Digger Diaries | November-December 365 Days of Bouquets: A 12-Month Guide for Fresh Flowers All Year

Who doesn't love the beauty of fresh cut flowers?

It’s November. The clocks have fallen back, and the days have grown shorter. It may even seem like the garden is winding down. But here in the Deep South, November is no time to snooze for those who, like us, constantly crave the beauty of fresh-cut flowers in our homes.

For one thing, November is a great time to freshen beds and plant flowering trees, shrubs, bulbs, and perennials. For another, November is THE time to sow seeds for many of the best-loved April flowers! Wait until spring, and it’s too late.

Which got us thinking: With a little planning, even new gardeners can cultivate a never ending supply of fresh flowers to cut and enjoy indoors, all season long. So, today, we offer a planner of sorts. For each month of the year, we list flowers you could cut and enjoy indoors—and “plan-ahead” actions you could take then, for more flowers in the future.

Do you have to do it all? Goodness, no! That would be daunting, even for us! The point is, trying even just a few of these ideas will absolutely bring more flowers to your future. So polish your vases, sharpen your snips, and prepare for a year of bountiful bouquets.

Loamate Soil Enricher is a great amendment for heavy clay soils.

But first, let’s talk dirt!

Your flowers will only be as hardy and plentiful as the soil they are grown in will allow. Fortunately, in our region, November is an ideal time to prepare your beds and pots.

1. Prep your beds

For most of us in these parts, our native soil is heavy clay—or, further South, sand. Be it sand or clay, we typically recommend mixing ⅓ of our Loamate Soil Enricher to your native soil. The goal is to add nutrients for large, plentiful flowers, while balancing drainage for healthy roots. Your favorite independent nursery will be happy to guide you.

2. Freshen pots & containers

   Make sure the drainage hole is not clogged. When pots drain too fast or too slow, it stresses plants, and steals your blooms. Besides proper moisture, flowers need food. If soil from a previous season remains, remove the top 8" and replace with fresh soil. We do this because plants in pots are typically annuals, and annuals are typically heavy feeders—meaning, in order to bloom well, they need a lot of nutrients, so the soil in their pots can quickly become depleted. Our Digger’s Delight Premium Potting Soil  is designed just for this purpose, so flowers can flourish.

   
   

3. Mulch

Bare soil is fragile. It’s extremely vulnerable to dry out, washout, and compaction (not to mention, weeds!). Your beds and pots are not complete until they’re mulched! Look for a product like Penick Organics Flower & Garden Mulch—100% natural, biodegradable organic material that actually feeds the soil as it breaks down (rather than rob its nutrients, which some mulch products can do)

Now that we’ve given beds and pots their proper due, it’s time to dig in to the exciting possibilities!

Enjoy Fresh-Cut Flowers Indoors All Year with this 12-Month Planner:

NOVEMBER

Enjoy indoors: 

Note: Our first frost usually occurs from late October to mid-November. Plenty of flowers are blooming before the frost, so this list is for after the frost.

• Snapdragons (if planted in advance)

• Forced paperwhite bulbs (if begun in October)

• Ornamental grasses

• Evergreen branches (boxwood, holly, magnolia, pine, cedar, etc.)

• Evergreen leaves, like cast-iron plants

• Moss adds a forest-floor feel to the base of arrangements or looks sharp and modern featured alone in a shallow vessel

  

  Paperwhites are an easy flower to force in the winter months

Plan ahead:

• Force amaryllis & paper-white bulbs in early November for Christmas bloom

• Sow seeds for spring-blooming annuals—like bachelor button (cornflower), larkspur, and poppy. 

• Sow sweet pea seeds below a trellis for spring bloom (we like to do this every Thanksgiving!)

• Plant daffodil and leucojum bulbs outdoors for spring bloom

• Chill tulip and hyacinth bulbs

• Plant or sow native flowering plants—blackeyed Susans, brown-eyed Susans, purple coneflower, goldenrod, coreopsis, asters, etc.

• Divide and re-plant (or buy and plant) summer-blooming perennials like irises

• Plant flowering trees and shrubs—including roses, camellias, azaleas, hydrangeas, Japanese magnolias, etc.

Poinsettias are a beautiful addition to the holiday season.

DECEMBER

Enjoy indoors: 

• Snapdragons

• Float camellias in a shallow bowl

• Forced amaryllis, forced paperwhites (if begun in November)

• Pansies & violas (Tip: to display in a vase, shade slightly for “leggier” stems)

• Evergreen branches

• Ornamental grasses

• Moss

• Christmas cactus or poinsettia (hey—it’s OK to buy a plant or two!)

