I hope you have been enjoying our 10-year retrospective as I have. It has been so fun to reconnect with some of our Slow Flowers members who shared their stories on the Slow Flowers Podcast over the past decade.
Postal Petals founder and CEO Talia Boone @ Nancy Hernandez
This week, I’m delighted to revisit my Fall 2020 interview with Talia Boone of Los Angeles-based Postal Petals. Postal Petals has a social impact mission through flowers and I’m excited to re-introduce Talia and her story in our conversation today. Talia is a self-described floral enthusiast and DIY floral arranger.
Talia Boone (right) of Postal Petals
Based in Los Angeles, Talia often shopped at the Los Angeles Flower Market during public hours, bringing home flowers to arrange and enjoy — as part of her personal creativity and mental health practice. Postal Petals’ origins date to the start of COVID when Talia sought out a direct-from-the-farm source for the flowers she yearned to have. In the subsequent three years, the venture has made inspiring strides for the local flower community, especially communities of women (and some men) for whom flowers are now a source of healing and wellness.
American Flowers Week with Postal Petals – June 2021 @randyschwartzphoto
Let’s revisit my October 2020 conversation with Talia Boone. I can’t wait to share it with you as an encore episode in celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Slow Flowers Podcast.
Thanks so much for joining us today! I’ll be hosting an IG Live conversation with Talia today, October 4th, so check it out @slowflowerssociety – She promised me there’s a lot of news to update our Slow Flowers Community. You’ll find my conversation with Talia and all of my Slow Flowers Podcast 10th anniversary Live Chats in the archives there.
And here’s a bit of a Postal Petals’ update:
During our IG Live conversation, Talia and I discuss Postal Petals’ current campaign to raise support for its series of free community wellness events. These are monthly events intended to provide a therapeutic experience that seamlessly weaves together the harmonious practices of yoga, meditation, and floral arranging to marginalized communities. While Postal Petals has been underwriting the costs of the free events for the last year and a half, a new crowdfund campaign will help continue making these events free and accessible and expand the offering to even more people in cities across the country. Check out the link to Postal Petals’ campaign here.
Thank You to Our Sponsors
This show is brought to you by Slowflowers.com, the free, online directory to more than 850 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, Farmgirl Flowers. Farmgirl Flowers delivers iconic burlap-wrapped bouquets and lush, abundant arrangements to customers across the U.S., supporting U.S. flower farms by purchasing more than $10 million dollars of U.S.-grown fresh and seasonal flowers and foliage annually. Discover more at farmgirlflowers.com.
Thank you to Details Flowers Software, a platform specifically designed to help florists and designers do more and earn more. With an elegant and easy-to-use system–Details is here to improve profitability, productivity, and organization for floral businesses of all shapes and sizes. Grow your bottom line through professional proposals and confident pricing with Details’ all-in-one platform. All friends of the Slow Flowers Podcast will receive a 7-day free trial of Details Flowers Software. Learn more at detailsflowers.com.
Thank you to CalFlowers, the leading floral trade association in California, providing valuable transportation and other benefits to flower growers and the entire floral supply chain in California and 48 other states. The Association is a leader in bringing fresh cut flowers to the U.S. market and in promoting the benefits of flowers to new generations of American consumers. Learn more at cafgs.org.
Thank you to Store It Cold, creators of the revolutionary CoolBot, a popular solution for flower farmers, studio florists and farmer-florists. Save $1000s when you build your own walk-in cooler with the CoolBot and an air conditioner. Don’t have time to build your own? They also have turnkey units available. Learn more at storeitcold.com.
I love all this floral goodness and I am so happy you joined me today! The Slow Flowers Podcast is a member-supported endeavor, downloaded more than one 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
Thank you for listening! Sending love, from my cutting garden to you! (c) Missy Palacol Photography
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; Chymique; Highway 430; Turning on the Lights; Gaena by Blue Dot Sessions http://www.sessions.blue
In 2015, Slow Flowers introduced American Flowers Week, inviting flower lovers, gardeners, growers, and designers across the country to share their red-white-and-bluish blooms during June 28- July 4th.
The promotion celebrates domestic flower farming and engages people everywhere with local botanicals.
We use the hashtag #americanflowersweek to encourage flower fans to follow and enjoy the campaign’s beauty and floral diversity.
Since 2016 when American Flowers Week debuted its annual botanical couture collection with Susan McLeary’s red-white-and-blue floral Afro, we have commissioned more than 50 wearable looks, created by our member designers and flower farmers.
So today, we’re unveiling our 2023 Botanical Couture Collection — it’s a Haute Couture Harvest!
American Flowers Week 2023 illustration by April Lemly
Thank you to our Sponsors
This show is brought to you by Slowflowers.com, the free, online directory to more than 850 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, Farmgirl Flowers. Farmgirl Flowers delivers iconic burlap-wrapped bouquets and lush, abundant arrangements to customers across the U.S., supporting U.S. flower farms by purchasing more than $10 million dollars of U.S.-grown fresh and seasonal flowers and foliage annually. Discover more at farmgirlflowers.com.
Thank you to Mayesh Wholesale Florist. Family-owned since 1978, Mayesh is the premier wedding and event supplier in the U.S. and we’re thrilled to partner with Mayesh to promote local and domestic flowers, which they source from farms large and small around the U.S. Learn more at mayesh.com.
Thank you to The Gardener’s Workshop, which offers a full curriculum of online education for flower farmers and farmer-florists. Online education is more important this year than ever, and you’ll want to check out the course offerings at thegardenersworkshop.com.
Thank you to Details Flowers Software, a platform specifically designed to help florists and designers do more and earn more. With an elegant and easy-to-use system–Details is here to improve profitability, productivity, and organization for floral businesses of all shapes and sizes. Grow your bottom line through professional proposals and confident pricing with Details’ all-in-one platform. All friends of the Slow Flowers Podcast will receive a 7-day free trial of Details Flowers Software. Learn more at detailsflowers.com.
This Week’s News
A program note: I recorded this episode just prior to the kickoff of the Slow Flowers Summit, our 6th conference and an event I love to describe as a TED Talk for Flower Lovers. If you’ve followed along on social media at @slowflowerssociety and @slowflowerssummit on IG, you will have see all sorts of fun posted by Niesha Blancas, our social media manger, over the past three days — from dinner on the farm to floral design demonstrations and the immersive floral takeover of our venue, the Bellevue Botanical Garden.
It was an enriching and essential moment for the Slow Flowers Movement, for 150 of our members, supporters, partners, and friends, to come together to celebrate domestic flowers, floral agriculture, sustainable design, and the important connective tissue — a sense that we are a community and we are all working together to elevate local and seasonal flowers as a viable and vital facet of the floral marketplace. I’m sure I’ll be on an endorphin high that will continue for many months to come – hopefully until I see everyone again in 2024. I’ll have many more details, interviews, videos, and photography to share. Keep an eye out on social media or sign up for our newsletter to receive a sneak peek of the first content, which will be sent out on July 1st.
I love all this floral goodness and I am so happy you joined me today! The Slow Flowers Podcast is a member-supported endeavor, downloaded more than one 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
Thank you for listening! Sending love, from my cutting garden to you! (c) Missy Palacol Photography
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!
We have an info- and inspo-packed show today in which you will meet six floral experts who will present at next week’s Slow Flowers Summit. I’m thrilled that all of these gifted and talented flower friends were able to join me in the virtual studio this past week for a quick introduction and lively conversation.
The Slow Flowers Summit takes place on June 26-27, 2023, at the Bellevue Botanical Garden in the Seattle area. It’s our sixth annual gathering and we wanted to showcase as many speakers as possible, bringing a diverse range of ideas and creativity to our attendees. When Karen Thornton, our event manager, and I discovered that the meeting spaces at BBG could be divided to accommodate simultaneous breakout sessions, it seemed ideal to offer three subject tracks — we’ve never done this before, so it’s going to be fun to see how to move all the many people and places around in a short period of time. On Tuesday, there will be three options at both 11 am and 1 pm – before and after lunch and organized by floral design, flower farming and sustainability.
