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Emily Pek of Frayed Knot Farm recently contributed an essay to Slow Flowers Journal’s Summer 2024 issue, sharing her philosophy on the importance of community connections for sustaining a vibrant cut flower business that has served the greater Cleveland area for the past seven years. We invited Emily to discuss her story and her journey with the Slow Flowers Podcast – and I’m excited for you to join us today.

Let’s jump right into today’s interview with Emily Pek of Frayed Knot Farm.

The mission of Frayed Knot Farm is to grow beautiful, diverse, cut flowers and herbs that share stories, bring joy, and support equitable and regenerative farming.

As owner-founder Emily has a passion for systems thinking and agriculture, both of which led to an apprenticeship in Brooklyn, NY in 2016 where she learned how to farm while studying food justice. Upon returning to her deep roots in Cleveland, she worked at various farms and started Frayed Knot in 2017. The land that Frayed Knot resides on was previously stewarded by her grandparents, who have been part of the community for close to a century.

Frayed Knot Farm is located 30 miles east of downtown Cleveland and grows over 100 varieties of annual and perennial flowers and foliage on less than an acre. Using hand scale and regenerative farming practices, the flowers produced and foraged are offered in CSA bouquet subscriptions, wholesale for purchase by florists, and supply events and workshops.

Follow Frayed Knot Farm on Instagram and Facebook

Read Emily’s “With Heart” essay, recently published in Slow Flowers Journal.

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Thank you to our Sponsors

This show is brought to you by Slowflowers.com, the free, online directory to more than 750 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 new lead sponsor for 2024-2025, Flowerbulb.eu and their U.S. lily bulb vendors. One of the most recognizable flowers in the world, the lily is a top-selling cut flower, offering long-lasting blooms, year-round availability, and a dazzling petal palette. Flowerbulb.eu has partnered with Slow Flowers to provide beautiful lily inspiration and farming resources to help growers and florists connect their customers with more lilies. Learn more at Flowerbulb.eu.

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 johnnyseeds.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 than ever, and you’ll want to check out the course offerings at thegardenersworkshop.com.

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Slow Flowers Podcast Turns 11!

Today is cause for celebration – we are commemorating the 11^th anniversary of the Slow Flowers Podcast, the original floral podcast that we’ve produced and hosted for you ever since our debut on July 23, 2013! That means today’s episode is our 574^th consecutive weekly program highlighting the people, farms, florists, and flowers of the Slow Flowers Movement. Thank you for supporting this storytelling project for more than a decade – now, in its 11^th season!

I’m so glad you joined us 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.

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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!

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Music Credits:

Drone Pine; Gaena; Camp Fermin; Flattered
by Blue Dot Sessions
http://www.sessions.blue

Lovely
by Tryad 
http://tryad.bandcamp.com/album/instrumentals
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

In The Field
audionautix.com

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My guest today is Colorado-based flower farmer and educator Briana Bosch. We recently met in person when Briana attended the Slow Flowers Summit and I’ve been wanting to host her on the show – so we finally got this conversation on the calendar to share with you.

Just a little bit of background: Armed with an MBA from the University of California, Briana established Blossom & Branch in 2019 with her husband.  As she writes on the Blossom & Branch website:

“. . . cubicle life has just never been a fit for me.  Farming runs in my blood: I am a fifth generation farmer, but I myself never thought I would get a chance to start up my own farm!  We got lucky when we found 1.7 acres in the suburbs of Denver and moved to the farm in 2018.”

The farm name Blossom & Branch refers to the unique site, which is half field (home to field-grown flowers such as annuals, roses and peonies), and half woods–where Briana and her husband focus on providing habitat for wildlife and pollinators through native plants such as chokecherries, american plum, currants, and serviceberries.

Let’s jump right in and meet Briana and learn about her farm, her focus on regenerative farming processes and carbon sequestration – and how she shares her flowers with her community of flower lovers and wedding clients.

Find and follow Blossom & Branch:
on Instagram and Facebook
On-Demand Workshops
Sign up for Blossom & Branch’s newsletter (scroll to bottom of the page)

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News for You

FREE Slow Flowers Webinar
Madison Square Park Conservancy Lecture Series
August 18, 2022

The Slow Flowers Movement is a response to the disconnect between humans and flowers in the modern era. Slow Flowers connects consumers with the source of their flowers, putting a human face of the flower farmer and floral designer behind each bouquet or centerpiece. 

Join Slow Flowers Society founder Debra Prinzing and Slow Flowers member Janet Kramka, proprietor of Backyard Blooms for a free webinar 3-4 pm PT/6-7 pm ET on Thursday, August 18th. The conversation will focus on the importance of the Slow Flowers Movement, and how their work has both supported and been inspired by it. The Madison Square Park Conservancy Program is free and will be hosted on Zoom.

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Slow Flowers Member Discount
Sustainable Flowers Project Workshop
September 18-20, 2022

SUSTAINABLE FLOWERS PROJECT: Slow Flowers has signed on as a partner in the September workshop produced by two of our members, Becky Feasby and TJ McGrath — the Sustainable Flowers Project. The three-day intensive + creative workshop explores sustainability with some of the biggest leaders in sustainable floristry today. The location: Jardin de Buis, in Califon, New Jersey; the dates: September 18-20, 2022.
You’ll learn from Ingrid Carozzi, Tin Can Studios; British Designer Shane Connolly, Shane Connolly + Co.; flower farmer and social justice activist Amber Tamm, as well as Andrea Fillippone and Eric Fleisher, environmental designers and owners of Jardin de Buis, as well as from Becky and TJ. They have created a special $150-off promo code for Slow Flowers members who sign up. Register here with SF150.

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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.

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 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 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.

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Thanks so much for joining us today! The Slow Flowers Podcast is a member-supported endeavor, downloaded more than 874,000 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 in the column to the right.

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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. 

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Music credits:
Enter the Room; Turning on The Lights; Gaena
by Blue Dot Sessions
http://www.sessions.blue

Lovely
by Tryad 
http://tryad.bandcamp.com/album/instrumentals
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

In The Field
audionautix.com