Stock is an easy-to-grow, fragrant favourite that earns a permanent spot in my flower farm, even though it’s a one-and-done bloom. It smells amazing and looks beautiful in bouquets! I find that spikes are often my favourite additions to floral arrangements, so it’s nice to have something with that shape blooming early in the season.
Here’s what you need to know to grow these gorgeous flowers in your own short-season flower garden!
Growing Stock in A Short Season
Stock is typically thought of as a cool flower, but you can grow it throughout the season. While it may prefer cooler weather, it does just fine in the heat. I prefer to start an early succession of stock in mid-February, which blooms from late-May to mid-June. I also do two more successions: one at the typical time (between Week 10 and Week 8), and another earlier at Week 4.
Related: Cut Flower Seed Starting Schedule
Stock is fairly easy to seed-start. The only tricky part is avoiding the single-flower stems (pictured above). If you’re trying to grow mostly doubles, weed out any seedlings that only have one leaf. Or, if you want to skip the guessing game, you can invest in a newer, more expensive variety bred to produce mostly doubles, so you don’t have to worry about it.
Here’s how I sort out which plants will give me doubles or singles:
Another thing to look out for when seed starting stock is your tray size!
I’ve learned the hard way that 72-cell trays just don’t cut it for stock. I always get better results with 50-cell trays or soil blocks. I tried 72s again this year and—surprise, surprise—I was disappointed again. In the future, I plan to exclusively use soil blocks, as I think the results are just better that way.
Favourite Stock Varieties
My longtime favourite variety of stock is Rainbow Quartet, so when they stopped producing them, I was quite disappointed. I’m growing StoX Champagne as a substitute for the Rainbow Quartet this year, as I’ve heard it’s a close match.
In general, I enjoy any of the basic apricot and cream coloured stock varieties and have grown both the Iron Series and the Katz Series. Both are beautiful and perform similarly well in my Zone 3 garden!
FAQs About Growing Stock
Does stock attract pests?
Yes! Flea beetles really like stock. You can try diatomaceous earth, but my new favourite method is to interplant radish and arugula between my rows. The flea beetles seem to go for those instead and leave my precious stock flowers behind. Check out this post for more!
Can you save seeds from stock flowers?
I’ve saved seeds from my stock successfully in the past, but I have so much demand for stock between markets, bouquet subscriptions, and weddings that I have to cut everything and normally don’t get the chance.
Have any more questions about growing stock in Zone 3? Let me know in the comments!
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READY TO GROW YOUR OWN BEAUTIFUL CUT FLOWER GARDEN WITHOUT THE HASSLE?
I’ve taken all the guesswork out of creating a cut flower garden with my e-book, Cut Flowers Made Simple. Whether you’re a farmer florist, a beginner gardener, or anything in between, you’ll be able to start your own cut flower garden, with or without seed starting, growing annual flowers.
Sharon Gray
Lisa