So today, you’ll meet all six of the experts who will present in these tracks. All are past guests of the Slow Flowers Podcast, so you may recognize their names and voices. For scheduling reasons, we recorded on two different days. First, you’ll meet Sarah Reyes of Wildflower & Fern, who is one of our sustainability speakers; and you’ll also hear from both of our flower farming speakers, Tracy Yang ofJahn Co. Flowers and Dee Hall of Mermaid City Flowers; then, in part two, you’ll meet Becky Feasby of Prairie Girl Flowers, the second sustainability speaker; and both of our floral design presenters, Gina Lett-Shrewsberry of Inspirations by Ginaand Valerie Crisostomo of Black Girl Florists.
Thank you so much for joining me today! If you’re still thinking about attending the Slow Flowers Summit, there is still time to register, so please reach out with any questions — we may be able to connect you with an attendee who has an extra ticket to sell. Contact us here: info@slowflowers.com.
Thank you to our Sponsors
This show is brought to you by Slowflowers.com, the free, online directory to more than 850 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, Farmgirl Flowers. Farmgirl Flowers delivers iconic burlap-wrapped bouquets and lush, abundant arrangements to customers across the U.S., supporting U.S. flower farms by purchasing more than $10 million dollars of U.S.-grown fresh and seasonal flowers and foliage annually. Discover more at farmgirlflowers.com.
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 to Rooted Farmers. Rooted Farmers works exclusively with local growers to put the highest-quality specialty cut flowers in floral customers’ hands. When you partner with Rooted Farmers, you are investing in your community, and you can expect a commitment to excellence in return. Learn more at RootedFarmers.com.
Thank you to Johnny’s Selected Seeds, an employee-owned company that provides our industry the best flower, herb and vegetable seeds — supplied to farms large and small and even backyard cutting gardens like mine. Find the full catalog of flower seeds and bulbs at johnnysseeds.com.
I love all this floral goodness and I am so happy you joined me today! The Slow Flowers Podcast is a member-supported endeavor, downloaded more than one 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.
Thank you for listening! Sending love, from my cutting garden to you! (c) Missy Palacol Photography
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!
It’s the first week of January and if you’re like me, you already have swept away the holiday decor and turned the calendar page to 2023. It’s time to shake off 2022 and dive into the new year with a fresh attitude and new commitment to shape our floral enterprises so they not only reflect our personal aesthetic, but also honor our values, personal mission, and the way we want to show up in this world.
Caroly Kulb of Bloom Poet (c) Janet Lin Photography
So I know you will be delighted to join my conversation today with Carolyn Kulb, Seattle-based floral designer and owner of Bloom Poet, a wedding and events design studio.
In the past year, Carolyn has put all of her focus into the design side of her business, rebranding as Bloom Poet.
Spring florals by Carolyn Kulb (c) Janet Lin Photography
Here’s more about Carolyn Kulb: She is the founder and lead artist of Bloom Poet—a full-service wedding florist and event design company based in Seattle, Washington. Bloom Poet serves couples ready to create a meaningful and breathtaking experience for their wedding day. Carolyn helps couples dream big, embrace new ideas, and look to nature for inspiration. Carolyn also offers floral education and coaching to fellow florists and wedding pros. Through online classes and 1-to-1 coaching, Carolyn helps floral entrepreneurs learn proven methods for streamlining their wedding businesses and mastering sustainable floristry methods with less stress.
Carolyn’s work has been featured in national publications such as Flower Magazine, Aisle Society, Well Wedded Magazine, Trends Magazine, and Houzz.com. She has been invited to design, teach, and present across the country, including the Northwest Flower and Garden Show, the Slow Flowers Podcast, the Evolve Your Wedding Business Podcast, and American Flowers Week.
Carolyn believes that floral design is an art form, meant to tell the stories of our love. Carolyn wed her college sweetheart 12 years ago so they could serve in the Peace Corps together in Africa. After living in four countries and traveling in many more, Carolyn continues to draw upon multicultural art, architecture, and design influences in the way she crafts experiences for couples. She believes that in our culture, flowers are used to signify our most universal human experiences, and to tell our stories in ways that words cannot. This confluence of art, exploring cultural traditions, and helping people celebrate their milestones is what brought Carolyn to floral design years ago – and why she continues to love doing it.
In her free time, you can find Carolyn cuddling with her senior kitty, laughing with her husband, plotting where to travel next, tending her flower garden, writing music, spending time with friends, and learning Italian.
The analogous winter bouquet that Carolyn designed for the Slow Flowers Show, using all local and CA-grown fresh and dried botanicals
When I invited Carolyn to join me to talk about sustainable wedding florals, she also agreed to design for us on camera.
Part two of this show featured a fun demo in which Carolyn creates a lovely hand-tied wedding bouquet with all locally-grown and domestic flowers, with both fresh and dried ingredients.
Thanks so much for joining us today. As we discussed, Carolyn’s new course, Sustainable Wedding Design, goes live on Thursday, January 12th, and you can find the details at her website, carolynkulb.com. The 90-minute comprehensive training will teach you how to create impeccable, long-lasting wedding designs using foam-free and sustainable floristry methods. As an introductory rate, the course is $97 and includes a 30-minute live Q&A session at the end of the training – or the opportunity to submit questions in advance if you can’t attend the live session. I hope you check it out!.
January 13th Slow Flowers Member (Virtual) Meet-Up:Dive into the New Year with a Fresh Vision for your Floral Enterprise
You’re invited to join our special NEW YEAR conversation with Slow Flowers member Emily Ellen Anderson of Curious Lola. Emily is a business (& bravery) coach for artists. She helps creative entrepreneurs sell art to support their life, be willing to be seen and heard, and expand their own creative impact. Through a mix of practical strategy, business tools, and self-awareness exercises, artists who work with Emily grow their art practices in ways they never imagined were possible. The result is a self-assured, empowered artist who is deeply connected with their own creative genius. The result of which is, not surprisingly, a vibrant, flourishing business.
Join Slow Flowers Founder, Debra Prinzing, as she hosts a conversation with creative business coach Emily Ellen Anderson at our January 2023 “Slow Flowers Members’ Virtual Meet-Up”Friday, January 13th (9:00 a.m. PT/Noon ET)Click on the link below for login details and join this enriching gathering!#slowflowersmeetup
This show is brought to you by Slowflowers.com, the free, online directory to more than 850 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, Farmgirl Flowers. Farmgirl Flowers delivers iconic burlap-wrapped bouquets and lush, abundant arrangements to customers across the U.S., supporting U.S. flower farms by purchasing more than $10 million dollars of U.S.-grown fresh and seasonal flowers and foliage annually. Discover more at farmgirlflowers.com.
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 to Johnny’s Selected Seeds, an employee-owned company that provides our industry the best flower, herb and vegetable seeds — supplied to farms large and small and even backyard cutting gardens like mine. Find the full catalog of flower seeds and bulbs at johnnysseeds.com.
And thank you to Mayesh Wholesale Florist. Family-owned since 1978, Mayesh is the premier wedding and event supplier in the U.S. and we’re thrilled to partner with Mayesh to promote local and domestic flowers, which they source from farms large and small around the U.S. Learn more at mayesh.com.
Thanks so much for joining me today! The Slow Flowers Podcast is a member-supported endeavor, downloaded more than one 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
Thank you for listening! Sending love, from my cutting garden to you! (c) Missy Palacol Photography
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.
Music credits: Waterbourne; Turning on the Lights; Gaena by Blue Dot Sessions http://www.sessions.blue
With 2023 here, it’s fitting to say goodbye to 2022 as we review the year’s highlights. All I can say about 2022 is that after slogging through the pandemic in 2020 and its aftermath in 2021, this past year felt like a sprint, not a marathon. The year seemed to race by so quickly, week by week, month by month, and the march of time propelled our beautiful and inspiring Slow Flowers community through the year, as we sought fulfillment, prosperity and peace — and balance in all things, right?! We lived our values, communicated our message, and supported one another in our shared mission. But wow, as much as the word *slow* is at the heart of all we do here, 2022 was anything but *slow*.
Yet, the annual ritual to pause, review, evaluate, and celebrate – as well as learn from — the lessons and experiences from our past year are activities I wouldn’t miss – and I want to share with you!
One personally meaningful major milestone was the 10-year anniversary of the book that started us off on the Slow Flowers journey — The 50 Mile Bouquet. When it was published in 2012, The 50 Mile Bouquet was the first book to spotlight a major cultural shift and a transformation around how cut flowers are grown, designed and consumed, closely mirroring the culinary world’s locavore/slow food revolution.
