EARLY BLOOMERS GROW GUIDE

Welcome to the El Serrano “Early Bloomers Kit” member area. We are excited to be sharing the following cut flower varieties with you for the 2022 growing season. We started these all for you from seed, some of which have been growing for a few months already so that you have the longest frame of bloom time as our climate will allow.

To help you succeed in your growing endeavours, we have compiled growing and care information for each of the flowers we have chosen for this year. We have pinched those that prefer to be pinched and have hardened them off (meaning they have been exposed to the elements to toughen them up for preparation to go into the ground. When you bring them home, they are ready to be planted into your garden as soon as you are ready to do so. They should be ok to sit for a few days before planting if you are not able to tackle them right away as well. You will receive 2-3 of each of the flowers listed below (30 total.) This will give you a nice supply of each variety to fill your garden and your vases all summer long.

2022 Cutting Garden Varieties

Rudbeckia: Hirta

Scientific Name: Rudbeckia hirta
Plant type: Annual, however ours perennialized in an uncovered area, so you may want to leave yours in the ground to see if it comes back.
Plant Spacing: 12-18”
Pinching: Not necessary
Exposure: Sun
Soil Needs: Pretty happy and resilient in even poor soil. Well drained would be a plus.
Support Needs: None
Water needs: Drought tolerant although shouldn’t be bone dry. Water when the top of the soil feels dry. Don’t let the soil get waterlogged and muddy as it’s prone to rot.
Harvest: Fresh: before blooms are completely open. Dried: when blooms are completely open.
Notes: Deadhead (remove blooms) to promote continual flowering. Will produce all summer long, although the later season may produce shorter stems. Cut and come again, so it will continue producing when cut.
Yarrow: Parker's Variety

Scientific Name: Achillea millefolium
Plant type: Perennial
Plant Spacing: 12-24”
Pinching: Not necessary
Exposure: Sun
Soil Needs: Any well drained soil
Support Needs: None
Water needs: Drought tolerant. Water around once per month. Once it has established, it will be fine with just the natural rainfall.
Harvest: Fresh: Harvest when pollen is visible on the flowers. Cut in the coolest part of the day.
Notes: Cut or dried flower. Continue to deadhead to encourage continuous blooms. Because this is a perennial it may take longer to establish and bloom.
Cosmos: Xanthos

Scientific Name: Cosmos bipinnatus
Plant type: Annual
Plant Spacing: 9-12”
Pinching: Yes, however we have taken care of this for you.
Exposure: Sun
Soil Needs: Any soil.
Support Needs: staking or corralling helps keep them from falling over and helps with wind.
Water needs: Water regularly (especially as they are getting established) however they are fairly resilient and don’t like to be over-watered or over fertilized.
Harvest: When petals are just opening but not yet flattened.
Notes: This is a cut and come again variety, so deadhead (remove blooms) to promote continual flowering.
Zinnia: Queeny Lime with Blush

Scientific Name: Zinnia spp.
Plant type: Annual
Plant Spacing: 9-12”
Pinching: Yes, however we have taken care of this for you.
Exposure: Full sun
Soil Needs: Fertile soil rich in organic matter, so adding a little compost to your soil before planting would make them happy.
Support Needs: None
Water needs: Zinnias like a good drink of water a few times a week. Put your fingers down into the soil. It should be nice and damp 6-8” deep. Do not water (especially if your soil is clay) as they can get rot.
Harvest: Before completely open. Stem is firm from point of cut to just below the bloom. If you pinch below the bloom and it feels hollow, it is not ready to harvest.
Notes: Cut and come again flower, so the more you cut, the more they will continue producing all summer long.
Zinnia: Queen Red Lime

Scientific Name: Zinnia spp.
Plant type: Annual
Plant Spacing: 9-12”
Pinching: Yes, however we have taken care of this for you.
Exposure: Full sun
Soil Needs: Fertile soil rich in organic matter, so adding a little compost to your soil before planting would make them happy.
Support Needs: None
Water needs: Zinnias like a good drink of water a few times a week. Put your fingers down into the soil. It should be nice and damp 6-8” deep. Do not water (especially if your soil is clay) as they can get rot.
Harvest: Before completely open. Stem is firm from point of cut to just below the bloom. If you pinch below the bloom and it feels hollow, it is not ready to harvest.
Notes: Cut and come again flower, so the more you cut, the more they will continue producing all summer long.
Snapdragon: Potomac Orange

Scientific Name: Antirrhinum majus
Plant type: Annual
Plant Spacing: 4-12”
Pinching: I have already pinched these for you, so now they should grow into a bushier plant with lots of stems, rather than one long stem.
Exposure: Sun/Part Shade
Soil Needs: Rich, well-drained, moist soil. pH: Neutral soil is preferred.
Support Needs: Staking or corralling is suggested to support them as they grow taller.
Water needs: Need a good amount of watering. 1” of water per week when there is no rain. Drip irrigation or watering directly at the root is best. Avoid overhead water.
Harvest: When florets on lower 1/3-1/2 are open.
Notes: Cut and come again flower, so the more you cut, the more they will continue producing all summer long.
Snapdragon: Potomac Lavender