Plan ahead:

• In early December, force one last round of amaryllis and paper-whites for January bloom

• Between Christmas and New Year’s Day, plant pre-chilled tulips & hyacinths

• Plant flowering trees and shrubs

• Plant native columbine seeds for April bloom

Camellias are a gorgeous flower to enjoy indoors in the winter months. Float them in a shallow bowl to brighten any space.

JANUARY

Enjoy indoors:

• Snapdragons

• Float camellias in a shallow bowl

• Ornamental grasses

• Evergreen branches

• Moss

• Pansies & violas

• Forced amaryllis and forced paper-whites (if begun in December)

Plan ahead:

• Around New Year’s Day, plant pre-chilled tulip & hyacinth bulbs if you haven’t already

• Plant flowering trees and shrubs

Flowering quince is an early spring bloom that can be cut and brought indoors.

FEBRUARY

Enjoy indoors: 

• Early bulbs, like leucojum and some jonquils

• Float camellias in a shallow bowl

• Spiraea varieties, like Spiraea prunifolia, may begin blooming as early as February

• Flowering quince produces beautiful rose-like blooms on bare branches this time of year

• Snapdragons

• Pansies & violas

Plan ahead:

• Plant flowering trees and shrubs! Maybe you’re already wishing you had planted Flowering Quince or spiraea. Well, it’s not too late! 

While we can technically plant trees and shrubs any time of year in our region, we prefer to plant from November–February. This helps plants settle in and focus on establishing their roots during the dormant season. Secondly, we tend to have wet winters in the South. All that natural rainfall helps keep new plants watered (we’ll take that over spending summer evenings swatting mosquitoes and wiping sweat while watering any day!).

Daffodils bring some of the earliest spring color to the garden -- and the table.

MARCH

Enjoy indoors:

• Azaleas! Both native and Indica azaleas look beautiful this time of year.

• Bulbs like daffodils, jonquils, early tulips, and hyacinth

• Flowering shrubs like spiraea, flowering quince, and camellias

• Native woodland phlox

• Flowering trees like dogwood, redbud, and Japanese magnolias (remember to condition woody stems before placing them in a vase with a fresh cut and some short vertical slices through the bottom of the branch. Otherwise they can’t absorb the water!)

• Snapdragons

• A single fern frond (or even a fiddlehead) looks surprisingly chic in a bud vase

Plan ahead:

• Keep an eye out for local plant sales! Master gardeners, botanical gardens, and arboretums often host special plant sales each spring and fall. They’re a wonderful place to get interesting plants for your garden you might not otherwise find!

• Mulch beds and pots with a fresh 2-inch layer to prepare for oncoming heat! This will help your flowers stay prolific and perky, especially if you use a nutritious product like Penick Organics Flower & Garden Mulch.

Certain Peony varieties can thrive in the Deep South like 'Festiva Maxima'. Photo credit: Gina McLean.

APRIL

Enjoy indoors:

• Cool-season annuals like poppies, larkspur, and bachelor buttons (if planted in November)

• Native spring-blooming perennials like woodland phlox, Carolina phlox, columbine, and penstemon digitalis

• Ornamental perennials like daisies

• Bulbs like irises and late daffodils

• Shrubs like spirea…and ROSES!

• Peonies (if planted in the fall, at least two years prior)

• Really, what doesn’t bloom in April?

Plan ahead:

• Honestly, just enjoy April! It goes by in a flash, and there’s so much beauty to take in while it lasts. All that hard work from November til now is paying off!

• Then again, it’s not too late to plant gladiolus bulbs…

• In early April, plant dahlia tubers for fall bloom

MAY

Poppies and bachelor buttons are just a few springtime favorites that must be sown in the fall in order to germinate.

Enjoy indoors:

• Cool-season annuals like poppies, larkspur, and bachelor buttons (if planted in November)

• Native spring-blooming perennials like coreopsis, Carolina phlox, penstemon digitalis, black-eyed Susan, brown-eyed Susan, purple coneflower and yarrow

• Ornamental perennials like daisies

• Roses

• Sweet peas (if planted in November)

• Hydrangeas

• Irises

• Sunflowers

• Queen Anne’s lace

• Ferns 

Plan ahead:

• Sow warm-season annuals outdoors (zinnias, cosmos, celosia, sunflowers, marigolds)

• As the month wears on, the heat will make cool-season annuals stop blooming, set seed, and die. Collect the seeds (if desired) for re-planting next November!

In the summer, nothing says elegance like hydrangea blossoms on a cocktail tray.