“Brimming with Blooms” documents the origins of the Seattle Wholesale Growers Market in The 50 Mile Bouquet.
One decade ago the floral industry was just beginning to ask for changes, seeking alternatives to imported, mass-produced and chemical-laden flowers. The 50 Mile Bouquet introduced some of the innovative voices of the dynamic new Slow Flower Movement: the organic flower farmers, the sustainably-motivated floral designers . . . and the flower enthusiasts who were increasingly asking, ‘Where and how were my flowers grown, and who grew them?’
Melissa and Tutta Bella appeared in The 50 Mile Bouquet
The 50 Mile Bouquet included documentary-feature reporting and full color photography to bring readers into the farms and design studios of Slow Flowers practitioners. As the book that coined the phrase “Slow Flowers,” its relevance today is more important than ever, considering issues around climate change, supply chain limitations, and equity and inclusion in the floral marketplace.
Fast-forward, here we are wrapping up 2022, and the issues around flower sourcing are just as timely and more important than ever! From my original storytelling in the pages of The 50 Mile Bouquet, the Slow Flowers Movement emerged, with the launch of the Slow Flowers Society and so many meaningful conversations through the Slow Flowers Podcast interviews and our other programs, content, advocacy and outreach to floral professionals and flower lovers alike.
Let’s take a look at our Membership!
We know that joining Slow Flowers Society as a member takes a financial commitment, a modest one that I believe offers incredible value for anyone in the business of communicating their brand in alignment with slow, seasonal, local and sustainable.
2022, for some, was a challenging year, as flowers continued to be bought and sold in a marketplace that is often based on cheap and convenient. Against that backdrop, we are so grateful to welcome 75 new flower farmers and floral designers who joined Slow Flowers Society as members in 2022. One Hundred percent of our focus is to add value to your investment in this organization. Since launching Slow Flowers in 2013, all of our revenue from membership subscriptions and partner sponsorships are poured right back into building Slow Flowers Society into a relevant and significant presence in the floral marketplace. Our strength in numbers has earned Slow Flowers a place at the table in mainstream floral circles, in the media, in conversations about the future of floriculture and floristry. That is priceless!
In the past year, Slow Flowers Society has produced hundreds of hours of educational resources for you, from the weekly Slow Flowers Show and Podcast (and supporting blog posts) to our monthly Virtual Membership Meet-Ups, and info-packed monthly newsletters, to stories you read on slowflowersjournal.com and in our quarterly digital magazine Slow Flowers Journal, to the feature reports we produce with Johnny’s Selected Seeds for their newsletter – and more. It’s all about education, from growing and design advice to small business and marketing resources. When you add it all up, that’s incredible value for a small membership subscription.
In 2021, we hosted 10 Meet-Ups on a variety of topics important to our members, beginning with our January session when I co-presented our2022 Slow Flowers Insights and Industry Forecast with Bloom Imprint’s creative director Robin Avni and closing up the year recently with our December Meet-Up focusing on value-added flower farm product development with Natasha McCrary of 1818 Farms and Sarah Wagstaff of SUOT Farm & Flowers.
Thousands have watched the replay videos with close to 8,000 impressions our YouTube channel! This is evergreen educational content always available to you and you can find the YouTube link to search all of our 2022 videos from the homepage of SlowFlowersPodcast.com.
October was our membership appreciation month, with our focus to highlight members and their floral stories ~ all across the continent. During October, we brought weekly member conversations to IG Live and the Zoom Room, with even more opportunities to learn and hear from our members — people at the heart of the Slow Flowers Movement. The social media exposure was incredible, generating thousands of views and impressions. You met and heard from October 4th: On Farm Events with Chelsea Willis of @sweetdelilahfarm and Misty VanderWeele of @all_dahliad_up who shared how they stage on-farm events; we discussed retail floristry with Jill Redman of @forageflorals + Angela Turner of @belfiorefarm; Pam Parker of JP Parker Flowers led a tour of her retail flower shop and discussed being a farmer-florist, and wedding designer Jessica Stewart of @bramble_blossom_pgh shared her tips for keeping your studio sustainable.
We also produced a new Member Benefits Booklet with discounts and coupons from Slow Flowers Society and our sponsors. If you can’t find the link to the booklet, please reach out and we’ll be happy to share it with you. Speaking of reaching out, our membership services gained a boost this past September when Tonneli Gruetter joined us as community engagement and member manager. A flower farmer herself, Tonneli has jumped right in to connect with you, and enhance membership engagement — if you have a question or suggestion, she’s your front-line contact and you should feel free to reach out to her at membership@slowflowers.com.
In November, we surveyed the Slow Flowers community – an annual exercise that informs our planning and forecasting for the year to come. Here are some highlights:
We asked Members how they engage with Slow Flowers Society and about their participation in the long list of benefits and features for 2022; Our Members cited the original benefit of joining Slow FlowersSociety, dating back to the launch of slowflowers.com as an online directory in 2014.
Nearly 70% of you mentioned the value of your Slow Flowers directory business listing found at slowflowers.com. 43% of you use our Slow Flowers badges and logos on your businesses’ branding and communications. One-third of you value being featured in Slow Flowers’ social media posts as a popular feature.
When it comes to Member Benefits
Respondents ranked top member benefits as follows:
69% Business listing on Slowflowers.com
43% Used Slow Flowers badges and logo on business branding/communications
34% Featured in social media post @slowflowerssociety
28% Purchased discounted tickets for Slow Flowers events
20% Attended Slow Flowers virtual meet-ups
20% Collaborated with other Slow Flowers members for special projects
18% Interviewed as guest on Slow Flowers Podcast
12% Participated in American Flowers Week
11% Participate in Slow Flowers Facebook Community
Where do you fall on this list? Are you missing out on features and programs available to you as a Member?! Take a moment to align our services with your floral enterprise! In 2023, we will continue these features, so if you’re not participating, that means you’re missing out on all the benefits of your membership!
Relating to Member Value, I’m so encouraged with these numbers:
81 percent of you rate the value of your Slow Flowers membership as high value or very high value – up from 75% in 2021 and 82 percent of you are very satisfied or extremely satisfied with their Slow Flowers membership, up from 78 % in 2021
We asked members to share key ways in which they find value in their Slow Flowers member benefits. The top items:
80% of you say: I want to Align my business with the values of the Slow Flowers Movement and Show my support for the mission of the Slow Flowers Movement
70% of you say: I want to connect with like-minded floral professionals and Educate myself and/or my staff about the importance of Slow Flowers.
We chose two thank-you gifts for our name drawing of those of you who completed our survey – and congratulations to our winners! On December 14th, I drew the names and announced the winners during an IG Live with Niesha Blancas, our social media manager:
For 2022, eight creative Slow Flowers individuals and teams participated in designing and producing ourAmerican Flowers Week botanical couture collection! These stylish and artistic floral fashions engage viewers with flowers and nature in new ways. We marvel how each look in the American Flowers Week Collection is unique to the location and season where it was produced and photographed — elevating flowers and foliages as works of art.
On June 29th, we invited the creatives who participated in our Botanical Couture collection to appear in the Slow Flowers Show and discuss their designs. And in conjunction with our American Flowers Week 2022 campaign, Slow Flowers Society and its publishing partner, BLOOM Imprint, released a special digital issue of Slow Flowers Journal, available for free download. The Summer 2022 edition featured our botanical couture collection and the stories of each designer, flower farmer and the floral ensembles designed with iconic American-grown botanicals. We already have five designers lined up to create looks for the 2023 American Flowers Week campaign so get ready to be wowed! And keep an eye out for more details on how to participate when we unveil our 2023 artwork next February.
In 2022, we produced an ambitious, fifth Slow Flowers Summit, as the 3-day gathering moved to lower Hudson Valley outside New York this past June. Since its inaugural conference in 2017, the Slow Flowers Summit has given attendees a chance to learn from artists, innovators, and thought leaders whose commitment to domestic flowers is at the heart of the Slow Flowers Movement. This past year gathered more than 125 progressive and sustainably-minded floral professionals from 25 states and two Canadian provinces.
