Hello everyone, I have to admit right away that I know nothing about growing flowers but I'm desperate for help. I want to propose to my gf by growing 'MARRY ME' in flowers. I know, it's probably very tough, but I'm determined and I'll be trying until I succeed. What I need help with is choosing the flower to grow...something that is not too tall or wide, has a predictable direction of blooming, has bright flowers and will bloom for a rookie like myself. I am in Long Island, I believe it's zone 6 or 7. I understand that your suggestions will not guarantee me success in any way, so no pressure. However, any experience is better than none, that is why I'm here Thank you very much in advance, my happiness is in your hands
Just a thought, but to guarantee success buy small pots of a flower in bloom, and arrange them to say "marry me." She'll be so thrilled with the proposal that she won't care you didn't grow them yourself.
I once used wax begonias to make a Canadian Flag and it worked good. I think if you wanted to say "Marry Me" in flowers it would have to be quite a large area to form the letters properly. Wax begonia's grow in part shade and only come in a few colors. This is the only shot I have and its upside down, but you get the idea.
I was thinking along the same lines as Jane... buy a bunch of already in-bloom things. Plant them, or leave them in pots. Call your fiance over and pop the question. Unless you really wanted to impress her by growing them yourself... then you have a lot of things to consider. Temperatures, soil, sun/shade, water, food, bugs... all that fun stuff gardeners deal with. :-D And most of all... the timing. What if you plant a whole bunch of stuff and some don't grow well enough to fill in your words in time?
Pansies are easy, so are primulas, and very colorful. And in bloom over here just about now. But I'm thinking it's gonna be a difficult task to make it look nice and readable. And...doesn't your gf visit your place regularly? Will she only be allowed to see your garden when all these plants are in full bloom? If you want instant results, from one day to the next, then yes, the small pots version sounds do-able. But... it's gonna cost a lot. Think about writing MARRY ME with... plants! And if you also want "background" then... ouch!
Wow, that's a nice looking flag From what I researched, I decided to go with alyssum, and ice plant (livingstone daisy) as a second option. They seem to grow in carpet-like manner very low to the ground. I will do some research on pansies, primulas, and begonias Time of proposal does not matter, no rush, I just want to get it done right. And yes, I know about the option of buying already blooming flowers but that is kind of cheating. I will try growing it myself first. They should bloom by late spring. If I fail, then some lucky nursery will sell out of their flowers really fast lol. As my landlord will not give me enough space to grow these, I'll build two boxes 1.5' by 6', growing two selected types of flowers in each, to have more probability of success. My girlfriend is over regularly, but boxes will be easy to cover, and I'm also planning to install plastic wheels (mower-like) on them so I can easily move them around adjusting sunlight and possibly moving out of sight of my girlfriend Did you guys deal with alyssum or ice plant ever?
Here in Central Texas iceplant is a tough, reliable plant. I don't know how happy it will be in Long Island, but you won't need it to be a perennial.
Hehehe, I'd like to see the pics online that made you choose these two. Would not be my choices. Iceplant takes a long time to look really nice. Alyssum is somewhat messy. I doubt you would be able to WRITE anything with either of them... Unless you have a really large area. Plus, over here, in winter, iceplant looks really bad and takes a big chunk of the spring and summer to come back and look nice. But if you have an idea in your mind, and are sure it would work, go for it.
Like Calin, I'm thinking you will be disappointed with the results, too. I don't want to throw water on your fire, I want you to be successful. Begonias are super easy and will tolerate light OR shade. Alyssum is a nice filler flower, but it is moundy and will spread rather wide. Begonias don't spread so much and come in pinks, red or white with green or bronze foliage. Iceplant I have never seen around here nor grown it. You may find that it isn't as easy/hardy to grow as Marlingarden's Texas weather makes it to be there on the East coast. To make it readable the mixed colors of the iceplant may make it hard to comprehend at first. I would not be looking at the whole as a whole but to each of the colors in the mix thinking what pretty little flowers. I would use a main color as the message and then a filler around those plants, but once again keep it simple, too many colors will make it just colorful, not readable. You may need to do some heavy pruning to keep it readable in the space you have to work with. Just take a pair of scissors and trim it as needed (whatever you choose).
Sorry, I don't think Alyssum or Ice Plant are good choices either. For the same reason Carolyn mentioned.
I am going to have to agree with Calin and Carolyn. Sorry your growing area is just too small to accommodate the architectural design you are going for by just planting seeds and have any success. One and half by six foot boxes are really small. But don't be discouraged. You can do it by using the little 6 or 12 packs for starting a flower bed. They are small, cheap and in bloom when you start your project. Check out big box stores and watch for their sales. Public gardens use potted plants to start their beds all the time to get the results you see. Most flowering plants don't flower when they are so small. Growers used special lighting conditions to get plants to flower on young plants. By purchasing flowering plants in the little multiple containers you will have an idea of how your finished project will look. I think you may be quite surprised how challenging planting small plants to form letters is in 1 1/2 x 6 foot boxes. That will take a LOT of effort. I agree with Carolyn that it will probably also take some scissor action to get the letters formed. With such a small area and small plants you will have to be careful not to over trim. Then give the planted boxes a week or so to settle in and look like they have been always been there. Good luck with your planting and your proposal.
wow, a harsh reality is sinking in, but I appreciate your responses, that is why I'm here. How late do they sell flowering small plants at nurseries? Will they have them early summer or if I don't do it in spring I'm screwed?
