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SLOW FLOWERS Podcast: Farmgirl Flowers & Christina Stembel (Episode 108)

If the term “imitation is the highest form of flattery,” then my friend Christina Stembel has been over-flattered, multiple times.

The creator of Farmgirl Flowers in San Francisco, Christina has poured considerable heart, soul and personal resources into developing her innovative floral design business. Customers and the media have responded enthusiastically (see Martha Stewart Living). And her reward in part has been the explosion of copycat businesses, not just in the Bay Area but in other major cities around the country.

That’s the downside of being a successful and creative business like Farmgirl Flowers. But  to me, the upside for Christina is that no one can imitate her personality or character. People can try, but they never will be the original.

Christina is an original. She shares her story in our interview, but you can read a little background here:

I’m Christina, also known as the farm girl behind Farmgirl Flowers. I grew up on a farm in Northern Indiana, and while I set my sights on leaving the farm for big dreams in New York City, I now appreciate more than ever my farm upbringing. Ten years ago, after moving around a bit, I settled in the Bay Area and, like so many others, decided to make it home.

In the past, ahem, years, I’ve had the privilege of working in many industries, mostly in hospitality and event planning. Pretty quickly, I noticed an exorbitant amount of money was spent on flowers. So, I started doing my own arrangements and realized tremendous savings along the way. Now, being the overly curious individual that I am, I wanted to know just why do flowers cost so much?

I started researching the reasons and came to some pretty startling conclusions. The flower industry has gone through a very tumultuous time in the past 20 years, and is pretty much in the same boat as the industries that numerous documentaries have been made about in recent years (ie: textiles, coffee, technology, etc). What used to be a big domestic business is now being whittled away due to imports. I had no idea that 75% of our flowers were being shipped in from other countries. It just didn’t make sense to me when over 75% of the domestic supply is grown right here in California. I don’t want to bore you with more stats – hopefully you see where this is headed.

The bottom line is that local farmers are going out of business left and right because they can’t compete with the prices of flowers imported from South America and other countries. And, normal people like me can’t afford to send flowers to friends and loved ones because it ends up costing an absurd amount of money. Not to mention all of the environmental damage caused by flying flowers across the globe – they have to be shipped in chemicals just to make it to your door.

And, another huge source of waste is having so many choices of flower arrangements. As a result of this approach, a huge percentage of flowers end up as waste, and are never even sold! We’re making our landfills so beautiful, but, really, isn’t there a better way?

I thought so, and devised a plan to fix the problems that have caused the inflated prices and high environmental impact, which is how Farmgirl Flowers was born!

What’s that saying about being able to take the girl out of the country, but not the country out of the girl?

 

Click on the “Why we’re different” page at Farmgirl Flowers where you will see a chart comparing the LOCAL bouquets Christina and her staff design with wire services, aka “the competition.” It’s amazing when you look at these very different business models side-by-side.

Here’s a link to the Podcast Episode 101, in which Christina Stembel of Farmgirl Flowers and I joined Sunset Magazine’s Kathy Brenzel to discuss the Local Flower Movement. 

The Slow Flowers Podcast with Debra Prinzing is edited and engineered by the very talented Hannah Holtgeerts of HH Creates. Check out her web site here. 

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SLOW FLOWERS Podcast: American Grown flowers from a California Point of View (Episode 107)

 

I’m so pleased to introduce you to Kasey Cronquist. I truly value Kasey’s leadership, counsel and friendship. He is the CEO and Ambassador of the California Cut Flower Commission, the largest organization of its kind promoting American Flowers.

And he is a kindred spirit who is supremely passionate about saving our homegrown flower farms and preserving the agricultural way of life as a part of our country’s vibrant landscape.

Kasey and I first met by phone in 2010 when I called him for a quote to include in an article for the Los Angeles Times. I was writing about organic flowers for Valentine’s Day and Kasey sure set me straight, changing the focus from organic (and possibly imported flowers) to a locally grown priority.  He pointed out: “We believe California flowers are the green alternative, whether we stick a label on them or not.”

It was the beginning of my own evolution as an American flower advocate.

Since joining the CCFC in 2007, Kasey has spearheaded an aggressive public affairs program targeting lawmakers at the state and federal level. He is a dynamic spokesman for flower farming both among his home state constituents and nationally and is a master at social media communications. Kasey understands the power of blogging, tweeting, posting and using visual social media platforms and he has brought flower farming into the modern era in that regard. More than all his talents, though, I’ve mostly been impressed with Kasey’s community-building gestures to bring together small and large flower growers across America with a united voice. 