Guests heard from seven inspiring presenters and enjoyed a farm tour, five design demonstrations, an interactive day of hands-on floral design, and a immersive maker-artisan experience. On Day One, attendees convened at The Red Barn at Maple Grove Farm in Bedford, New York, a private farm owned by local philanthropist George Bianco. On Days Two and Three, the Summit moved to nearby Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture and its Arts & Ecology Lab, which develops sustainable uses for all that a farm produces. Thank you to our partners, speakers, sponsors, and to all who attended this magical conference.
Here are a few Raves from our members:
“I wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed the Slow Flowers Summit. From the beautiful day of flowering at Red Barn at Maple Grove Farm to the inspiring presenters and classes, to the impeccable Stone Barns Center with its amazing grounds and delicious farm-to-table food, it was a tour de force to be sure! I know the Slow Flowers team put in countless hours to make the Summit a wonderful experience for all and it really was. I feel like I have found my tribe in my fellow Slow Flowers members! Your spark of an idea has become an incredible movement!”
“I learned so much from fantastic speakers and presenters. My favorite part was meeting and getting hands-on (experience) working on installations with those experts and the wider community of attendees. I’m feeling inspired and I’ve picked up some new tricks of the trade!”
“We are so inspired by all of the growers, artists, florists and ALL of the amazing people we met at the Slow Flowers Summit and we had a great time learning and connecting with other like-minded farmers and designers! Beyond excited to be part of the Slow Flowers Society and the Slow Flowers Movement!”
The ambitious programming continues for 2023, with an expanded list of speakers, topics, and experiences taking place over two days at Bellevue Botanical Garden in the Seattle area, June 26-27, 2023. You’ll be hearing much more about the 2023 Summit in the coming months, but save the date and we hope to see you there.
Slow Flowers communicates with our members through many channels, and we learned through this year’s Survey which of our methods are most used.
Ninety-five percent of members follow Slow Flowers Society on Instagram, while more than 40 percent engage with us via Facebook. The metrics for social media are easy to track, and they are impressive:
On @slowflowerssociety on Instagram, we have close to 41k followers, with an annual reach of 1.3 million. New in 2022 our social media manager Niesha Blancas launched reels on our @slowflowerssociety IG account, generating more than 165,000 views; clearly our most popular social media feature.
We also launched a member texting service and we use it judiciously, not over-spamming, but utilizing the channel to get useful and timely information at your fingertips. We know people can gain their flower farming and floral design news in many ways, through many channels, and we want to make it easy for our members to receive what they want, when they want it.
Our Slow Flowers monthly newsletternow reaches 3.6k subscribers, both members, followers, and fans who are interested in this Movement. We love producing the info-packed newsletter as it gives me a way to stop and reflect on all that has happened in any given month — chronicling everything from hosting our Slow Flowers podcast guests to featuring new promotional opportunities for members. The newsletter is a popular resource for our members – in fact, in the recent survey, more than two-thirds of you tell us you usually or always read it. You can always go back and read the archives from month to month; the archives are easy to find in the link at the bottom of slowflowers.com.
SLOW FLOWERS JOURNAL
Earlier, I mentioned the special botanical couture issue of Slow Flowers Journal, published last June, that issue served as the launch of our quarterly e-zine. The digital magazine is co-produced with BLOOM Imprint, and our goal is similar to our book publishing efforts: to support stories by and about Slow Flowers members. The subscription to Slow Flowers Journal is free to our members, as a member benefit. In 2022, we shared the issue widely, as an introductory promotion. In 2023, we will charge a market-rate subscription for nonmembers, either on a per-issue or annual basis.
Earlier this year, I’m proud to say that Slow Flowers Society and BLOOM Imprint received the GOLD Medal of Achievement for Slow Flowers Journal in the Trade: Special Projectcategory. The e-zine was published in June 2021 via Americanflowersweek.com and features the cover fashion and photography of Niesha Blancas of Fetching Social Media and model Jada Cruz.
BLOOM Imprint, our floral lifestyle book publishing arm, continued its ambitious publishing schedule for 2022, producing four titles, including:
Black Flora in February Growing Wonder in March Small Farm, Big Dreams in April and House + Flower in June.
Each of these books shared the beautiful message of a flower-centric life, and the expertise of authors and those featured in the pages.
These titles and our authors generated impressive attention in the media, and just to mention a few here: Veranda, Washington Post, Sunset Magazine, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Better Homes & Gardens, Architectural Digest, Flower Magazine, New York Times, House Beautiful, Cottage Journal, Apartment Therapy, Garden Design, Canadian House & Home, The American Gardener, Homes & Antiques, Cultivating Place on Public Radio, Central Texas Gardener on Public Television, Martha Stewart Online, Seattle Times and Cottages & Bungalows, among others. This type of attention underscores the significance and relevance of the books BLOOM Imprint has been producing — and we’re so proud of this work.
For the past 2 years, Slow Flowers has partnered with the National Gardening Association and gardenresearch.com to include cut flower questions in their annual National Gardening Survey.
The 2022 survey expanded on the 2021 findings, revealing that consumer awareness, attitudes and behavior about domestic and local cut flowers has only continued to increase.
In the 2021 survey, 58 percent of respondents said it is very or somewhat important that the flowers they purchase are locally grown. In 2022, that number climbed to 65 percent — nearly 2/3rd of respondents prefer locally-grown flowers.
The attitudes about American-grown flower purchases is also trending up — from 57% of respondents in 2021 who said it’s very or somewhat important that the flowers they purchase are U.S. grown, to 61% preferring domestic flowers in 2022.
Slow Flowers will again participate in and sponsor the National Gardening Survey that is conducted this month, with results ready to share this coming April. I can’t wait to see the needle continue to move up on this positive trend, so stay tuned!
Slow Flowers Podcast Earlier I mentioned that 2022 was the 10-year anniversary of the publication of The 50 Mile Bouquet. During this year, 2023, we will celebrate the publication of the book Slow Flowers. Its publication in the spring of 2013 led to the launch of the Slow Flowers Podcast, with the first episode appearing on July 23, 2013.
Since that date, the Slow Flowers Podcast has defined this Movement. It was the first ever podcast about flowers, flower farming and floral design, and is an award-winning weekly program known as the “Voice of the Slow Flowers Movement.” Airing consistently, without fail, each week for more than 9 years, this important gift to the floral marketplace focuses on the business of flower farming and floral design through the Slow Flowers sustainability ethos.
Our lifetime downloads have now exceeded one million episodes, and in 2022 alone, due to a major distribution expansion that came along with changing our syndicate hosting platform, the Slow Flowers Podcast was downloaded more than 500,000 times.
On top of this, we have produced a full year of Video episodes, bringing you flower farm tours, studio tours, Q&As, design demonstrations, and a visual immersion into the podcast conversations. You can find the video episodes, which we post each week as the Slow Flowers Show on Youtube, FB Live, Linked in Live and IGTV. Our viewership continues to grow and further enhance how we share the Slow Flowers Movement with you.
The Slow Flowers movement aspires to change how consumers and professionals in the floral marketplace view their flower purchases. The movement involves every facet of the floral distribution pipeline — from breeders and growers to wholesalers, to florists, to consumers — as they ask for domestic, seasonal, and sustainably-grown flowers.
We value our members, partners, sponsors and others who pursuing similar values and goals.
In 2022, Slow Flowers Society sponsored the Black Girl Florists Conference and sessions at the Association of Specialty Cut Flowers Conference. We provided scholarships to BIPOC florists and flower farmers to attend the Slow Flowers Summit and others who pursued continuing education.
We provided educational presentations at CalFlowers’ FunNSun, and spoke about the Slow Flowers Movement at the FREESIA Summit, the Great Grow Along conference, the Madison Square Park Conservancy Lecture Series, the Hardy Plant Study Weekend, King County Library’s Literary Lions, GardenComm International, Northwest Flower & Garden Festival, and for numerous garden clubs around the country.
We contributed to and provided quotes for national and major market media, including stories that appeared in Cottage Journal, Veranda, Better Homes & Gardens, Business Traveler, The Oregonian, Society of American Florists, Johnny’s Advantage Newsletter, BizWoman Magazine, Mayesh Blog, and Avocado Magazine, and appeared on the Blooming Good Time Podcast and the Cut Flower Podcast.
