Slow Flowers Podcast

https://youtu.be/IgB9f_-9SVc?si=Nd0prSpTRs6Sb7hc Designed by Alanna Messner-Scholl of Waverly Flower Co., the “Earth Dress” is a slender, floor-length gown that appears to grow from a demure pair of seed-embellished ballet flats. It seems fitting that a sustainable farmer-florist who once attended the Fashion Institute of Technology would conjure up this organic-looking garment using compost, soil, moss, roots, seeds, and vines. “I wanted it to be a concept piece with an organic, natural feeling,” Alanna said. Having designed botanical couture fashions for Slow Flowers Society’s past two American Flowers Week collections--both of which f...

https://youtu.be/2GBCwmvQz9g?si=acEjUfFB92SDBSJI Our 12th annual American Flowers Week is coming right up – June 28th through July 4th. To showcase this year’s Botanical Couture collection, I’m welcoming return guest Françoise Weeks to the Slow Flowers Podcast. A longtime Slow Flowers Member, her name is synonymous with botanical couture. As an educator, she has taught thousands of students around the globe, as well as from her Portland, Oregon-based studio, and online. Slow Flowers asked Françoise to create a lily-inspired floral fashion for this year’s American Flowers Week collection, an idea originally proposed b...

https://youtu.be/qLDRA7aDbe0?si=ErpsCddUPW3DRei2 In the runup to our American Flowers Week’s annual Botanical Couture collection, I’m welcoming Caitlin Mathes to the Slow Flowers Podcast. A longtime Slow Flowers Member based in New York’s Finger Lakes Region, Caitlin has been cultivating the Tagetes species, also known as the marigold, since 2019. Her passion led to establishing The Marigold Gardens as a singular flower farm, specializing in more than 40 marigold varieties. When planning this year’s American Flowers Week floral fashions, we asked Caitlin if she would like to create a marigold garment – and she joined in...

https://youtu.be/yJlU-Ca9W3M?si=5Q5zGfnc51bXKSDS Niki and William Irving are proud stewards of Flourish Flower Farm, a 9-acre farm in Asheville, North Carolina. Nestled in the heart of old tobacco country, they love nurturing their beautiful slice of paradise in the Blue Ridge Mountains -- a dream come true after many years of farming on leased land. They achieve their priority of growing specialty varieties of flowers and producing high quality, organic, fragrant blooms by focusing on intensive planting, soil fertility, plant health and succession planting. As Niki likes to say, ‘Flourish’ as a verb means...

https://youtu.be/6Fw4Yodu3Ww?si=9dEb1tKVamN6haAQ I recorded today’s conversation on the final day of our recent flower and garden-inspired river cruise in Holland and Belgium. It was a spontaneous decision to sit down with Eileen Tongson, a longtime Slow Flowers member, owner of FarmGal Flowers, and one of 29 North American growers featured in the pages of The Flower Farmers book, who had joined the tour along with her cousin, Sarah Ponce. Based in Winter Park, Florida, a suburb of Orlando, Eileen’s success at growing flowers nearly year-round was once a curiosity; now it’s part...

https://youtu.be/5fCEbvjLDBc?si=L614SYdRlT9RgmFI The cover story of Slow Flowers Journal’s spring issue – published in early May -- features an editorial-style photoshoot of a wedding at the top of Catamount Mountain in New York’s Berkshires. The florals for this beautiful production were designed by Rebekah Mindel of Meadow Wilds, today’s guest – and if you haven’t seen or read my story yet, I’d love to share it with you to it today – and introduce the creative farmer-florist who brought a botanical sensibility to her collaboration with planner Lisa Jaroscak Chin of Elegante Weddings and Eve...

https://youtu.be/UNpJQvGNuPc?si=BsOX2cXLaMTtF44S Jodi Logue is a Pacific Northwest flower farmer based in Olalla, Washington. As owner of Moss and Madder Farm, Jodi believes in the power of community-building. She is known for bringing flower farmers together from across the Kitsap Peninsula, from Bremerton to Tacoma and points between. Listeners met Jodi on the Slow Flowers Podcast in October 2023, an episode recorded at one of her “Pie and Coffee” gatherings for flower farmers. That’s when I first heard Jodi voice her interest in starting a flower hub to collectively market local flowers to florists. This f...

