-sow readyEasy to growFirst-time friendlyUnder £2.50Stock up favourites
129 products
Close-up of Daucus Carota Dara by Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden—tall stems with pink and white clusters, blooming densely in sunlight. Ideal as a cut flower with blurred foliage and blue sky in the background.
Biennial

Daucus Carota Dara

The coloured wild carrot, and currently one of…

Sow: Mar–May · Sep–Oct
£2.40 View
A close-up of a white and pale yellow butterfly perched on a cluster of Didiscus Blue Lace flowers from Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden, with green foliage and another blurred flower bud in the background.
Annual

Didiscus Blue Lace

Flat lacy umbels in soft powder-blue on slender stems at 45 to 60cm

Sow: Feb–Apr
£2.50 View
A mezzaluna knife rests on a wooden board with chopped herbs—great for pickling—and fresh dill sprigs, perfect for planting Dill Bouquet seeds from Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden, beside a beige cloth.
Herb Seeds

Dill Bouquet

The dill the cutting garden grows

Sow: Mar–Jul
£2.15 View
Several Echinacea Bravado plants by Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden display rosy-purple blooms with orange-brown centers among lush green leaves, brightening the vibrant garden with more flowers and foliage in the background.
Perennial

Echinacea Bravado

Big rosy-purple daisies, ten to twelve centimetres across,…

Sow: Feb–Apr · Sep–Oct
£2.30 View
Feverfew by Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden Ltd features small white daisy-like flowers with yellow centers and green, serrated leaves, ideal for outdoor cottage gardens and often started from seed as a medicinal herb.
Perennial

Feverfew

Clouds of small white daisies with yellow button…

Sow: Feb–Apr · Sep
£2.30 View
A striking scarlet-red Geum Mrs Bradshaw flower from Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden Ltd blooms in a cottage garden, standing out among others along a mulch-covered path with green trees and a cloudy sky in the background.
Perennial

Geum Mrs Bradshaw

Scarlet semi-double ruffled flowers with a cluster of…

Sow: Feb–Apr · Sep
£2.30 View
Keep growing with us
Not sure where to start?
Try our curated seed boxes
Free growing guides
Written by our farm team
Pair with
Plant supports and propagators

Growing a cut flower patch — your questions answered

How big does a cutting patch need to be?

Surprisingly small. A two-metre by one-metre patch densely planted will keep a single household in cut flowers from June through October. Most cut flower growers plant intensively in rows or blocks, spacing tighter than the seed packet suggests — the plants support each other and the harvest per square metre goes up.

Which cut flowers are easiest for beginners?

Cosmos, zinnias, calendula, cornflowers, and sweet peas are the reliable starting five. They are forgiving, fast from seed, productive, and — importantly — they rebloom when cut. Avoid fussier choices like lisianthus or dahlias until you have a season under your belt and know your soil and conditions.

What is the secret to long vase life?

Cut early morning when stems are fully hydrated, plunge straight into a bucket of cool water, and recut the stems underwater before arranging. Strip any leaves that would sit below the waterline. Most cottage garden cut flowers will give you five to ten days in the vase with this treatment — longer than supermarket bouquets and considerably fresher.

When do I sow for cutting through summer?

Hardy annuals like cornflowers and ammi go in from March (or autumn-sown the previous September for stronger plants). Half-hardy annuals like cosmos and zinnias start indoors in April, planted out after the last frost. Sow a second batch of fast varieties in June for late-summer succession — it keeps the patch productive into October.