All of these activities continue to elevate the idea and values of the Slow Flowers Movement; they are your ROI – your return on investment – for joining this organization; and these benefits ripple across the industry and inspire the consumer mindset about local and seasonal flowers. It isn’t a direct line but a multidimensional force that builds a network of support for you and your own floral enterprise each and every day.
As we wrap up this year-in-review, I want to take a moment to thank all of our sponsors, including our lead Sponsor: Farmgirl Flowers, who has generously returned as our 2023 Lead Sponsor.
Our Major Sponsors for 2022 included: Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers The Gardeners’ Workshop Johnny’s Selected Seeds Longfield Garden Red Twig Farms, Seattle Wholesale Growers Market and Flowerfarm.com
Our Channel Sponsors for 2022 included: CalFlowers CoolBot Details Flowers Software DoorDash Mayesh Wholesale Florists and Scenic Place Peonies
Coming up in 2023, you’re invited to join our Slow Flowers Member Virtual Meet-Up on Friday, January 13, 2023 — when we welcome Emily Ellen Anderson of Curious Lola, a Slow Flowers member and business coach for artists and creatives — she’ll help us with a New Year re-set and you won’t want to miss it!
In late January, Bloom Imprint’s Robin Avni and I will co-present our 2023 Slow Flowers Floral Insights and Industry Forecast in a webinar format, produced in conjunction with the publication of our winter 2023 issue of Slow Flowers Journal. We’ll announce that date soon.
Thanks so much for joining me today. The Slow Flowers Podcast is a member-supported endeavor, downloaded more than one 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
Thank you for listening! Sending love, from my cutting garden to you! (c) Missy Palacol Photography
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.
Music credits:
Chymique; Game Hens; Gasland; Glass Beads; Lissa; Spindash; Yarrow and Root; Turning on the Lights; Gaena by Blue Dot Sessions http://www.sessions.blue
We are in the midst of American Flowers Week, which runs annually from June 28th through July 4th. In 2015, Slow Flowers Society launched American Flowers Week as an annual advocacy, education and outreach campaign to promote domestic and locally-grown flowers. The project encourages flower farmers, floral designers, flower enthusiasts and gardeners alike to share photographs of their blooms across social media with the hashtag #americanflowersweek.
Elevating local flowers and communicating the many reasons to support domestic floral agriculture and sustainable floristry are at the heart of the campaign. According to the 2022 National Gardening Survey, research sponsored by the Slow Flowers Society, 65 percent of Americans say it is very or somewhat important that the flowers they purchase are local (up from 58 percent in the 2021 survey). These numbers are trending up!
Town & Country’s in-store merchandising during American Flowers Week 2016
Sharing red-white-and-blue bouquets to commemorate Independence Day celebrations, is one way to woo the eye of the beholder. Today, you will meet the individuals and creative teams responsible for our 2022 American Flowers Week Botanical Couture collection. Together, they have drawn inspiration from nature, using design and art to bring deeper layers of meaning to their work.
Let’s jump right in and meet the creatives. You can see their botanical couture looks and learn how you can use the social media graphics for your own AFW promotional projects.
We know that creativity is not a finite commodity, although time and space in which to create is a priceless factor that can make the difference for so many florists, designers, and makers. We thank our talented Botanical Couture creatives value local, seasonal and sustainable flowers above all else and together, they are stimulating curiosity and changing people’s relationship with flowers.
I hope you’re inspired to participate in American Flowers Week. You’ll want to log onto Americanflowersweek.com and check out the Media Resources:
What a wonderful preview! I want to share a special thank you to our Botanical Couture Sponsors who supported many of our florists and farmer-florists with donated flowers. Thank you to Carlos Cardoza of CamFlora Inc., a Watsonville, California-based family-owned flower farm, for providing stems of flowers and foliage for several of the looks.
Thank you to our Sponsors
This show is brought to you by Slowflowers.com, the free, online directory to more than 850 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, Farmgirl Flowers. Farmgirl Flowers delivers iconic burlap-wrapped bouquets and lush, abundant arrangements to customers across the U.S., supporting U.S. flower farms by purchasing more than $10 million dollars of U.S.-grown fresh and seasonal flowers and foliage annually. Discover more at farmgirlflowers.com.
Thank you to Johnny’s Selected Seeds, an employee-owned company that provides our industry the best flower, herb and vegetable seeds — supplied to farms large and small and even backyard cutting gardens like mine. Find the full catalog of flower seeds and bulbs atjohnnysseeds.com.
And thank you to Mayesh Wholesale Florists for providing shipping, delivery and logistics support. In addition, we are grateful for Mayesh’s support of the Slow Flowers Podcast. Family-owned since 1978, Mayesh is the premier wedding and event supplier in the U.S. and we’re thrilled to partner with Mayesh to promote local and domestic flowers, which they source from farms large and small around the U.S. Learn more at mayesh.com.
Our final thanks to The Gardener’s Workshop, which offers a full curriculum of online education for flower farmers and farmer-florists. Online education is more important this year than ever, and you’ll want to check out the course offerings at thegardenersworkshop.com.
Thanks so much for joining us today! The Slow Flowers Podcast is a member-supported endeavor, downloaded more than 864,000 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 and consider making a donation to sustain Slow Flowers’ ongoing advocacy, education and outreach activities. You can find the donate button at the right.
Thank you for listening! Sending love, from my cutting garden to you! (c) Missy Palacol Photography
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.
The fifth Slow Flowers Summit is coming right up and everyone involved is getting very excited to convene in New York’s Westchester County for three creatively informative and inspiring days centered around local flowers, sustainability and community — June 26 to June 28.
Today, I want to share two back-to-back interviews with Slow Flowers members in New York’s lower Hudson Valley and Brooklyn, both of whom are hosting bonus events built around the Slow Flowers Summit. You’ll meet Sylvia Lukach of Cape Lily Floral and Molly Culver of Molly Oliver Flowers.
Here’s the scoop: Our conference theme is Flowers as Artists Muse, and on Day Three our attendees will enjoy an immersive experience at Stone Barns Center’s Arts & Ecology Lab. According to Sylvia Lukach, after our fantastic final day, the party isn’t over! And if that’s not enough fun, Molly Culver has curated a fantastic NYC Flower District tour on Wednesday, June 29th. Learn more as you join my conversations with both women today.
First: On Tuesday evening, June 28th, Sylvia and several of the creatives of Makers Central in Tarrytown, New York, will host a studio tour and cocktail party in their shared artisan workspace — an exclusive opportunity for Summit guests only.
During the Slow Flowers Summit Arts & Ecology Lab programming, attendees will meet, Connor McGinn, a ceramic artist and owner of Connor McGinn Studio, and papermaker Natalia Woodward of Batflower Press. Sylvia Lukach will also be there to assist Blue Hill Restaurant operations manager and floral designer Philppe Gouze in his demonstration. She generously cooked up the Makers Central tour and after party and I’m so looking forward to attending and learning more about how her floral studio fits into a large makers space with so many creative mediums.
The Meet the Makers at Makers Central cocktail part is only open to attendees of the Slow Flowers Summit. Signup link is provided in today’s show notes.
Second: You’ll hear my conversation with Molly Culver of Brooklyn-based Molly Oliver Flowers, who will share a preview of her post-Summit program, a NYC Flower District Walking Tour, followed by lunch and studio visit to Molly Oliver Flowers’ space in Brooklyn.
Molly Culver’s NYC Flower District Walking Tour and Lunch/Design Demonstration at her Brooklyn studio are open to Summit attendees and other flower lovers. The morning and afternoon sessions are separately priced at $95 each and space is limited. You can join Molly for either session, or sign up for both! The cost of cabs (to be shared with other participants) and lunch is included in the workshop ticket.
This show is brought to you by Slowflowers.com, the free, online directory to more than 850 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, Farmgirl Flowers. Farmgirl Flowers delivers iconic burlap-wrapped bouquets and lush, abundant arrangements to customers across the U.S., supporting U.S. flower farms by purchasing more than $10 million dollars of U.S.-grown fresh and seasonal flowers and foliage annually. Discover more at farmgirlflowers.com.
