The Bouquet Builders Cut Flower Seed Mix - 4 Varieties

Four scented, long-stemmed winter flowers picked for one job: filling a vase. The Bouquet Builders brings together carnation, sweet william, viola and salvia — a cut flower seeds mix for Pakistani gardens that keeps giving, because every one of these four flowers harder the more you cut it. Sow in September or October and you will be carrying flowers into the house from February until May.

Every variety comes in its own labelled sachet inside the pack, so you can stagger the sowing and keep the cutting bed producing for longer.

What Is Inside the Pack

• Carnation (Dianthus caryophyllus). Clove-scented double blooms on 40–50 cm stems in pink, red, white and picotee. The longest vase life of anything in this pack — 10 to 14 days in clean water.
• Sweet William (Dianthus barbatus). Dense flat heads of bicoloured florets on 30–45 cm stems, sweetly scented and a cottage-garden classic. Cut a full head and it holds for a week.
• Viola (Viola cornuta). Smaller-faced than pansy but far more flowers per plant and much tougher in cold. 12–15 cm, perfect for pots, edging and window boxes. The flowers are edible and beautiful frozen into ice cubes.
• Salvia (Salvia splendens). Upright scarlet spikes on 25–35 cm plants that pull sunbirds and butterflies into the garden all season. Also dries well for winter arrangements.

Growing Guide for Pakistan

• Sowing time: Mid-September to end of October in the Punjab plains (Lahore, Faisalabad, Multan, Sialkot). September to mid-October in Islamabad, Rawalpindi and Peshawar. October to November in Karachi and coastal Sindh. February to March in Murree, Swat and Quetta.
• Method: Sow in seedling trays in a light coco peat and compost mix. Carnation and sweet william take 3–5 mm of cover. Viola needs darkness — cover it fully. Salvia is the exception: it needs light to germinate, so press the seed onto the surface and do not cover it at all. Transplant at the 4–6 leaf stage.
• Germination: Carnation 10–15 days at 20 degrees C, sweet william 10–14 days, viola 10–14 days in the dark, salvia 12–15 days at 22–24 degrees C.
• Spacing: Carnation and sweet william 25–30 cm, salvia 20–25 cm, viola 15 cm.
• Flowering: Viola from December, carnation and salvia from February, sweet william from March. Colour holds until the first real heat in May.
• Cutting: Cut early in the morning with a clean blade, take the stem at an angle, and strip any leaves that would sit below the waterline. Cut carnation when the bud is half open and it will finish opening in the vase.
• Sun and water: Full sun to light afternoon shade. Moderate water — the two dianthus in this pack, carnation and sweet william, hate wet feet and will rot in heavy clay without added sand or perlite.
• Feeding: Balanced NPK 20-20-20 fortnightly until buds set, then a high-potash feed such as NPK 5-15-45 for stronger stems and deeper colour.
• Safety: Flower seed is not edible. Keep packets away from children and pets.

Who This Pack Is For

Anyone who wants flowers in the house, not only in the garden. This is the pack for a cutting bed along a boundary wall, for a gardener who gives bouquets away, and for the fragrance — three of these four are scented, and carnation and sweet william together will perfume a whole courtyard on a warm February evening.

Frequently Asked Questions

• When should I sow this pack in Pakistan? Mid-September to end of October across the plains. Salvia is the one to sow earliest, because it wants warmth to germinate and the nights cool quickly after mid-October.
• How much ground will one pack cover? Enough for a cutting row about 8 to 10 ft long, or a mixed bed of roughly 5 x 4 ft. The violas and salvia will happily take up a few pots alongside it as well.
• Why is salvia sown differently? Salvia seed needs light to trigger germination. If you bury it, most of the packet will simply never come up. Press it onto damp surface soil, cover the tray with a clear sheet or a plastic bag to hold humidity, and keep it bright but out of direct midday sun.
• How long do the cut flowers last in a vase? Carnation 10–14 days, sweet william around 7 days, salvia spikes 5–7 days. Change the water every second day and recut the stems and you will get the top of those ranges.
• Can I grow these in pots? Viola and salvia are excellent in pots — 8 inch and 10 inch respectively. Carnation and sweet william will grow in 12 inch pots but do noticeably better in open ground where the roots can run.
• Do any of these come back the following year? Sweet william is a biennial and will often flower a second season. Carnation is a short-lived perennial and can survive a mild winter to flower again. Viola and salvia are treated as annuals here.
• Is this pack good for a beginner? Viola and sweet william are forgiving. Salvia is easy once you know not to cover the seed. Carnation is the fussiest of the four about drainage — plant it in your best-draining spot and it will reward you.
• What if the seeds do not germinate? Every batch is germination-tested in Lahore before shipping. The usual causes are sowing depth and overwatering — see why seeds fail to germinate in Pakistan. Send us a photo on WhatsApp and we will help you diagnose it.

Planning the season? Read what to sow in September in Pakistan, or browse the full winter flowering seeds collection.

Packed and germination-tested in Lahore before shipping. The Garden by Chanan Din, serving Pakistani gardeners since 1932.