Goof..you have thousands of flowers to choose from. Think about what you want in flower form, stem height, color, etc..

I'm having a good deal of fun with Rudbeckias and Coneflowers.

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That's a double Rudbeckia hirta 'Burpeei' and plain old Purple Coneflower. IMO, they look good together in the bed and in a vase. The Rudes bloomed while I still had Shasta's, so I mixed them. Then the Cones came together, and, for a short time I used all 3.

Donn...this may be a very novice question, which I basically am. But do you get seeds or plants???

I have one other question, do all flowering plants attract wasps? I know they are beneficial...but I have two little kids and I am worried about them getting stung. We have what seems like hundreds of paper wasps and they are VERY hard to get rid of. I wouldn't mind if they weren't aggressive, but they seem to be.

By the way, this pic is gorgeous.

Goofster--I can't answer your question about wasps. Just be careful, but they don't necessarily need a dose of Raid!

As Donn said, there are THOUSANDS of plants from which to choose. And an equal number of books, on-line topics, newsletters, and all sorts of info to research re flowers and cutting gardens.

Begin with this forum. Read EVERTTHING we've all written on and responded to on ALL 9 or 10 pages!. Then acquire the books and newsletters we recommend--look for them, there's bound to be a reference to them in one of the first two pages-- it's part of your homework. LOL!

Go to the Soils forum to learn about composting. Roses, Iris, Peonies, all have their own separate forums w/ TONS of info.

Then plant some seeds or plants, get dirty & sweaty, and you'll learn the rest.

I'm NOT trying to be flippant, but your question is too broad, and does sound like you've NOT done much research yet. You'll learn by doing and failing AND succeeding. PLANT those shasta daisies, (don't "just" "plan to") see how it does, and if you like how it grows and blooms for you. There's a thread maybe on this first page discussing a certain type of daisy. Maybe you'll find some good info there.

Seeds on most things are cheaper than plants, so you might try your hand at seed sowing. There are at least two seed sowing forums on Garden Web to give you help. But plants, esp. in small quantities, might give you the "boost" of having something already growing and green to look at, and help fill in your garden space. You'll have to decide which route is the best use of your time & money.

You have a good start w/ your peonys and some sunflowers. Get out to your garden, pull up those weeds, incorporate compost, and plant something else.

And TALK to the gardeners in your town & county & find out what they grow and why, and what works and doesn't. Talk to your county horticulturist. There're probably several garden clubs in your area that may be geared to just the right style of gardening you prefer. Borrow gardening books from the library, or buy a bunch from Barnes & Noble/Amazon.

The county horiticulturist/and or poison control agency might be able to advise you about your wasps, or call a bug-killing service company like Terminex. Most of us (here on the forum and in general U. S. life) prefer a more organic way of life w/ fewer synthetic chemicals. But if the wasps are a danger to your family, the pest control service maybe the better answer.

By the way, there is also a Bee Keeping Forum here on gardenweb--they might be able to advise you about your bees.

Back to plants, and what to, the famous Arnoskys say to plant EVERYTHING at least once or twice, then you'll know for sure what DOES & DOESN'T work! Don't forget to take notes, when you sow, under what conditions, when the first shoots appear, when you transplant to a bigger container or garden, and most importantly, when it blooms and how long it lasts in a vase of plain water in your house after you cut it. Once you know/do THOSE things, you'll have/be building your knowledge foundation and can only grow from there!

Good luck! Read and Plant! You'll do fine.

SusiQ in NE TX

"But do you get seeds or plants???"

Goof...I'm a tightwad, so I start the plants from seed, and then divide, root cuttings and otherwise propogate from the seedgrown stock. So far, I've managed to resist the impulse to buy plants.

Like SusiQ sez...just dig in, get dirty and do it. The worst thing that can happen is that you'll make some compost. You can find answers to any gardening questions on these forums. Read the FAQ's in various forums, and then ask questions on stuff you don't grok.

Donn--Your rudbeckias are absolutely beautiful. Where can I get seeds? Kynda

Kynda...It's a Burpee product, linked below, or send me an email, I'll email my address to you and you can send me a SASBE, and I'll send you a bunch.

Here is a link that might be useful: R. hirta 'Burpeei'