Thank you to Red Twig Farms. Based in Johnstown, Ohio, Red Twig Farms is a family-owned farm specializing in peonies, daffodils, tulips and branches, a popular peony-bouquet-by-mail program and their Spread the Hope Campaign where customers purchase 10 tulip stems for essential workers and others in their community. Learn more at redtwigfarms.com.
Thank you to the Seattle Wholesale 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 seattlewholesalegrowersmarket.com.
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.
Thanks so much for joining us today! The Slow Flowers Podcast is a member-supported endeavor, downloaded more than 861,000 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 and consider making a donation to sustain Slow Flowers’ ongoing advocacy, education and outreach activities. You can find the donate button at slowflowerspodcast.com.
Thank you for listening! Sending love, from my cutting garden to you! (c) Missy Palacol Photography
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.
Music credits: Long and Low Cloud; Yarrow and Root; Gaena by Blue Dot Sessions http://www.sessions.blue
It’s that time again — our chance to review and reflect on all we achieved and experienced in the year that’s just come to a close — this time, 2021. I’m joined by two key members of the Slow Flowers Team — Karen Thornton, our operations and events manager, and Niesha Blancas, our social media manager, who helped review our highlights and wrap things up for 2021. As historians have taught us, you can’t plan for the future without knowing the past, right?!
Karen and Niesha are such valuable members of our team and I’m so grateful for their talents and commitment to the Slow Flower Mission! This year, rather than taking a chronological, month-by-month walk through 2021, we thought it would be useful to touch on each of our programs, channels and activities by topic.
Membership:
In 2021, we achieved our highest level of membership since the launch of Slowflowers.com in 2013 — 880 members in all 50 states and most Canadian provinces. What a wonderful growing community of progressive, sustainably-minded, flower people.
Our monthly Member Meet-ups were a highlight for me — beginning last January when we hosted Rachel Johnson of Simply Grounded, who led our session on Sogetsu Ikebana. The monthly meet-ups averaged 50 attendees all year long — some more, some less. Sometimes we had a number of presenters; other times we included break-out sessions. The meet-ups began in 2020 as a way to connect with each other during the early days of the COVID pandemic. None of us realized how valuable these Zoom calls would become over the ensuing months. In 2021, we averaged 50 attendees each meet-up, and the replay videos have been watched more than 1,200 times.
Continuing with Membership, one of my favorite accomplishments of the year was designing and producing the Member Marketing Toolkit, a digital 42-page booklet that answers all the questions our members might have regarding ways to participate and get the most out of your membership. And more recently, during October Member Appreciation Month, we produced a special Member Benefits Booklet with discounts and coupons from Slow Flowers Society and our sponsors.
Member Survey:
The Slow Flowers Member Survey informs our planning and forecasting for the year to come. Here are some highlights:
Annual member survey
4.6 satisfaction rating
2021
75.26% (73 people) rate the value of their Slow Flowers membership as high value or very high value
78.35% (76 people) are very satisfied or extremely satisfied with their Slow Flowers membership
82.48% (80 people) are very likely or extremely likely to renew their membership in the upcoming year
Congratulations to our Winners! Everyone who completed the Survey and shared their details was included in a special drawing for two prizes.
Complimentary Slow Flowers Premium Membership for 1 year ($249 value): April Vomfell, Flathead Farmworks
Free Slow Flowers Dinner at Blue Hill at Stone Barns – June 27, 2022 in Pocantico Hills, New York ($350 value): Jennifer Kouvant, Six Dutchess Farm
Slowflowers.com
At Slowflowers.com, our original home online, we invested in some important upgrades to the software platform. Just unveiled in December, we’re calling it Slowflowers.com 3.0. It was our goal to improve user experience for the consumer and functionality for our members. We are planning a virtual “spring cleaning” later in January to share some of the ways our members can maximize their profile and brand through Slowflowers.com 3.0, so keep an eye out for that in the coming weeks. We’ll be sure to record the tutorial for replay viewers.
American Flowers Week
American Flowers Week – June 28-July 1
12 botanical couture looks
# of downloads of the Botanical Couture Webinar: 45
local and national press generated
Plus, we celebrated Canadian Flowers week – 7 day Instagram series July 15-21, 2021
The American Flowers Week looks were featured in the digital edition of Slow Flowers Journal “Botanical Couture.” This was the debut of a digital flip book, and we’re excited to launch the quarterly magazine in 2022, with our winter edition coming later this season. Our members have contributed articles to the slowflowersjournal.com website over the past few years — a popular feature — and now we expect to get more members involved in the new project, which we’re publishing in conjunction with BLOOM Imprint (more on that later).
Slow Flowers Summit
Two years in the making, the Slow Flowers Summit was our 4th annual gathering. When I asked Karen to share her feedback, she gave it in one word: Wowzer
What a memorable and successful gathering last June at Filoli Historic House & Garden in Woodside, California.
I have to thank Niesha Blancas for going to Filoli in June 2020, during what would have been our Summit there, and taking beautiful video and photography, as well as filming a design session with Emily Saeger and my IG live interview/tour with Jim Salyards — all while masked, of course! You pulled of a social media feat in 2020 and again in 2021 when the rescheduled Summit took place!
We are especially grateful to our friends at Filoli, who were incredibly supportive in welcoming Slow Flowers and the Summit to their amazing grounds.
Social Media and Communications
Ninety-one percent of our members follow Slow Flowers Society on Instagram, while more than 45 percent follow us on Facebook.
We renamed our Instagram home: @slowflowerssociety
Followers: 39.1K
Reach: 2.4 Million
Impressions: 2.6 Million
We launched a new Instagram account: @slowflowerssummit
Reach: 18.5K
Impressions: 17K
New Video
There are so many ways that we share inspiring news and resources with you. In 2021, we invested in a short 3-minute Slow Flowers video to introduce the organization to potential members, strategic partners and supporters. The video was filmed and edited by Alayna Erhart of Alayna Erhart Studio. It features me clipping flowers in the Slow Flowers Cutting Garden, the fabulous gathering of members at Filoli Historic House & Garden at the recent 2021 Slow Flowers Summit and a visit to the UW Farm with member Riz Reyez of RHR Horticulture. Special thanks to the members who share their voices of endorsement and support, including Sarah Reyes of Wildflower & Fern, Tobey Nelson of Tobey Nelson Events and Design and Laura Gonzales of Swallows Secret Garden! Look closely – do you see yourself here in our community!? We’re ready to welcome you as a member!
Storytelling, Newsletter, Original Content
We love producing our monthly newsletter to send to you at the beginning of each month. The Slow Flowers newsletter is a popular resource for our members — in fact, in the recent survey, more than 3/4 of you tell us you usually or always read it! Our content is rich, informative and inspiring — and newsletters keep you up to date on events and PR opportunities available to members. I like to treat the newsletter as a chronicle of all we’ve achieved from month to month, and the archives are easy to find in the footer of slowflowers.com.Subscribe to the newsletter here.
Stories about our Members: Whenever I’m asked to write for another floral or farming publication, I make it a priority to feature our members and their expertise as my sources. In 2021, that meant including you in several articles for Johnny’s Seeds’ newsletter called JSS Advantage; a guest piece for Details Flowers Software; guest articles for Florists’ Review, Growing for Market and Longfield Gardens, among other outlets.
You could file these stories under Slow Flowers advocacy and outreach, and I’m especially excited about our partnership with the National Gardening Association and GardenResearch.com to include cut flower questions in the 2021 National Gardening Survey.
The findings were published in April, revealing encouraging national attitudes about local and domestic cut flowers. And in 2022, we’re joining with NGA to dig deeper into attitudes and consumer behavior — this time about where people buy their local and domestic flowers — can’t wait to share with you!
Our ongoing commitment to Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
Ongoing support of women business owners
Updated Slow Flowers Manifesto
BIPOC and LGBTQ+ presenters and speakers at meet ups and Summit
Female BIPOC AFW artist
BIPOC botanical couture models
To proactively pursue equity, inclusion and representation in the floral marketplace, intentionally valuing Black floral professionals (farmers, floral designers and vendors) in our business practice with as much support as we give to environmental sustainability.
new Slow flowers manifesto statement (2021)
Education
In addition to our Monthly Member Meet-Up, other educational offerings include offering you free access to webinars with our partners, including Johnny’s Seeds, Bloom Imprint, AIFD and Fleurvana Floral Summit. We also taught the Slow Flowers Creative Workshop in January and helped so many aspiring writers flex their writing muscles and learn new skills.
