Episode 783: Science teacher, flower farmer, and floral designer Sara Groeneweg of Bloomz Flower Farm in Washington’s Yakima Valley
August 25th, 2026
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Bloomz Flower Farm is a 25-acre farm and design studio in Zillah, Washington, with gorgeous views of Mt. Adams, surrounded by beautiful farmland in all directions, including wheat and alfalfa production. Here, owner Sara Groeneweg has infused flower farming into all aspects of her life and business. After earning an agriculture education degree at Washington State University in 2000, Sara taught high school agriculture for eight years before starting her family. Now, in addition to raising two teenage sons, she teaches middle school science – one full-time job – while also growing more than 50 varieties of flowers at Bloomz Flower Farm for weddings, events, flower subscriptions, and market bouquets – her other full-time job. A natural teacher, Sara acknowledges that she is a crazy for flowers and loves sharing their beauty with others.
Sara Groeneweg grew up in a family of gardeners and growers in western Washington. When she was young, showing livestock at the local fair, Sara noticed the 4H and Future Farmers of America kids with their teachers. They looked like they were having so much fun that she decided: “That’s what I want to do when I grow up!”
The experience led her into agricultural education where she studied at Washington State University and me her future husband, Leroy, a horticulture major. They married and settled in the Yakima Valley in eastern Washington, close to where Leroy grew up. Now with two teenage sons, life is very full. And like most competent women, Sara is a doer. She currently teaches science full-time at the local middle school in Wapato, while also operating Bloomz Flower Farm. As a farmer-florist, Sara loves designing weddings and of course, she grows everything for her events. The crops at Bloomz are arranged in beds and borders that beautify the landscape, which also has integrated structures like arbors and trellises – and an attractive and productive wood-framed greenhouse. In recent years, more of a farm vibe has crept onto the family property, with rows of dahlias and annuals occupying one huge zone.
I first met Sara when she attended the 2023 Slow Flowers Summit in Bellevue, Washington, arriving with buckets of her own stems to share for our floral design takeover there. When I scheduled a trip to the Yakima Valley a few weeks ago, I invited myself for a visit and tour. Plus, we recorded a wonderful conversation about Sara’s floral journey. I know you’ll enjoy seeing what she grows in her gorgeous garden, including the dahlias at their peak. Let’s jump right in and get started!
Find and follow Bloomz Flower Farm on Instagram and Facebook.
Thank you to our Sponsors
This show is brought to you by slowflowers.com, the free, online directory to florists, shops, and studios who design with local, seasonal and sustainable flowers and to the farms that grow those blooms. It’s the conscious choice for buying and sending flowers.
Thank you to our lead sponsor, My Patio Tree: Expertly Grown Plants, Perfectly Designed to Elevate Your Garden. Their second-generation family tree farm has curated the best-performing, cutting-edge, multi-zone varieties to enhance your garden, patio or special event. Every tree purchased supports Plant With Purpose, a nonprofit organization that restores hope by reversing global poverty and environmental damage. Learn more at mypatiotree.com.
Thank you to the Seattle Growers Market, a farmer-owned cooperative committed to providing the very best the Pacific Northwest has to offer in cut flowers, foliage and plants. The Growers Market’s mission is to foster a vibrant marketplace that sustains local flower farms and provides top-quality products and service to the local floral industry. Visit them at seattlegrowersmarket.com.
And thank you to Longfield Gardens, which provides home gardeners with high-quality flower bulbs and perennials. Their online store offers plants for every region and every season, from tulips and daffodils to dahlias, caladiums and amaryllis. Check out the full catalog at Longfield Gardens at longfield-gardens.com.
Thank you for joining me today! The Slow Flowers Podcast is a member-supported endeavor, downloaded more than 1.6 million times by listeners like you. Thank you for listening, commenting and sharing – it means so much. As our movement gains more supporters and more passionate participants who believe in the importance of our domestic cut flower industry, the momentum is contagious. I know you feel it, too. If you’re new to our weekly Show and our long-running Podcast, check out all of our resources at SlowFlowersSociety.com.
I’m Debra Prinzing, host and producer of the Slow Flowers Show & Podcast. The Slow Flowers Podcast is engineered and edited by Andrew Brenlan. The content and opinions expressed here are either mine alone or those of my guests alone, independent of any podcast sponsor or other person, company or organization. Next week, you’re invited to join me in putting more Slow Flowers on the table, one stem, one vase at a time. Thanks so much for joining us today and I’ll see you next week!
Music credits:
Drone Pine; Gaena; Telnik Sparkle
by Blue Dot Sessions
http://www.sessions.blue
Lovely
by Tryad
http://tryad.bandcamp.com/album/instrumentals
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
In The Field
audionautix.com