Envision a garden that embodies eco-friendly living: a sanctuary for beneficial insects, low-maintenance, climate-smart, organically nurtured, and vibrant through all seasons.
While I most often highlight vegetable gardening on this blog, it's crucial to remember to integrate flowers into the landscape. Flowers are an important component of polyculture gardens.
And while of course flowers are beautiful, they are also powerhouse players in permaculture. They multi-task in the garden, as they support wildlife and can provide you with year-round visual interest.
That’s right - I said year-round!
In this article, I'll share my handpicked selection of flowers to grow for dried floral arrangements. So not only are they a source of food for pollinators, but they brighten your home with natural decor and everlasting blooms.
What’s more, these plants are naturally pest-resistant, heat-hardy, and drought-tolerant, all without depleting your garden's soil.
Sustainability + Beauty + Function? Look no further than flowers that extend their fresh beauty into dried botanical displays.
Annual; Noted Varieties: Coral Fountain, Emerald Tassels, Love Lies Bleeding
I wrote a love letter to the edible amaranth seed in this blog post, but did you know that there are ornamental varieties of the same genus as well?
These beautiful and colorful plants add texture and interest to any fresh or dried arrangement. They need very little soil fertility to flourish, and are drought and heat tolerant.
Annual: Noted Varieties: Dara Purple (potted seedling) (seeds)
Siskiyou Seeds notes that Ammi is a relative of Queen Anne’s Lace and the carrot family crew. That means that this plant also attracts tons of beneficial insects.
I’ve heard it mentioned that these can become a bit weedy and scatter around your garden, so take care that they don’t become invasive.
Annual under zone 8, Perennial zones 9+; Find at Adaptive Seeds
I grew these in the past and must admit that they kind of paled in comparison to white strawflowers based on their size alone. This could be a good thing if you want plants that are knee-high with cute small blooms.
They also proved to be extremely hardy, and thrive in poor clay soil with very little water. So if they do perennialize in my yard I won’t mind at all.
Annual; Noted Varieties: Pink, White
American Basketflower is indigenous to the southeastern states and into Mexico, according to Hudson Valley Seed Company. This makes it a drought-tolerant and heat-resilient beauty. Uprising Organics notes that they are related to Bachelor’s Buttons, but huge.
Annual; Notes Varieties: Antique Apple Green
While it may come as a surprise, the University of Wisconsin-Madison shares that Bells of Ireland makes a lovely dried floral arrangement. The color will fade a beige, but they can add visual interest with their height.
Annual; Noted Varieties: Red Hungarian, Mixed Colors
A multi-purpose plant in that it can be made into brooms, or kept in bouquets if you’re in the mood for sweeping. Can also be eaten by humans and birds alike. Doesn’t mind hot temperatures or dry conditions. One of the perfect permaculture plants!
Annual; Noted Varieties: Supercrest Mix; Cockscomb Salmon
Whether you think they look like vibrant-colored brains or a rooster’s head comb, these flowers will certainly stand-out in your garden and floral arrangements. They hold up quite well when dried, and need very littler water to grow well.
Annual; Purchase here
These plants definitely had a moment in the last few years, and with good reason. Their cheery golden yellow blooms are perfectly spherical, and hold up to drying extremely well.
Perennial; Noted Varieties: Butterfly Paradise,
While the petals will fade away, the center of echinacea brings interesting texture into dried bouquets. They are adored by bees and butterflies alike, and certain varieties are prized by herbalists for their medicinal properties.
Perennial; Noted Varieties: White Glitter + Blue Glitter
If you want to grow these seeds and find them in stock, don’t delay - I often see them sold out first at seed companies, especially the Glitter kinds. They are lovely and unique, like a cosmic thistle.
Annual if started early, Biennial if started late, Perennial in zones 9+ 🙂 Noted Varieties: Medicinal; Double
A sweet medicinal that looks similar to chamomile, there is also an interesting double variety with layers of white petals. The stems are sturdy and hold up well when dried.
Annual; Noted Varieties: Purple Tassels, Pink Flamingo
If Red Clover and Bunny Tails had a baby, it would be the feather Celosia. They are dainty yet stunning at the same time, and their color holds up marvellously.