BLOOM Imprint
In 2021, we launched our publishing branch of Slow Flowers — BLOOM Imprint. As a boutique publisher, we are committed to producing floral lifestyle books by and about our Slow Flowers members.
Where We Bloom published (May)
Virtual book launch
Garden Design magazine webinar
Mornings with Mayesh webinar
A Life in Flowers published (Oct)
Growing Wonder & Black Flora coming up and more books to follow with Slow Flowers members like Adam and Jennifer O’Neal of PepperHarrow Farm and Cynthia Zamaria of House + Flower
Slow Flowers Podcast
Finally, we must note all of our Podcast achievements. If you watched this conversation that Niesha, Karen and I are having on Facebook Live or YouTube, you’ll realize this is one of our new initiatives for 2021 — since our 8th anniversary in late July, we have added video interviews aka Vodcasts to the mix.
This is the weekly podcast about Slow Flowers and the people who grow and design with them. It’s all about making a conscious choice and I invite you to join the conversation and the creative community as we discuss the vital topics of saving our domestic flower farms and supporting a floral industry that relies on a safe, seasonal and local supply of flowers and foliage.
This show is brought to you by Slowflowers.com, the free, online directory to more than 880 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, returning for 2022, Farmgirl Flowers. Farmgirl Flowers delivers iconic burlap-wrapped bouquets and lush, abundant arrangements to customers across the U.S., supporting more than 20 U.S. flower farms by purchasing more than $9 million dollars of U.S.-grown fresh and seasonal flowers and foliage annually. Discover more at farmgirlflowers.com.
Lead Sponsor: Farmgirl Flowers Major Sponsors: Longfield Gardens, Johnny’s Seeds, The Gardener’s Workshop, FlowerFarm.com, Red Twig Farm, Seattle Wholesale Growers Market, the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers, and Rooted Farmers Channel Sponsors: Mayesh Wholesale, CalFlowers, Roadie.com, Details Flowers Software, CoolBot and Scenic Place Peonies.
Thanks so much for joining us today! The Slow Flowers Podcast is a member-supported endeavor, downloaded more than 804,000 times by listeners like you. I value our loyal members and supporters! If you’re new to our weekly Show and our long-running Podcast, check out all of our resources at Slow Flowers Society.com and consider making a donation to sustain Slow Flowers’ ongoing advocacy, education and outreach activities. You can find the donate button in the column to the right.
Thank you for listening! Sending love, from my cutting garden to you! (c) Missy Palacol Photography
I’m Debra Prinzing, host and producer of the Slow Flowers Show & Podcast. Next week, you’re invited to join me in putting more Slow Flowers on the table, one stem, one vase at a time. 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.
The Slow Flowers Podcast is engineered and edited by Andrew Brenlan. You can learn more about Andrew’s work at soundbodymovement.com.
Thanks so much for joining us today and I’ll see you next week!
Music Credits:
For We Shall Know Speed; Turning on the Lights; Gaena by Blue Dot Sessions http://www.sessions.blue
Thank you so much for joining us today! October is our celebration of our Slow Flowers members and one of my goals this month is to showcase and thank as many of our Premium Level members as possible, our top supporters.
Today, we’re visiting Eileen Tongson of FarmGal Flowers, coming to us from Orlando, Florida.
As a farmer-florist, Eileen has experimented with a number of channels to market the flowers she grows, but she’s honed in on two key portions of her business: teaching workshops and designing for events.
Eileen Tongson withone of her signature Florida-grown bouquets
When I asked her to join me during Membership Appreciation Month, Eileen suggested sharing a design demonstration during our interview. You’ll enjoy meeting Eileen and learning about her robust workshop schedule — offered all year long, season by season — to satisfy customers eager for ways to connect with locally-grown flowers and to learn more about gardening.
Eileen and I recorded this conversation and demo last week and I know hearing it and watching the video will get you thinking about harvest and holiday workshops that you can offer.
Eileen in her home-based studio, featured in Where We Bloom
Here’s a bit more about Eileen before we get started, excerpted from her website:
For as long as she can remember, Eileen has truly loved gardening. Her parents were avid gardeners and the family spent countless hours outdoors cultivating vegetables, fruit, and of course flowers. They taught Eileen to appreciate nature and all that it provides, and she is so thankful to them for the early introduction to what has become a lifelong passion.
After all these years, she’s still just as inspired by the natural beauty and cultivation of flowers. Eileen considers herself a city dweller, turned home-grown FarmGal.
Life has taken her to the west coast and back, but her heart and my home have always been in the Sunshine State and the beautiful city of Orlando, Fl. It is where she has raised her family, and now with great enthusiasm that she gets to share her love for flower farming and floral design with her community.
Eileen has studied floral design at numerous locations including Floret Flower Farm, the City College of San Francisco, and Flower School New York. She also completed the University of Florida IFAS Master Gardener Program in 2009. I continue to expand and refine my skills regularly through floral design and flower farming workshops across the country and as a member of Slow Flowers Society and the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers.
Eileen’s flowers and gardening expertise have been featured in Florists Review, Edible Orlando, Houzz.com, TravelChannel.com, The Monarch Initiative, Ocala Magazine, Orange Appeal magazine, Team Flower, Glam.com and most recently, in my two books, Slow Flowers Journal – Volume One and Where We Bloom. She was also included in Floret Farm’s book, “Small Plot, Big Impact.”
Inside Eileen’s efficient and compact studio, which opens onto her Orlando area garden
FarmGal Flowers was also named Best Florist in Best of Winter Park 2019. Clients have included The Ford Motor Company, Williams-Sonoma Winter Park, the Orlando Magic, the Orlando Museum of Art, The Grove Winter Park, and Salata Winter Park.
Eileen believes in locally and sustainably grown, seasonal flowers that support and beautify her community. And, if I am successful in creating a delightful bouquet or arrangement of freshly cut beauties for clients and local friends, then that makes me her HAPPY home-grown FarmGal!
As a farmer-florist, Eileen has experimented with a number of channels to market the flowers she grows, but she’s honed in on two key portions of her business: teaching workshops and designing for events.
When I asked her to join me during Membership Appreciation Month, Eileen suggested sharing a design demonstration during our interview. You’ll enjoy meeting Eileen and learning about her robust workshop schedule — offered all year long, season by season — to satisfy customers eager for ways to connect with locally-grown flowers and to learn more about gardening.
Eileen and I recorded this conversation and demo last week and I know hearing it and watching the video will get you thinking about harvest and holiday workshops that you can offer.
” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>Click here to order your copies of Slow Flowers Journal – Volume One (Featuring Eileen’s Grown-in-Florida Fern and Frond Gown) and Where We Bloom (Featuring Eileen’s home-based studio). Participating in our promotional and PR campaigns like American Flowers Week is one of many opportunities available to Slow Flowers Society members like Eileen.
As I reminded you last week, we are in the midst of October’s Member Appreciation Month and I’m so pleased at all the great content we’ve been able to share with our community of members. If you aren’t a member yet — and why haven’t you joined us? It’s the perfect time to step up and commit. This month, all new members will receive our special Member Benefits Booklet with coupons, discounts and other perks from eight of our partners and sponsors — the savings will more than cover your annual membership investment. All new members also receive our Slow Flowers Society collector’s pin, made in the USA, which features our teal and lime green logo. Plus, if you upgrade to or join at the Premium Level, you’ll also receive the video bundle of all our Slow Flowers Summit 2022 speaker presentations, valued at $129.
Before we wrap up, I have a special treat to share — also timed to coincide with Member Appreciation Month!
Yesterday, we unveiled the NEW Slow Flowers Video. I’m so thrilled to share it with you — this Video was created over the past several months with our favorite video talent Alayna Erhart of Alayna Erhart Studio. In just a few minutes, you’ll meet me in the Slow Flowers Cutting Garden, catch a glimpse of the fabulous gathering of members at Filoli Historic House & Garden at the recent 2021 Slow Flowers Summit and join my visit to the UW Farm with member Riz Reyez of RHR Horticulture. Special thanks to the members who share their voices of endorsement and support, including Sarah Reyes of Wildflower & Fern, Tobey Nelson of Tobey Nelson Events and Design and Laura Gonzales of Swallows Secret Garden! Look closely – do you see yourself here in our community!? We’re ready to welcome you as a member!
