The fountainhead of my gardening obsession was the desire to have fresh bouquets in my house and the lack of funding to go out and buy them. In particular, I wanted roses, and these were just not in the budget of a newly established household.

Landscaping, however, was a justifiable expense in the quest to create resale value, so I ripped out a few nondescript bushes and put in my first rose garden. It wasn’t long before I was planting sweet peas, larkspur, cosmos and any other flower that had a reasonably long stem and would actually germinate in my less-than-perfect soil.

To my delight, many of these plants actually grew in spite of the fact that I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. My limited success was confidence building and became the impetus for me to acquire some education. I never looked back, and though I now grow many types of plants for many reasons, I still incorporate flowers for cutting.

Cutting gardens can be as simple or as complicated as you desire. One approach is to set aside an area that is off-stage and will not affect the overall appearance of your garden when flowers are removed. This is best done in rows for easy harvest, deadheading, weeding and watering, in a location that gets at least six hours of sun a day.

As with any other garden project, the soil is the most critical factor. Is it loose and friable? Does it drain well? Is it weed free? Generosity with your amendments will pay off in a big way.

Many gardeners like to incorporate their cutting flowers into their vegetable gardens. This can work extremely well if you have the space available. Many flowering plants can attract beneficial insects, beautify your kitchen garden, and when you harvest your crops, you can harvest bouquets at the same time. Your flowers will benefit from the watering and fertilizer regimen that you have developed for your vegetables.

If lack of space for a production garden is a problem, flowers for cutting can always be incorporated into your existing garden scheme. Plant in drifts and squeeze in a few extras so that picking a bunch does not deplete your display.

Both annual and perennial plants can make great cut flowers, and evergreen and deciduous shrubs can be discretely pruned for filler and greenery to enhance your arrangements. I have traditionally selected shrubs and foundation plantings around my house based on their suitability for cut arrangements. Camellia, euonymous, viburnum, myrtle, abelia and pittosporum, among others, all work well in arrangements.

Experiment with flowering shrubs, berries, vines and herbs. Many bulbs also make great cut flowers, and can be popped in almost anywhere without too much disruption.

A few cultural techniques apply no matter where you decide to place your cutting garden. Annuals (plants that geminate, flower, set seed and die in one season) require deadheading to continue to produce flowers. Many annuals will re-seed themselves in your garden and come back year after year with little effort on your part.

If you are growing from seed, use succession planting so that you will have flowers over time rather than one type maturing all at once. Seed packets will often tell you whether a given flower holds well in water. Look for varieties with long, strong stems that re-bloom when cut.

When you are harvesting, use that time to look for pests or other problems that may be developing. Frequent inspection and hand picking of pests such as snails, budworms and cucumber beetles will help keep your plants clean without using a lot of expensive and toxic chemicals.

If you would like to learn more, the Napa County Master Gardeners will conduct two workshops in September on the cutting garden, including planning, design, plant selection and maintenance. On Saturday, Sept. 9, the workshop will be at the Master Gardener demonstration garden at Logvy Park in Calistoga, from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. On Saturday, Sept. 16, the workshop will repeat at the Master Gardener demonstration garden at Connolly Ranch in Napa, from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. To register or for more information, call (707)253-4221.

Master Gardeners are volunteers who help the University of California reach the gardening public with home gardening information. Napa County Master Gardeners (www.mastergardeners.org) are available to answer gardening questions in person or by phone, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, 9 a.m. to noon, at the U. C. Cooperative Extension office, 1710 Soscol Ave., Suite 4, Napa, (707)253-4221, or from outside City of Napa toll-free at (877)279-3065. Or e-mail your garden questions by following the guidelines on our Web site. Click on Napa, then on Have Garden Questions?