Annual or Perennial depending on variety selected;
I love growing flax in my garden - sweet blue or pink flowers grow on almost imposibly delicate stems, only to dry into hardy forms with delicate tiny seed pods. Grind the flax seeds to add to smoothies for a fiber boost or to baked goods as an egg replacer. Or, keep the seed pod in tact for your dried bouquets.
Perennial; Noted Varieties: Southern; Ritro Blue
Echinops, or Globe Thistle, is an electric blue color with an allium-like sense to it. These perennial beauties will delight you in the garden with their no-nonsense growing needs.
Annual; Noted Varieties: Utrecht Blue Wheat, Bunny Tails,
Grasses are easy to dry but don’t get a lot of love in the floral community. But you can change that and add some into your landscape to enjoy!
The sky is the limit with colors and textures.
Annual; Noted Varieties: Strawberry Fields; Rose Bi-Color; Orange
These pretty plants are like gumdrops on sticks: vibrant colors that will last for ages when dried. Like their namesake amaranth, these needed very little water to sustain themselves in my garden last year.
Annual; Noted Variety: Purple Moon
A pretty sweet-pea like flower gives way to vibrant purple seed pods at the end of the season. Not edible at all, but still a pollinator plant with a vining habit to bring beauty and function into your landscape.
Perennial; Noted Varieties: Spanish Lavender; Hidcote
Ah, the classic dried flower! And it’s classic for good reason - the fragrance of this herb is second to none, and it attracts a plethora of beneficial insects to your yard. Start these seeds early - they will need around 21 days of cold stratification, and can take 1-2 months to germinate under lights - surface sow.
Biennial; Buy here
These charming plants are prized for their disk-shaped seed pods, which try into a semi-transparent silvery coin. They are biennial, so you typically won’t get seed pod production until their second year.
Annual; Noted Varieties: Hawaiian
Marigolds are a must in any regenerative garden for their pest-repellant abilities. But they also have another couple of functions: they are gorgeous dried, and they can be worked with as a dye plant! Hawaiian is my favorite variety to grow for extra-large blooms.
Annual; Noted Varieties: Yellow, Mexican Hat
Noted as a perfect candidate for low-water gardens by Peaceful Valley Seeds, this plant boasts festive red and orange or yellow petals and an elongated echinacea-like center.
Annual; Noted Variety: Purple Majesty
This plant starts out looking like a kind of purple corn stalk, but the fluffy cat-tail-like spur that grows on top is a great everlasting addition to floral bouquets. As a bonus, any that you don’t cut will attract birds to the garden, or can be a treat for your chickens.
Annual; Noted Variety: Black
A bit similar to broom corn, milo is an edible sorghum variety that dries into these sprays of texture and color.
Annual; Noted Variety: Love-in-a-Mist, Sativa
Bright blue flowers that rival borage in their brillance, these flowers are a lovely sight to behold. What’s even more interesting is their pods, like little balloons, which dry to add visual interest to your dried flower bouquets.
As an added bonus, Nigella sativa is known as black caraway and the seeds can be a added to meals as a spice.
Lacy Phacelia is also called Bee’s Friend for good reason - at any given time in the summer garden I can find a few pollinators enjoying each plant. They are hardy to drought, heat, and will grow in almost any kind of soil.
While they’re not typically seen as a dried flower plant, I like to cut some to save for this purpose. Their flowers dry to gorgous white blooms that add tons of texture to bouquets.
Annual; Noted Varieties: Hungarian Breadseed, Pepperbox,
A dry-gardening favorite, poppies attract a range of beneficial insects. They are just gorgeous when they wave slightly in the wind. As a bonus, they are decent self-sowers, and will even grow in the toughest of my clay soils. The rattle-like dried seed heads are especially fun for your dried arrangements!
Annual; Purchase here
Safflower can be grown for its orange dye, its nutritious seed, or for its dried flower capabilities. It’s also a fantastic pollinator magnet in the garden! I really enjoy the vibrancy of color that they bring to my garden.
Biennial; Noted Varieties: Clary Sage
Salvia will attract a mixture of butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds into your backyard. As the season starts to wind down, cut some back and hang to dry as a winter reminder of the abundance of life that will return to your garden next year.
Annual; Noted Varieties: Black Night Scabiosa
These flowers, also called “pin cushion,” come in a range of colors to satisfy anyone’s taste. Maybe it’s the teenage goth in me, but I’m a fan of the Black Night variety, which is the deepest scarlet red color. The color holds up perfectly when dried.
