Incorporating flowers into raised beds can help bring pollinators to the garden. There are many ways to do this. Some people add a border of flowers around the edge of the kitchen garden or pots surrounding the garden, others add flowers to the raised beds.  Flowering herbs are also great picks with the added bonus of using them for herbal preparations. Edible flowers also do double duty for both the garden and kitchen. Annuals are great for kitchen gardens, with many options to change locations of various flowers year after year. (Just be mindful or annuals that reseed easily.) There are many, many options to choose from when it comes to picking flowers for your kitchen garden, today I am sharing just a very small list of some of my favorite flowers to grow in or around my kitchen garden.

• Cosmos – I absolutely love cosmos. Cosmos easily reseed all over the place, you will want to pull seedlings in spots where you do not want them growing. To help minimize this, cut flowers before they go to seed. (They make a great short lived cut flower.) Some say to pinch cosmos to get them to bush out, but I have found that within the kitchen garden this isn’t needed. I grow a few varieties including Bright Lights, Diablo and Sea Shells.
• Marigolds – A great companion plant for tomatoes, their unique scent helps ward off pests in other areas beside being planted near tomatoes. I have a special fondness for marigolds, we used to grow them when I was a child. They are the first flowers that I ever collected seeds from as a little girl, to this day I love collecting their seeds and spreading them around the garden. The blossoms are edible too! I currently grow the standard orange variety that I got from buying a hanging basket on clearance for $5 many years ago.
• Sunflowers – Another flower that I have loved since childhood. There are many varieties of sunflowers. Some are better than others for harvesting their seeds, others are better for their pure beauty. I grow a variety of sunflowers, for their beauty I love Goldy Honey Bear. For collecting seeds, Mammoth sunflowers seem to give the most. Any variety is going to bring beauty to your garden!
• Nasturtium – A favorite of my sons, I started growing these because he liked them so much. Both the flowers and seeds are edible, making this a must grow for the kitchen garden. I usually tuck these in to the corners of my raised beds as certain varieties will vine and creep overflowing over the sides if the raised beds. They also can act as a trap crop for aphids, which is another bonus. I grow a variety, mostly chosen by my horticulturist son.
• Zinnias – A beloved garden favorite for cut flowers. I actually prefer zinnias over dahlias when it comes to ease of growing, especially for beginners. As with all the other flowers mentioned, there are many varieties to choose from. Pinching them back will yield more flowers with longer stems. I definitely recommend looking at Floret Flower Farm for many options to grow. I have grown many varieties over the years and really couldn’t choose a favorite.

Growing annual flowers in the kitchen garden brings beauty, attracts pollinators and offers the option for cut flowers depending on variety chosen. There are many, many varieties to choose from, these are just a few of my favorites. I definitely could add many more to this list, these are  great for both the beginner and seasoned gardener. What are your favorite annual flowers to grow in your kitchen garden? Please share in the comments, I love hearing from you!