Floret Farm's Cut Flower Garden

A very colourful book with great photographs of flowers in Washington State, USA. Still useful for growers in the UK as there are useful guidelines for a wide range of cut flowers. Experienced growers may not find much beyond the range of species that they already grow but they can still enjoy the colours.

What a fantastic book. I am one of the many that have pre-ordered this book, making it the number one best-seller in its category on amazon even before it was published. I first came across the author on her blog, having done a google search on a particular flower. Her generous and informative style there should have forewarned me of what to expect, but I am still blown away by this heavy-weight and inspirational book about how to grow, harvest and arrange arrange seasonal flowers accompanied by the most beautiful photography. This is not the only book I own on this subject, but is definitely more in-depth than the others. Whilst there are the expected and useful types of flowers that can be grown in each season, including Erin's favourite varieties, the list is much broader than in my other books. For example, using flowering branches, winter forcing branches, delicate-flowered bulbs, fruits and foliage, vegetables, vines, and grains and pods. I particularly like her 'vase life tricks' at the end of each individual entry. This includes details such as at what stage to pick the flower, whether the flower is likely to unfurl or the stem to lengthen after picking and how long each bloom will last, as well as information like wearing gloves to protect against irritant sap. Her growing seasons/climate in the Washington state appear to be similar to mine in the UK. However, the information she provides on, for example, timing for seed sowing can be used anywhere because as she explains, your growing season is determined by your region's dates of first and last frosts, so you count forward or back from those dates to work out how to get the most from your seasons by successional sowing. All in all, this is an incredibly inspirational and rigorously practical book on growing, packed full of detail with wonderful images showing both individual flowers varieties and completed projects. Once I have got over the sheer joy of simply reading it I can foresee me referring to it time and time again as my most valuable reference book on the subject and the productivity of my garden with go through the roof! I am so looking forward to this growing year. Well done Erin!

This is an outstanding book. Erin goes through each stage of how to plant, where to plant and when to plant. It's the most useful book I've read. I love the matt finish of the pages and it smells lovely (for a bookaholic like me!) I would give it more than 5* if possible. The only suggestion I would make to slightly improve the usability of the book, would be to have a ribbon book mark attached to the inside spine - so you don't loose your place!!

Beautiful and inspirational book, really enjoying dipping in and out of it. Gorgeous photographs and useful tips for conditioning flowers. Whether it's worth the almost 8 week delivery delay is debatable. Had almost given up hope. Just a small word of caution for the British reader - I naively hadn't realised Americans don't necessarily use the same names for flowers as we Brits. Wasn't too much of an issue as it's obvious from the photographs what they are talking about if you know your flowers, but because of this I'm not sure it would be much good for a flower novice.

A beautiful book and full of generous tips. A MUST for anyone thinking of starting a cut flower farm but also a good read for someone who just loves growing flowers. The photos tell a story and are great.

I bought this as a gift for friends as it covered both their interests in their beautiful garden

I have read and re-read Erin's beautiful book and open it again and again for tips on flower conditioning, choice of annuals to plant, distance between plants, ideas about flower arrangements etc... I cannot thank her enough for being so generous with her knowledge, she doesn't keep back, she shares good and bad, the instructions are clear, in short a jewel of a book! can't wait for her second book to come out!!

Brilliant book. No complaints. Informative with great tips

The book is perfect for any gardener.

It covers soil amending, seasonal tasks, plants, maintenance and projects etc. Beautiful photographs to inspire you. Certainly has for me!

Erin Benzakein is a pioneering farmer-florist and advocate for locally grown flowers. Having learned her trade through trial and error (read: blood, sweat, and tears), she has bestowed an incredible gift upon flower farmers and home gardeners alike with her first book, Floret Farm's Cut Flower Garden. The first thing you'll notice is how beautiful the book is. It's a work of creative art in its own right thanks to Michele M. Waite's gorgeous photos, and is well complemented by a clean, modern, and organized layout. In addition to its inherent beauty, it's also wildly substantial: Erin has packed over 300 pages of information between those beautiful covers! Basics are covered in the beginning. From garden planning and seed starting, to soil management and even tools. Next, you can browse by season for a tasks list, plant spotlights, and then projects including the author's signature natural floral designs. As a flower farmer-florist, you can bet this book will be in heavy rotation for both reference and inspiration. So far it's been equally at home on my lap by the fire and at my desk while planning for the growing season. For me, the seasonal organization is a lifesaver: I can quickly flip to whatever season I'm currently in to make sure I'm not forgetting any important tasks, or to gain a bit of inspiration. I'll also note how much I appreciate Erin's authenticity. For example, I was thrilled to see it printed on FSC-Certified paper. Well-used tools are photographed rather than shiny new props. You'll spy weeds and muddy farm boots, because, well, that's what farming and gardening entails. Thank you, Erin, for pouring your heart and soul into this work for farmers and gardeners around the world. I hope it inspires more people to get their hands dirty, and helps further our community's mission to cultivate a wider appreciation of, and demand for, local sustainably-grown flowers. (I received a courtesy copy from the publisher to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.)

Wunderschönes und lehrreiches Buch! Sehr zu empfehlen, wenn man am Anbau von Schnittblumen interessiert ist oder einfach Blumen im Garten ernten möchte!

Hermoso libro. La autora es Genial.