Hey all! Kathryn the Cedar Rapids wedding flower farming/ florist here!
Hehe. I think my title changes each blog post, but hey – business owners wear a multitude of hats!
Today I wanted to chat about the 5 best seasonal flowers that we grow during the summer. These are flowers that you could easily start in your own garden. Take a read!

Dahlias. Wow I love dahlias. 2022 was my first large scale growing period for dahlias. We grew about 800 and have been expanding ever sense! I love the color variety that you cannot find anywhere else in the floral world. Another amazing thing about dahlias is most wholesalers have a hard time shipping dahlias so it makes our little garden that much more unique!

Basil. Basil is one of my favorites to grow in the summer. First – they are a great filler for any arrangement. They come in different shades of green and purples! On top of that, they smell sooo amazing. Do you like the eucalyptus smell? Lemon Basil smells 15 times better. They are pretty cheap and easy to grow but they wilt easily if not treated well.

Zinnias. Zinnias are a classic that you can buy from just about any gardening store. They do the best directly seeded into the ground. I typically grow the whites and soft colors. I wouldn’t sleep on zins though. They come in such great transitional colors and are so abundant that you have to grow them every year!

Cosmos. Cosmos are another fan favorite. The reason I like them so much is that the more you cut from them the more they produce! They also grow to be 8 ft tall so you do not have to hurt your back while harvesting them. The only downside is that they grow so quickly that you have to stay on top of them or else it will turn into a very messy garden bed. They make the perfect addition to all arrangements as a fun little “flutter” piece.

Lisianthus. Lisianthus is by far my favorite flower in the garden. Their beauty is unmatched in color and craft. Their flowers are paper thin creating a translucent, gorgeous element to your arragement! You’d be surprised, but lisianthus stay fresh for about 2 weeks unlike most flowers who tap out at 7 – 8 days.
Again – we grow plenty of flowers in the summer, but these are some of my favorites.
Any questions? Let me know!
-Kathryn