In March 2012, I wrote a post called “Meet the Ambassador of Local Flowers,” profiling Kasey for The 50 Mile Bouquet blog. You can read this extensive interview here in which Kasey shares many inspiring ideas about the American cut flower industry.

One quote of his particularly impressed me:

“We can’t move that ball, but we can create market demand for local flowers. We leaned into the CA Grown campaign and now California’s flower farmers are the single largest licensee of that agricultural program — out of all the other commodity crops in the state. The future is in educating people to buy local, to buy U.S.-grown flowers.”

Read Kasey Cronquist’s Field Position blog at Americasflowers.org

FB page: https://www.facebook.com/CaliforniaGrownFlowers

Twitter: @kaseycronquist and @cagrown

 

 

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SLOW FLOWERS Podcast: Local Color Flowers (Episode 106)

Today’s interview will introduce you to Ellen Frost, a Baltimore-based floral designer who is committed to using only 100% locally-grown flowers in her work. I am so impressed with her business philosophy and her contagious enthusiasm for using flowers from farmers she knows and supports. 

IMPORTANT LINKS:

Local Color Flowers’ web site

 

Vote here for LoCoFlo on Martha Stewart American Made contest.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Meet a Young Flower Farmer (Episode 105)

Earlier this year I met Janell Patterson, a young cut flower grower who launched Flower Forest Farm, a micro-agriculture endeavor that’s part of Seattle Tilth’s farm incubator program called Seattle Tilth Farm Works.

Located about 40 minutes southeast of Seattle in Auburn, where there are still patches of agricultural land that the developers have missed, Janell and several other new farmers at the are learning the art and science of growing through hands-on efforts. Tilth instructors provide extensive small farm business training and support. Here is some of the curriculum:

This program provides: 

• A comprehensive educational program covering farming, business planning, operations and marketing 

• On-site mentorship from experienced farmers

• Hands-on experience growing food on 1/4 acre plots

• Access to farmland, equipment, water and other necessary farming inputs

• Assistance in creating marketing channels for products

Each participants’ time and sweat equity yields food or flowers that supply Tilth’s weekly Community Supported Agriculture subscriptions. Janell’s Flower Forest Farm is the only flower grower involved and it’s wonderful to see her beautiful ingredients supplying CSA customers and local farmers’ market shoppers. She manages a one-quarter acre parcel filled with beautiful rows of annuals and gorgeous dahlias.

A young mom, Janell brings an eclectic background to her endeavor. She has experience as a professional interior designer and she has been studying horticulture at South Seattle Communit College (which is where I gained my training in horticulture and landscape design). Janell also worked as an environmental volunteer managing a small rural tree nursery with the Peace Corps in Ghana, West Africa.

Fellow garden blogger Filiz Satir and I visited Seattle Tilth Farm Works in July and walked through the fields on a tour with Janell. You’ll hear Filiz’s voice (and a few of her own questions) on this recording as part of our conversation. See more of my photos below:

 

 

 

 

Click here to learn more about Tilth’s CSA program, including how to order Janell’s weekly bouquets.

Click here to learn more about Flower Forest Farm’s flowers, bunches, bouquets and custom services.

  

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This week’s podcast features two interviews that I recorded during an 11-day trip to many beautiful venues.It’s my summer vacation gift to you!

I met up with Miriam Goldberger of Wildflower Farm, a fellow author whose forthcoming book Taming Wildflowers promises to educate and inspire those of us in the floral industry.

Confusion about the terms “wildflowers,” “native plants” and “indigineous plants” always raises a red flag for me. I’m never sure what’s okay to grow or harvest and I certainly do not want to pick endangered plant species. Miriam’s mission is to demystify those terms as she singles out 60 flowers and grasses that fall into these categories. These are plants that are adapted to North America and have been since the first Euopean settlers arrived. They can be easily grown from seed and find a home in your garden, flower farm and floral arrangements.

 

Here’s a little background about how Miriam and her husband Paul Jenkins started Wildflower Farm in 1988:

Founded in 1988, Wildflower Farm began as wholesale dried flower growers. In 1991, Wildflower Farm expanded to become a pick your own flower farm. This quickly attracted the attention of people in Southern Ontario, drawing thousands of people to the farm during the summer months.

Over the years, Miriam and Paul became increasingly interested in the low maintenance advantages of growing native wildflowers. Working with plants that required no watering, no fertilizing and minimal annual maintenance was very attractive. At that time there were very few sources for truly native wildflower seeds and the seeds that were available were very expensive and of dubious quality and origin. Seeing an opportunity, in 1997, Wildflower Farm expanded its focus and has since blossomed into becoming a leading native seed grower supplying hardy, native perennial seeds and site specific wildflower seed mixes to homeowners, landscape contractors, municipalities and corporations.

