This past week, as I wrapped up preorders for next spring’s Cut Flower Seedling Kit, I found myself thinking less about next year’s flowers and more about the gardens that are growing right now.

For those unfamiliar with it, each spring I send home a collection of approximately 40 cut flower seedlings that I’ve started here at the farm, giving gardeners a head start on growing their own little cutting garden without having to start everything from seed themselves.

As I was planning for next year, I reached out to this year’s gardeners because I wanted to know what their experience had actually been like.

What grew well? What didn’t? What surprised them?

I received quite a few responses, and what struck me wasn’t which flowers performed best.

It was what people had to say about growing them.

What Growing a Cut Flower Garden Really Teaches You

Some of our gardeners were complete beginners, while others had been gardening for years. Some had tremendous success with certain flowers and struggled with others.

And yes, more than a few people told me they killed some of their plants.

Welcome to gardening!

I’ve killed hundreds of plants over the years. Sometimes I know exactly what happened, and sometimes I still have no idea. More often than not, in my case, the culprit is either too much water or not enough.

But that’s part of growing.

A plant that doesn’t make it isn’t necessarily a failure. If we can figure out what happened, it becomes information we can use the next time.

Several gardeners told me their plants weren’t growing as quickly or becoming as robust as they expected. Often, the answer isn’t the plant itself but the environment around it.

Cut flowers generally want plenty of sunshine. Put them somewhere that doesn’t receive enough light and they may survive, but they’ll often struggle to thrive. Competition matters, too. Aggressive neighboring plants and weeds can steal water, nutrients, sunlight and growing space.

It’s one of the things I love about gardening: you’re always learning to pay attention.

The Real Joy of Growing Your Own Flowers

But those weren’t the responses that stayed with me the most.

Again and again, people told me how much they enjoyed simply having their own flowers to cut.

They loved walking outside, clipping a few stems and bringing them into the house. And when there were enough flowers, they could make a little bouquet for a friend, neighbor or family member.

One of our gardeners actually called me to tell me about her experience.

Her granddaughter had suddenly become ill and was hospitalized. During an incredibly difficult time for their family, she was able to walk into her own garden, cut flowers she had grown herself and bring them to her granddaughter in the hospital.

She told me how much it meant to her to be able to do that.

I’m very happy to share that her granddaughter has recovered and is doing well.

That story has stayed with me because I think it gets to the heart of why we grow flowers in the first place.

Of course, we want beautiful gardens. We want tall stems, healthy plants and armloads of blooms. We want the satisfaction of watching something we planted grow.

But sometimes the real reward is something we couldn’t have planned for when we first tucked those little seedlings into the ground.

It’s being able to walk outside and cut flowers for your kitchen table.

It’s bringing a bouquet to a neighbor who could use some cheering up.

It’s handing flowers to a friend just because.

And sometimes, it’s having something beautiful growing right outside your door when someone you love needs it most.

Sometimes the Flowers Become Something More

So if you lost a few plants this year, don’t let that discourage you. Learn what you can, try again and remember that even those of us who grow flowers for a living lose plants every season.

And if you’ve never grown flowers specifically for cutting before, perhaps this will plant a little seed of an idea.

Maybe next year is the year you set aside a small corner of your garden and grow a few flowers simply for the pleasure of cutting them and giving them away.

Because you never quite know who might need them.