When planning to grow a cut flower garden, I learned that in order to stay organized it is super helpful to plan by weeks of the year instead of dates. If you know me, I am a planner and can be extremely detail oriented. Who are my “Type A” people?
Another important detail in regards to planning for a cut flower garden is your USDA growing zone’s last and first frost dates. Bargersville, IN is Zone 5B meaning the last frost date is around the last week of April and the first frost date is around the second week of October. This is a ballpark as Indiana weather can get quite interesting. We have seen all 4 seasons in one day… the benefits of Midwest weather.
In celebration of our expected last frost date happening this week, I am going to show you a small glimpse into what the weeks leading up this week looked like for me!
Week 1 (January 2-January 8): This dream of having a cut flower garden and selling flowers popped back into my mind. After some thought and talking to Clayton (my husband) and my parents, I decided the timing was perfect to go “all in.”
Week 2 (January 9-January 15): I started researching all things cut garden. I utilized so many different resources, blogs, books, and YouTube channels to help get me on track. Floret Farms was definitely my inspiration and go to when it came to planning. I spent countless hours planning and redoing previous plans. I placed all of my seed orders from Johnny’s Seeds, Floret Farms, and I also got some seeds at some local stores.
Week 3 (January 16-January 22): I accomplished more planning and re-planning… I think Clayton thinks I might have gone crazy.
Week 4 (January 23-January 29): I set up my seed growing area. We bought a 4 tier wire rack, grow lights, seed starter trays, seed starter mix, and heat mats from our local Menards. If you don’t know us, we love us some Menards. Doesn’t it feel like Christmas when you get those 11% rebates back? This week things started to get real for me, it actually was happening! After setting up my grow area I sowed my first seeds: snapdragons.
Week 5 (January 30-February 5): I accidentally sowed sweet peas too early… whoops. Anyways, did you know you are supposed to soak the seeds in water for 24hrs before sowing? They swell up with water and it softens their outer shell that helps aid in germination. BIG things happened this week, I had my first snapdragon seedlings emerge! I could’ve cried.
Week 6 (February 6-February 12): One thing that has been consistent throughout my research is the importance of your soil. If your soil is not able to provide the plants with the proper nutrients they need to thrive, then you might be in trouble when it comes time to plant. It makes sense, right? This week I collected soil from different areas of my garden beds and sent it off for a soil analysis. Additionally, we got warm spell (Indiana weather) and decided it was perfect timing to till up the areas that will become the garden beds of SH Stems. We rented a rear tine tiller and went to work. If you’ve ever used a rear tine tiller they are amazing and saved us so much time with prepping our beds. I do have to give Clayton lots of credit for doing most of heavy machinery work. He’s the best. This week I was able envision how beautiful everything is going to look this summer, I simply cannot wait!
Week 7 (February 13- February 19): This week kicked off start of sowing multiple different seeds. It has been so cool for me to see how each of the seeds are so different from each other, which ones require light or darkness for germination, and the temperature requirements for germination. Also, I figured out I had made some boo boos when it came to starting seedlings. I didn’t realize that once the seeds start to sprout is when you take of humidity dome. Also, the grow light needs to be 2-4” from seedlings. I knew I would definitely make some mistake along the way and here we are. Hopefully some extra humidity and lack of initial light won’t come to bite me in the long run. If there one thing I have learned from this process is you can always restart, especially when it comes starting seeds.
Week 8 (February 20- February 26): I sowed some more different seeds including bupleurum. Did you know they should be placed in the freezer as they require cold stratification to help speed up the germination process? Me either, lol. I also am going to try to see if a process using milk jugs to “winter sow” will help with germination. Only time will tell at this point.
Week 9 (February 27- March 5): I started lots of seeds this week, even restarted the lovely sweet peas.
Week 10 (March 6-March 12): I quickly realized that I’m going to need more space for my seedling trays... made a quick trip to you guessed it, Menards. I got another wire rack and ordered some more grow lights.
Week 11 (March 13- March 19): I have started to notice that my seedlings just aren’t growing as quickly as compared to other cut flower farmers. I have been good at keeping up with watering and ensuring the little babies are getting about 16 hours of light. I am starting to wonder that my grow lights aren’t strong enough to help my little seedlings continue to grow. I went back to the drawing board and did some research. I think my gut feeling is correct. I ordered some LED shop lights from Amazon that other cut flower farmers have used. After setting up the new lights, I think I’m going to have to wear sunglasses in the seedling room because emits so much light.
Week 12 (March 20 -March 26): We went on a family vacation for Spring Break this week! Luckily my mom was able to come over and take care of all of the little seedlings while I was gone. I am so very thankful for my mom and our supportive family.
Week 13 (March 27- April 2): I ordered 4.5 yards of compost to be delivered this week! That is a lot of….manure. Luckily my husband was willing to help me spread the compost to all of the flower beds, he is simply the best. I also was able to get all of my landscape fabric prepped and ready to go this week as well. My husband and I made metal templates for me to use when creating plant spacing holes into the landscape fabric. We created 4 different templates for my plant spacing: 6x6, 9x9, 12x12 and 18x18. I then used a torch and was able to burn holes into the landscape fabric very quickly and efficiently. This will ensure all of the plants have their appropriate spacing while also helping with weed control. Lastly, I am able to tell a difference in my seedlings with changing my lights to LED shop lights. I went through my sweet pea seedlings and “pinched” them to promote the plant to grow side shoots to allow for a greater harvest. Fingers crossed they continue to grow!
Week 14 (April 3- April 9): I started lots of seeds this week, including some summer time favorites- zinnias and dahlias. I am starting to plan for what the upcoming weeks will be looking like as we are nearing our last frost date.
Week 15 (April 10-April 16): The weather this week is unbelievably beautiful, which will allow for lots of needed work to happen! With the help from Clayton we were able to set up the drip irrigation system and place all of the landscape fabric out in the beds. Everything is starting to come together and I am just so happy to see my dreams become a reality. This week I also began the process of hardening off my sweet peas and stock. These flowers are called hardy annuals which means they can tolerate cooler temperatures. Hardening off is the process of getting the plant used to being outside, getting used to the sun’s UV rays, and tolerating the different temperature swings. It allows for the plant to get acclimated to being outside and not get shocked once they are placed in the ground.
Week 16 (April 17-April 23): The sweet peas and stock are going in the ground! I repeat, the sweet peas and stock are going in the ground! Prior to planting, I set up a trellis for the sweet peas to climb up as they are climbers. I spent a lot of this week getting all of my seedlings organized. Some of them needed to be thinned and repotted into larger containers. Lots of quality time was spent ensuring my little seedlings have what they need to continue to grow! As of April 20, 2023 SH Stems is officially considered a legal business. Let me tell you, the legal side of things is way out of my realm.
Week 17 (April 24-April 30): EXPECTED LAST FROST DATE IS THIS WEEK! We did get some frost earlier this week, fingers crossed it is in fact the last frost. My sweet peas and stock handled everything pretty well and didn’t seem too affected. They are considered hardy annuals, so they can take some frost no problem. Like last week, organization is the theme of this week. All of my racks in my growing room are completely full and I am continuing to thin and repot my seedlings. We are having some mild weather this week so I will start the hardening off process with some of the plants that will be ready to plant outside within the next couple of weeks. Additionally, this week I put my dahlia tubers in pots to get them a head start on growing.
17 weeks have gone WAY too fast, but I can't wait to get my seedlings in the ground, watch them continue to grow and finally bloom! The sweet surprises of summer is just around the corner.
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