Thank you to our sponsors!
This show is brought to you by Slowflowers.com, the free, online directory to more than 880 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 for 2021, Farmgirl Flowers. Farmgirl Flowers delivers iconic burlap-wrapped bouquets and lush, abundant arrangements to customers across the U.S., supporting more than 20 U.S. flower farms by purchasing more than $9 million dollars of U.S.-grown fresh and seasonal flowers and foliage annually. Discover more atfarmgirlflowers.com.
Thank you to the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers. Formed in 1988, ASCFG was created to educate, unite, and support commercial cut flower growers. It mission is to help growers produce high-quality floral material, and to foster and promote the local availability of that product. Learn more at ascfg.org.
Thank you to Red Twig Farms. Based in Johnstown, Ohio, Red Twig Farms is a family-owned farm specializing in peonies, daffodils, tulips and branches, a popular peony-bouquet-by-mail program and their Spread the Hope Campaign where customers purchase 10 tulip stems for essential workers and others in their community. Learn more at redtwigfarms.com.
Thank you to Seattle Wholesale 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 seattlewholesalegrowersmarket.com.
Thanks so much for joining us today! The Slow Flowers Podcast has been downloaded more than 776,000 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.
I value your support and invite you to show your thanks to support Slow Flowers’ ongoing advocacy, education and outreach activities. You can find the donate button in the column to the right at debraprinzing.com
Thank you for listening! Sending love, from my cutting garden to you! (c) Missy Palacol Photography
I’m Debra Prinzing, host and producer of the Slow Flowers Show & Podcast. Next week, you’re invited to join me in putting more Slow Flowers on the table, one stem, one vase at a time. 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.
The Slow Flowers Podcast is engineered and edited by Andrew Brenlan. You can learn more about Andrew’s work at soundbodymovement.com.
Music Credits:
Long Await; For We Shall Know Speed; Turning on the Lights; Gaena by Blue Dot Sessions http://www.sessions.blue
Today’s guest is Felicia Alvarez of Menagerie Farm + Flower (c) Jill Carmel Photography
June was a super-busy and invigorating month and I have lots to share with you! I’m recording the intro to today’s episode on July 5th. Yesterday, my husband and I arrived back in Seattle after driving home from the SF Bay Area, my car filled with Slow Flowers Summit supplies; my heart filled with love for our amazing community of members, supporters, sponsors, partners — and especially the small but mighty Slow Flowers team of creatives who work with me. Oh, and my mind spinning with ideas and inspiration from last week’s Slow Flowers Summit, our fourth and best one to date.
Our fabulous Slow Flowers Summit 2021 speaker lineup included (from left): Susan McLeary, Max Gill, founder Debra Prinzing, Pilar Zuniga (with her adorable daughter, Paloma), Jennifer Jewell, Abra Lee, Molly Oliver, Kelee Matsushita-Tseng, Emily Saeger and Lorene Edwards Forkner (c) Missy Palacol photography
You’ll hear much more in the coming weeks as I share recaps and resources from the Slow Flowers Summit 2021. Suffice it to say, the timing worked out wonderfully for an all-outdoor conference as we safely gathered at Filoli Historic House & Residence in Woodside, California.
To arrive there, I departed Seattle on Wednesday, June 23rd, giving myself two days to make the drive south.
It was a good time to be alone with my thoughts, and to schedule a few stops along the way. One stop was in Live Oak, California, located halfway between Chico and Sacramento.
I was lured to Menagerie Flower + Farm, where Felicia Alvarez lives with her family in the beautiful Sacramento Valley.
The farm raises field grown garden roses, specialty flowers, French prunes, assorted stone fruits, nuts and rice.
Menagerie Farm + Flower’s beautiful roses, including (left) Scarlett & Grace’s arrangement (c) Kelly Marie Photography and (right) Felicia’s montage of just-harvested garden roses
Now, I had a very important reason to see Menagerie Farm + Flower in person! BLOOM Imprint, our book venture, is publishing Felicia’s first book this fall. We are so excited about Growing Wonder, which the book is called. You’ll hear all about this new project in our conversation — and learn how you can pre-order your own copy.
Here’s a bit more about Felicia Alvarez before we get started: On her website, she writes:
“I’ve been farming for over two decades and every day I fall in love with the simplicity & nostalgia of life on the farm. My mission is simple – to grow exceptional flowers & foods with distinctive quality. As a third generation farmer, my favorite memories as a child were tending to my grandmother’s farm garden filled with fragrant garden roses. Her love of flowers made me an avid gardener and now accidental flower farmer. Today I farm French prunes, garden roses and specialty cut flowers with the help of my husband and two little sons in tow.“
Felicia Alvarez on “Growing Wonder” (c) Jill Carmichael Photography
After more than a year of recording most of our episodes over Zoom, it was such a joy to sit at a picnic table next to Felicia’s barn and record live and in person. The ambient farm sounds only help to underscore that feeling of immediacy. I hope you enjoy this conversation, so let’s jump right in and get started!
Thanks so much for joining us today! What a lovely preview of Growing Wonder! You can pre-order your copy of Felicia’s book via a link to BLOOM Imprint – we’ll mail it to you in September after publication. In the meantime, there are a lot of resources available to you at Felicia’s website — check out links below and follow her on social media.
Sign up for Menagerie Academy, Felicia’s membership for rose lovers, gardeners and growers. There are three levels of membership, depending on your own needs and goals.
We just wrapped up American Flowers Week, our 7th annual celebration, June 28th through July 4th. For all of you who participated, THANK YOU for sharing photos of your beautiful flowers, designs, farms and special activities.
Our botanical couture collection was the most extensive ever and we’ve collected one-dozen floral fashions in our special edition digital flip book — it’s free to read (click here for link).
AND, I’m going to say it right now: If you have any inspiration to grow and design a botanical couture garment for our 2022 collection, please get in touch right away. I find that summer races along so quickly that it’s easy to miss the tiny window of time between now and first frost during which you can harvest, create and photograph a wearable floral garment for next year! I won’t let you forget the opportunity to promote your flowers and floral art through this high-visibility member opportunity. Learn more at americanflowersweek.com.
Thank you to our Sponsors
This podcast is brought to you by Slowflowers.com, the free, online directory to more than 880 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.
And thank you to our lead sponsor for 2021, Farmgirl Flowers. Farmgirl Flowers delivers iconic burlap-wrapped bouquets and lush, abundant arrangements to customers across the U.S., supporting more than 20 U.S. flower farms by purchasing more than $9 million dollars of U.S.-grown fresh and seasonal flowers and foliage annually. Discover more atfarmgirlflowers.com.
For each Podcast episode this year, we thank three of our Podcast Sponsors.
Today, we welcome Roadie.com as a new Podcast and Newsletter sponsor for 2021. Roadie is a same-day delivery platform that connects you and your flower deliveries with drivers already heading in the right direction. Roadie can handle the delivery of your fragile flowers and plants, so you can get back to creating masterpieces or helping them grow. Check out the link in today’s show notes for more details or visit https://www.roadie.com/small-business/florists-nursery
Flowerfarm.com, a leading wholesale flower distributor that sources from carefully-selected flower farms to offer high-performing fresh flowers sent directly from the farm straight to you. You can shop by flower and by country of origin at flowerfarm.com. Find flowers and foliage from California, Florida, Oregon and Washington by using the “Origin” selection tool in your search. It’s smarter sourcing. Learn more at flowerfarm.com.
Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers. Formed in 1988, ASCFG was created to educate, unite, and support commercial cut flower growers. It mission is to help growers produce high-quality floral material, and to foster and promote the local availability of that product. Learn more at ascfg.org.
Thanks so much for joining us today! The Slow Flowers Podcast has been downloaded more than 742,000 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.
I value your support and invite you to show your thanks to support Slow Flowers’ ongoing advocacy, education and outreach activities. You can find the donate button in the column to the right at debraprinzing.com
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.
The Slow Flowers Podcast is engineered and edited by Andrew Brenlan. Learn more about his work at soundbodymovement.com.