During this same time, what began as a simple walk in the forest planted a seed in the minds of Miriam and Paul, when they spotted clumps of a rich green grass growing in the deep shade of the northern woods. Perhaps, they thought, these emerald patches could be used as natural grass pathways for their wildflower meadows. Trial and error led to the development of the drought-tolerant, low maintenance turf grass Eco-Lawn™ from a blend of fine fescue grasses, a move which has changed the face of “lawnscaping” for homeowners and businesses across North America.

Wildflower varieties range from Yarrows (Achillea millefolium) and Alliums to Culver’s Root (Veronicastrum virginicum) and Golden Alexanders (Zizia aurea). By the way, she mentioned Parthenium integrifolium, wild quinine — one of her favorite floral ingredients and I thought you’d like to see what it looks like.

Miriam’s book, Taming Wilflowers: The Complete Wildflower Cutting Garden Guide, will be published by St. Lynn’s Press in February 2014. Its subtitle is: “From Seed to Vase – Growing, Gardening & Designing with Wildflowers.” You can pre-order her book at the Taming Wildflowers web site here. 

A few days after my conversation with Miriam, I traveled to Saunderstown, Rhode Island, to visit Polly and Mike Hutchison of Robin Hollow Farm. Polly and Mike specialize in flower growing and full-service wedding and event flowers through their floral studio. They fall into that unique category of “farmer-florist,” doing it all beautifully, with passion, artistry and professionalism.

I spent a wonderful 24 hours with these talented flower farmers who welcomed me into their home, shared amazing local seafood with me (thanks Matunuck Oyster Bar!), toured me through their growing fields, let me tag along on flower deliveries and observe the design process. Before I left, we grabbed a few minutes to sit down and talk about their lives and work as organic growers for today’s podcast.  Here’s some background on Polly and Mike: 

At Robin Hollow Farm, a wide range of gorgeous flowers and plants are grown in the fields and greenhouses. Mike and Polly farm using sustainable and/or organic methods on about five acres in Saunderstown, RI, just minutes from Newport and Providence.

Our flowers are grown without chemical pesticides, for our health and yours. Our fields are maintained with our cultivating tractor, our hoes, and mulches for maximum organic effect. We use these flowers at farmers markets, in our events, and for arrangements. Robin Hollow Farm is a proud member of ASCFG , the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers. Polly is currently President of ASCFG.

Discover and enjoy some of my favorite images from my 24-hour visit with this creative and dynamic couple:

 

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Last summer I visited Alaska and toured about 12 cut peony farms from Fairbanks to Homer – in one week! It was a wonderful trip, made all the more special because of the many cool, welcoming flower farmers I met along the way. They hosted me for meals, spent quality time walking and talking with me along the rows of robust and beautiful plants, lent me a bed for the night, and generally adopted me into their Alaska Peony Tribe! If you want to learn more about the Peony Growers of Alaska and how to order cut flowers from some of them directly, visit the Alaska Peony Growers’ web site.

It was a thoroughly freeing time for me as a journalist because I was my own client. No editor gave me the assignment. No publication had their dibs on how the story would be reported. I used my Alaska Airlines’ frequent flier miles to book my flight into Anchorage and then rented a car with another set of airline miles.

I made reservations to tour Denali National Park on the first day – mainly because Dr. Pat Holloway, my trip advisor, insisted that I couldn’t just drive past the majestic national park while seeking peony farms! After that first day, I spent the following seven preoccupied with peonies, their cultivation, harvest, post-harvest care and ultimate journey to the hands of satisfied customers. It was pretty sweet – and I can’t wait to get back. I wrote a fun post about the week in Alaska here.

Other than selling a *tiny* story about Alaska peonies to Sunset magazine, I am happy to announce that my first big editorial placement appears in the current issue of Alaska Airlines magazine. How fitting! You can read the feature here [PDF].

This week’s podcast features interviews with the owners of two farms I visited during my tour. First, you’ll hear my conversation with Rita Jo Shoultz of Alaska Perfect Peony in Fritz Creek on the Kenai Peninsula, one of the first growers to jump in feet first to plant peony roots. You will hear the sounds of nature around us, as we sat in her garden near the pond to talk. For some crazy reason, Nicco, her cat, was fascinated with the audio recorder’s microphone. You’ll hear a few bumps in the audio, thanks to the curious cat!

Here are some photos from Alaska Perfect Peonies:

 

 

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