Annual; Available at Siskiyou Seeds
While technically these flowers should go in the scabiosa category above, they produce the most fascinating seed heads that I had to include them in their own section. The flowers start off looking like regular scabiosa blooms, albeit with far less petals. Then, they transform into these crinkly multi-dimensional seed heads that have a star pattern in the center with a halo of delicate purple. Grow these to add delight to your dried arrangements.
Annual; Noted Varieties: Seeker Mix, Cotton Candy Blen
I feel like statice gets looked at as a mere filler plant, but as a dried plant it adds such texture, height, and visual interest. I love the hues that it adds to the garden and it maintains that color when brought indoors.
Annual; Noted Varieties: Purple Sunset, Apricot,
Strawflowers were my entry point into the world of dry flowers - their height and range of colors add a focal point to the landscape, and they attract bees and beneficial wasps more than most other plants in my garden.
I mean, with a range of colors from almost-black-purple to silvery white, they offer almost every color of the rainbow (besides blue…for now!). Pick frequently for steady harvests. When dried, these blooms are quite strong and can be strung into garlands.
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Annual; Noted Varieties: Double
Xeranthemum are also known as Paper Daisies, and have a similar texture to Strawflowers. I really enjoy them in my garden as they are compact plants with vibrant colors and required very little water. Like strawflowers, they are also superior for drying and for their stability.
Perennial; Noted Varieties: Colorado Mix,
While the white variety of yarrow is more well-known in the medical world, the colorful spectrum of these pollinator magnets is a florist’s dream.
Annual; Noted Varieties: Granny’s Bouquet, Berry Basket
Zinnias are a lovely low-input plant for any regenerative garden - they add beauty and bees to your landscape. I learned that they dried well only a couple of years ago when I saw this video from You Can't Eat the Grass and was really surprised by the color that they were able to maintain.
Dried flowers are a timeless addition to any home. They offer a unique blend of aesthetic appeal and practicality. Unlike fresh flowers, they provide lasting beauty year-round, making them an eco-conscious choice for your home decor.
When you grow your own dried arrangements, you not only embrace a rustic and natural charm in your home but also contribute to waste reduction. If you're the kind of person who enjoys flowers in the home year-round, this means that you won't need to buy flowers that are shipped long distances and have synthetic chemicals applied to them.
Dried floral arrangements are a timeless decor accent in your home, and will serve as beauty in your garden too.
Dried flower gardens are more than just decorative; they are a haven for local wildlife. Plant av ariety of flowers suitable for drying to provide essential food and habitat for beneficial insects and pollinators. In turn, your whole garden thrives due to reduced pest pressure. When you integrate flowers into your vegetable garden, you follow the polyculture principles outlined in permaculture and regenerative gardening.
To foster robust and resilient plants, prioritize soil health and apply only organic amendments when necessary. Embrace water conservation methods like rainwater harvesting and efficient drip irrigation to minimize environmental impact. Incorporate flowers into your permaculture layout through companion planting enriches biodiversity to maintain a balanced ecosystem.
Select perennials and self-seeding annuals that seamlessly align with a regenerative garden's cycle. These varieties often thrive in organic and low-input conditions and support a more sustainable ecosystem.
These flowers offer longevity in arrangements and serve multiple purposes within a regenerative garden, from soil enrichment to pollinator support.
Harvest flowers at the right time, typically when they are not fully opened, to ensure the best results for drying. Utilize non-invasive techniques that protect the plant and the environment. For example, leave the roots of the plant in place to both enrich the soil and to promote new growth and blooms. This approach aligns with regenerative garden principles, which advocate for minimal disturbance and the preservation of natural habitats.
I've found air drying plants in a hanged bundle to be the easiest method that yields success without much fuss. House your dried botanicals out of direct sunlight and extend their lifespan. I store any dried flowers that aren't on display in cardboard boxes to protect them from damage.
Unleash your creativity and weave dried flowers into home decor. Design dried arrangements with an eye on eco-friendliness with natural bases and reusable components.
Dried flower gardens are not only about beauty but also about a healthier planet. It promotes biodiversity, conserves resources, and supports regenerative agricultural principles. As we seek to lead more eco-conscious lives, integrating dried flower gardening into our routines is a simple yet profound step toward sustainability.
