Happy Easter! Plot Update, Acquiring Perennials on a Budget, Tummy Troubles & Keeping Mint Contained

04/18/25 • 20 min

Happy Easter! It's 8pm on Good Friday, 18 April 2025 and I'm on the plot.

It has definitely not been my week! After the water debacle on Tuesday I managed to get a tummy bug which has been unpleasant and this afternoon I wasn't even able to leave the house because of it. And whilst I've had tummy trouble all week I've had to do some regular gardening to get some cash in the door which has meant that I haven't been sowing any more seed this week.

I haven't done a review of what's growing on the plot for a while so this episode is me chatting through what's doing what. I talk about my perennials and where I got them from, plus how to grow your own perennials on a budget. I chat about the importance of keeping mint contained (mint makes great foliage), espaliering apple trees and interplanting flowers with garlic bulbs to maximise planting opportunities.

In this episode, join me for a review of what's growing on the plot this week.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

✅ How this week has really turned out not to be my week!

✅ A review of what's growing on the plot

✅ How to acquire perennials if you don't have much money

✅ Whether or not I should sow more Verbena bonariensis

✅ Why Agapanthus need to be grown in pots rather than the ground

✅ How interplanting flowers with garlic bulbs is a great space-saving idea

🌻 Follow & Stay Connected!

If you like what you hear, please follow the podcast so you never miss an episode. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review – it really does help more flower lovers find the show.

Follow me on instagram @henhillcutflowers for a behind-the-scenes look at life on my cut flower plot.

Join me on my journey through a year of growing and selling cut flowers. I'm going to give you the low-down on what it's really like, how I'm getting started, what you do and don't need, what I do when and why, the successes and failures, and just about everything in between. All in real time. With guest appearances from my chickens every now and then.

Happy Easter! It's 8pm on Good Friday, 18 April 2025 and I'm on the plot.

In this episode, join me for a review of what's growing on the plot this week.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

✅ How this week has really turned out not to be my week!

✅ A review of what's growing on the plot

✅ How to acquire perennials if you don't have much money

✅ Whether or not I should sow more Verbena bonariensis

✅ Why Agapanthus need to be grown in pots rather than the ground

✅ How interplanting flowers with garlic bulbs is a great space-saving idea

🌻 Follow & Stay Connected!

If you like what you hear, please follow the podcast so you never miss an episode. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review – it really does help more flower lovers find the show.

Follow me on instagram @henhillcutflowers for a behind-the-scenes look at life on my cut flower plot.

Previous Episode

First Epic Disaster of the Year, Splitting Dahlias, Cornflowers & Sweetpeas Get Planted Out

It's Tuesday 15 April 2025 and this week has started really badly: I left a tap running last night and managed to drain my two full water bowsers. Overnight I've lost over a thousand litres of water. The timing is awful and I'm very disappointed in myself.

I also managed to forget to close the greenhouse door last night, which is not like me. Luckily we didn't have a frost so everyone was fine but it could have been a lot worse. So this episode is a bit low-key as you'll probably be able to tell from my voice that I'm really sad about the water loss.

I have managed to successfully split many of my dahlia tubers from my dahlia mentor, Richard Bailey, and there's more to do today. I've planted out my cornflowers (there's a reel on insta @henhillcutflowers) and also my sweetpeas, which had lovely roots sticking out of the bottom of their toilet rolls. I've also sown more zinnias and cornflowers.

Other dramas this week include the difficulty of finding a 4m-long pole saw in the South of England (it's impossible) and an issue with my little dog. The episode ends on a more positive note with my plans for potting up the final few dahlia tubers and the seeds I will be succession sowing this afternoon using my new (and very clever) sowing chart.

In this episode, join me for the first of the disasters on the plot.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

✅ How I managed to lose 1,400 litres of rainwater overnight

✅ The dahlia tubers I've been splitting

✅ What to do when you don't have sulfur powder to cover cuts on tubers

✅ How grateful I am to hear from you and why your messages are so lovely

✅ Where you can see a video of my cornflower seedlings (@henhillcutflowers)

🌻 Follow & Stay Connected!

If you like what you hear, please follow the podcast so you never miss an episode. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review – it really does help more flower lovers find the show.

Follow me on instagram @henhillcutflowers for a behind-the-scenes look at life on my cut flower plot.

Next Episode

Pros & Cons: Seed Scattering or Straight Lines? Dahlias Straight in the Ground or Potted On First? Zinnias: no cons, only pros

It's a sunny lunchtime on Tuesday 22 April 2025 and I'm basking in the warmth of the greenhouse.

I'm busy sowing more seeds and today I'm discussing the pros and cons of two different sowing styles: scattergun approach or straight lines. Which one do you use? I prefer the straight lines method as I can count how many plants I have and each plant can stay in its tray for longer before going on the plot, which saves time. But you can't fit as many seeds in each tray so you end up needing more trays which takes up more space.

Prepping beds: everyone has their own technique. I do the "no dig" method to avoid disturbing the soil structure but I always remove perennial weeds first, even if I'm only sowing annuals. Then I add lots of organic material, either compost or old chicken bedding. I answer a question about when I plant my dahlias outside and talk about a different technique that a pro-grower in the UK uses and why. There are pros and cons to all of this and I'll talk about them.

I talk about a wedding that the florist I'm going to be selling to this year has just done and how amazing the flowers looked. She is an incredibly talented florist. Are my flowers going to be good enough for her? YES! They are!

I end with an update of what's happened on the plot since the last episode and why I'm so excited about my zinnias this year. I hope that your growing week is going brilliantly!

In this episode, join me to discuss some pros and cons of things.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

✅ What's your sowing style: scattergun or straight lines?

✅ How I prep my beds on the plot

✅ Benefits of "no dig" method

✅ When to plant dahlias outside

✅ Keep reminding yourself of your Unique Selling Point

✅ Why Zinnias make great cut flowers

🌻 Follow & Stay Connected!

If you like what you hear, please follow the podcast so you never miss an episode. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review – it really does help more flower lovers find the show.

Follow me on instagram @henhillcutflowers for a behind-the-scenes look at life on my cut flower plot.