Research flowers to plant

[dwightbiddle]

We should determine the following:

Which types of flowers do we want (and how many)? Where do we want to plant the flowers that will stay planted?

When this task is complete, the "Plant Flowers" task can be passed to Mom and Dad

[sallyhutch]

Here are 2 flowers that come to mind. Dahlias - Look at google images of dahlias and see if you like them. There are lots of varieties and colors. They are the flower that pop-pop liked to grow, they bloom in late summer and fall, and they are long lasting as cut flowers (when put in a vase with water). Zinnias - are a simple country flower and I plant them for grandma baltzell every year so she can make flower arrangements when she visits september.

[Martinalanz]

So I googled them both and I am confused because there are very different pictures of them. Which one is it? The big one? I realized I like small flowers better, like Daisy's. I will google some flowers and upload pictures.

[sallyhutch]

Sorry. I forgot that there are so many different types of dahlias and zinnias. The ones I was thinking of are called single flowered, which means they only have one layer of petals (like a daisy). I thought of dahlias and zinnias because I have planted them before, so I know that they grow here, I know that they have flowers in September, and I know they keep well in flower arrangements.

Here is a sample of some single flowered zinnias: http://www.burpee.com/flowers/zinnias/single-flowered-zinnia/

and here are some single flowered dahlias: https://www.google.com/search?q=single+flowered+dahlia&rlz=1C2CHFX_enUS528US528&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=LL3OUso206exBJ_egeAM&ved=0CE0QsAQ&biw=1600&bih=775#q=single+dahlia&tbm=isch

Of course there are other flowers we could plant. On a search for "flowers for fall cutting" I found: Goldenrod, Russian Sage, Coneflower, Aster, Toad Lily, Chrysanthemum, Blue spirea, Helenium, and of course, Sunflowers. There are probably lots more. I will ask my gardening friends for their suggestions. If you find a flower that you really like (on this list or off) let me know and I will research to see if it will grow here, bloom at the right time, and stay fresh looking after it is cut. The sunflowers should work, others I would have to research. By the way, I think most daisies are done blooming in August, but maybe there is a variety that blooms in September. Wait, I just googled fall blooming daisies and there ARE daisies that bloom in September,

[Martinalanz]

Thanks for all the flower suggestions

so I looked them up and I like the following

• Coneflower
• Aster
• Helenium
• sun flowers

Then I found the following ones that bloom in september as well:

• Gerbera
• Alstromeria
• Baby's breath (like them a lot)
• Freesia
• Star of Bethlehem (like them a lot)

I am assuming we can talk about the color once we found some flower types, right? I am very weird when it come to flower bouquets....I prefer one or max. two colored bouquets.

[DavidPBiddle]

I did a quick check on the flowers you listed and it looks like it is possible to grow them here. Although some may be more difficult to grow than others. Especially the Gerber daisy, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't try. http://thedailysouth.southernliving.com/2010/08/31/why-cant-i-grow-gerberas/ We can try planting whatever you like and see what succeeds. There is no harm in having too many flowers growing in the field.

I don't think it is weird to only want one or two colors. That can look quite nice. Once you decide on which flowers and colors you want, there will still be decisions to make. Each flower usually has many varieties to choose from!

[sallyhutch]

I've done some more research and now I need to know what colors you want. Almost any color is possible, so tell me what you really want.

[dwightbiddle]

We would like half white, and the other half all pastel colors (pink, blue, yellow, etc)