By Sharon Cohoon, Sunset senior garden writer
Since you can get cut flowers from any supermarket, why bother growing your own? So you can enjoy bouquets with a little personality, that's why. The uniformity of supermarket flowers is pretty dispiriting. If it weren't for the fact they wilt, you'd swear they were manufactured not grown. But add something from your own garden to the supermarket mix, and suddenly the whole bouquet acquires more character.
Phlox drummondii, shown here, is an annual with that transformative power. Its tight clusters of small, star-shaped flowers in a range of bright pastels mix well with just about anything you find at the supermarket. And, as you can see here, those clusters also have sufficient charm to stand alone. Annual phlox is also lightly scented. So that's something else it adds to your bouquets. (As you know, most supermarket flowers have as much fragrance as cardboard.)
Sow seed for annual phlox as soon as danger of frost is safely passed or, in climates with a short growing season, start indoors 3 to four weeks beforehand. Look for a variety that is 1 to 2 feet tall so you'll have enough stem for cutting. 'Dutch Tapestry' from Renee's Garden, seen here, is a good one. 'Phlox of Sheep' is another. Care details follow the photo.
Choose a site that has plenty of sun for your annual phlox. Sow seeds 2 to 3 inches apart, covering them lightly with soil (about 1/4 inch deep). Water soil and keep moist until seedlings emerge in 10 to 15 days. When seedlings are large enough to handle, thin until they are 6 to 8 inches apart. Water regularly — about an inch per week. Pick flowers generously. The more you clip, the more you'll get. Expect a long season of bloom. P. drummondii will continue to flower until frost and has even been known to survive a light freeze.