Scientific Name: Antirrhinum majus
Plant type: Annual
Plant Spacing: 4-12”
Pinching: I have already pinched these for you, so now they should grow into a bushier plant with lots of stems, rather than one long stem.
Exposure: Sun/Part Shade
Soil Needs: Rich, well-drained, moist soil. pH: Neutral soil is preferred.
Support Needs: Staking or corralling is suggested to support them as they grow taller.
Water needs: Need a good amount of watering. 1” of water per week when there is no rain. Drip irrigation or watering directly at the root is best. Avoid overhead water.
Harvest: When florets on lower 1/3-1/2 are open.
Notes: Cut and come again flower, so the more you cut, the more they will continue producing all summer long.
Daucus: Dara

Scientific Name: Daucus carota
Plant type: Annual
Plant Spacing: 3-12”
Pinching: Not necessary.
Exposure: Sun
Soil Needs: Average, well-drained soil. Established plants will tolerate dry soils.
Support Needs: May be needed in windy areas, however we didn’t provide any for ours and they did great.
Water needs: 1” per week. More during dry spells.
Harvest: Before 80% of flowers are open tends to reduce the uptake of water and cause the flowers to wilt.
Notes: This is a one and done flower, which means once it is cut it will not produce more blooms like the cut and come again varieties do.
Amaranth: Red Spike

Scientific Name: Amaranthus spp.
Plant type: Annual
Plant Spacing: 12-15". For upright, plume type stems. 3-6" for thinner, more managable stems.
Pinching: Yes, and we have taken care of this for you.
Exposure: Sun
Soil Needs: Well-drained soil.
Support Needs: May require some staking, however we did not find they needed it.
Water needs: Drought tolerant plant. 1” per week. More during dry spells. Do not over water. We find this is about 3 x per week for 20 minutes depending on how hot it is outside.
Harvest: Harvest when at least 3/4 of the flowers on the inflorescence are open.
Notes: Can be fresh or dried.
Strawflower Orange

Scientific Name: Bracteantha bracteata
Plant type: Annual
Plant Spacing: 10-12”
Pinching: Not necessary
Exposure: Full sun
Soil Needs: Average, well drained soil
Support Needs: Provide stake support if necessary.
Water needs: Do not let get water logged as they are prone to rot with excess water. Drip or hose water them when the soil is mostly dried out.
Harvest: When 2-3 layers of petals have opened. Harvest on a bright morning to ensure they are ready for harvest as overripe blooms close at night or overcast days and can appear to be ready for harvest. Overripe blooms can be discarded.
Notes: Excellent dried flower. They are also cut and come again, which means they will continue producing blooms after they have been cut.
Strawflower Antique White

Scientific Name: Bracteantha bracteata
Plant type: Annual
Plant Spacing: 10-12”
Pinching: Not necessary
Exposure: Full sun
Soil Needs: Average, well drained soil
Support Needs: Provide stake support if necessary.
Water needs: Do not let get water logged as they are prone to rot with excess water. Drip or hose water them when the soil is mostly dried out.
Harvest: When 2-3 layers of petals have opened. Harvest on a bright morning to ensure they are ready for harvest as overripe blooms close at night or overcast days and can appear to be ready for harvest. Overripe blooms can be discarded.
Notes: Excellent dried flower. They are also cut and come again, which means they will continue producing blooms after they have been cut.

FAQs

Do I need to fertilize these?

They do benefit from some light fertilizing (no more than once per week.) We use “Neptune’s Harvest” which they sell at the Coop or Feeds N’ Needs. You dilute one tablespoon of fish fertilizer per one gallon of water. Diluting is important.

What do you recommend for watering sources?

Most flowers do not enjoy being watered from overhead, and in some cases it can lead to disease and pest issues. They prefer to be watered from the bottom, so drip irrigation or water being poured at the base of the stalk is ideal.

What do you suggest for pest management?

Pests are definitely a battle with gardening, and there is no guarantee that you won’t have your own issues with this based on your particular area, soil and other factors. The good news is that you are receiving plants that are already a bit further along in their growth and are past their super tender stage where they are tantalizing to the pests. If you have access to any row covers, I find this helps in the early days of putting them in the ground to give them a good head start. Once they are toughened up, they tend to not have as many issues. Having said that, checking on them in the early morning is ideal. Check for slugs and remove them, many non-beneficial insects can be removed by hand and put into a bucket of soapy water. I try to plant other flowers such as allysum, marigolds, nasturtium, borage and phacelia. They can act to attract the beneficial bugs that can take care of the unwanted bugs for you, or they can act to attract the nasty bugs away from the plants you want to thrive… being somewhat of a sacrifice. Weed management is also another important line of defence, so keep on top of this early as possible… the struggle is definitely real.

Will these come back next year?

The rudbeckia and yarrow should come back next year, so plant those in a location where you can remember and not pull up in the fall. The annuals will not come back next year, so should be pulled before they go to seed. You can also let them go to seed or do seed collecting if that appeals to you, however I don’t go into that here as it’s a whole other topic.

What will you have for next year?

For the early bloomers garden sets, we want to make sure that what we provide to you are flowers that we have grown successfully and that also work well together. Each year we are growing new varieties and different variations of varieties, so each year our selection will look be different. We will be following up to get feedback from you on which ones you enjoyed and which weren’t your favourites, so we can refine our selections as we progress with this program.