JUNE

Enjoy indoors:

• Warm-season annuals like zinnias, cosmos, celosia, sunflowers, and marigolds

• Native spring-blooming perennials like coreopsis, Carolina phlox, black-eyed Susan, brown-eyed Susan, purple coneflower and yarrow

• Gladiolus

• Roses

• Sunflowers

• Amaryllis (if planted outdoors)

• Hydrangeas

• Queen Anne’s lace

• Ferns 

Plan ahead:

• If desired, start a second crop of zinnias in June, since the first crop will eventually become ragged looking as it reaches the end of its life cycle

• Plant spider lily bulbs for fall bloom (they may not bloom the first year after planting, however)

Gladiolus comes in too many colors to mention and are a summer favorite.

JULY

Enjoy indoors:

• Warm-season annuals like zinnias, cosmos, celosia, sunflowers, and marigolds

• Native spring-blooming perennials like coreopsis, black-eyed Susan, brown-eyed Susan, purple coneflower and yarrow

• Gladiolus

• Dahlias

• Hydrangeas

• Canna lilies

  
  

Plan ahead: 

• It’s not too late to plant a second crop of zinnias

• See what we mean about November? That’s really the month when we can make the biggest impact in our gardening year!

Dahlias are great in a vase by themselves or with other summer flowers. Photo credit: Gina McLean

AUGUST

Enjoy indoors:

• Warm-season annuals like zinnias, cosmos, celosia, sunflowers, and marigolds

• Native spring-blooming perennials like coreopsis, black-eyed Susan, brown-eyed Susan, purple coneflower and yarrow

• Tender perennials (if planted) like canna lilies, butterfly ginger, and salvias

• Dahlias

• Canna lilies

• Butterfly ginger (so fragrant!)

Plan ahead:

• Plant surprise lilies in late August

Black-eyed Susans are a prolific bloomer in the late summer. Photo credit: Gina McLean

SEPTEMBER

Enjoy indoors:

• Warm-season annuals like zinnias, cosmos, celosia, sunflowers, and marigolds

• Native spring-blooming perennials like coreopsis, black-eyed Susan, brown-eyed Susan, purple coneflower and yarrow

• Fall perennials like asters and salvias

• Tender perennials like canna lilies and butterfly ginger

• American beautyberry

• Spider lilies (they may not bloom the first year after they’re planted; be patient!)

• Dahlias

Plan ahead:

• Plant peony tubers for spring bloom (peonies may take two years to bloom)Divide (or buy and plant) daisies for spring bloom

• It’s not too late to plant surprise lilies

The bright pink berries of American Beautyberry add interest to any indoor arrangement.

OCTOBER 

Before the first frost, October is one of the absolute best times to enjoy indoor flowers! Hardy summer annuals (at least, the ones that survived the heat and dry spells) are perking back up, and putting out beautiful late-season blooms, right as fall perennials are joining the show. To top it off, ripening berries (like American beautyberry), ornamental grasses, changing leaves, and pinecones bring even more interest to indoor arrangements.

Enjoy indoors (until frost):

• Warm-season annuals like zinnias, cosmos, celosia, sunflowers, and marigolds

• Native spring-blooming perennials like coreopsis, black-eyed Susan, brown-eyed Susan, purple coneflower and yarrow

• Fall perennials like asters and salvias

• Tender perennials like canna lilies and butterfly ginger

• American beautyberry

• Roses! Again! (Often we find even our most persnickety roses perk up with fall’s cooler temperatures. In especially mild deep-South winters, our hardy drift roses have been known to bloom nonstop, never mind a little cold!)

Plan ahead: 

• Order bulbs like daffodils and tulips for arrival by November. Chill in the refrigerator according to instructions.

• Plant peony tubers for spring bloom (peonies may take two years to bloom)

• Plant flowering trees and shrubs 

• Plant or sow native flowering plants (like woodland phlox, Carolina phlox, and penstemon digitalis, which will bloom in spring!)

• For Thanksgiving blooms: Plant paperwhite bulbs in mid-to-late October

  
  

Making Cut Flowers Last Indoors:

These small steps can add days of life to your arrangement.

1. Start with a clean vase. Bacteria is the enemy of cut flowers, so give your container a quick wash with soap and water before filling.

2. Cut stems at an angle under water. This prevents air bubbles from blocking water uptake. Use a sharp blade.

3. Remove any leaves below the water line. Leaves sitting in water decompose quickly and shorten vase life.

4. Refresh the water every 2–3 days. A fresh drink helps flowers last longer.

5. Keep arrangements out of direct sunlight and away from heat vents. Warmth speeds up wilting.

   
   

When filling vases fills your cup:

For many of us, growing cut flowers is about more than filling vases. It’s about cultivating joy, both outdoors and in. Every plant you start carries the promise of a morning when you’ll walk into your garden, gather a handful of blooms, and bring them inside to brighten your day—or someone else’s! 

We’re just grateful that here in the beautiful deep South, in Zones 8 and 9, it’s a joy we can experience and share all year long.

Dig It? It's Grow time!