https://youtu.be/a14eAaKuufw?si=l-DMCSjyfhpK1DBK Julian Langelaan is a pioneer in the emerging organic farming movement in the Netherlands. As the founder of Op Beemster Klei, which translated means, “a farm with clay soil, in the Beemster region,” Julian began growing cut flowers 10 years ago. The healthy, high quality, annuals, perennials, and ornamental woody shrubs from Op Beemster Klei demonstrate the success of having an organic approach, rare in a nation filled with greenhouse cut flower operations and a mega flower auction that serves the globe. As part of our recent Slow Flowers tour to Holland and Belg...

https://youtu.be/NkUs5zQIaCQ?si=r8yE4x6setQ4Zpud In anticipation of my visit to FAM Flower Farm during last month’s Slow Flowers Tulip Tour in Holland and Belgium, I invited floral entrepreneurs Linda van der Slot and Marlies Weijers to join me on the Podcast. Friends since age 12, who married into Dutch tulip bulb and dahlia tuber-producing families, respectively, Linda and Marlies left careers of their own to form FAM Flower Farm nearly a decade ago. Their goal was to bring a feminine touch to a global floral industry – producing and selling bulbs, not for brokers and d...

https://youtu.be/ng5wllVlQyU Back in 2018, we included Retail Garden Centers Adding Floral Design Services as one of our trends to watch in the annual Slow Flowers Floral Insights and Industry Forecast. I noted the early wave of retail nurseries and garden centers opening or reviving in-house floral shops with a distinctly local emphasis.As it turns out, that’s the year that Delisa Hiel joined Gardenwerks, an established retail nursery and landscape design business in Helena, Montana, founded by her father-in-law Michael Hiel. Gardenwerks is truly a family affair, with Delisa’s husband Peter Hiel serving as designer and...

https://youtu.be/PDyvSAAA7FI We’ve recently highlighted Slow Flowers members who serve not only the professional floral market, but the home gardener in search of cut flowers, flower seedlings, education, and inspiration. Capturing the attention of this often-overlooked population is not hard these days. Home gardeners and flower lovers are avid followers of social media’s influential growers and designers.They are the principal buyers of books about cut flower gardening and about growing specific types of flowers, as well as the shoppers who eagerly line up to buy cutting garden plants not always seen at garden centers. After...

https://youtu.be/3dhAhas1Awg?si=LJUYkQflSCv8xZDu Megan Homewood is the owner, lead designer, and grower at House Flowers. She combines a diverse design experience and a passion for sustainable floristry to inform her seasonal, romantic design style. Inspired by the transient beauty of seasonal flowers and the dynamic landscape of the Pacific Northwest, she loves growing and designing with unique elements to create events that embody a particular place and time. Prior to settling in Shelton, a town at the gateway to Washington’s Olympic National Forest and known for its famous oysters and logging industries, Megan worked as t...

https://youtu.be/cGL1isNsbbE?si=h00tMUumLpTPXCH3 Collective flower selling is on the rise and we continue to see numerous models across the continent and even abroad. The origin comes from traditional farmers’ markets and has since diversified to include cooperatives, co-marketing ventures and solo-run farmer-to-florist hubs. The structures reflect the desires and business objectives of their founders, and today you’ll hear from Colleen McCoole Payne, co-founder and chief administrator of the Kansas City Flower Farmers Wholesale Market. The KC Flower Farmers Wholesale Market is a mouthful, but was intentionally named to distinguish this venture in the local mark...

https://youtu.be/tRuXU20m9Dc?si=eR5fwa5ZiZKdsiTf After several years of farming in an urban space – including on the paved driveway, sidewalk strip, and backyard at her Seattle home – Sarah Nayani has carved out a niche teaching gardeners how to grow a bounty of cut flowers, herbs, and foliages in residential environments. The founder of Grow Girl Seattle, Sarah encourages workshop students to create a thriving home cutting garden by focusing on sustainable techniques and small space growing. She shares the rewards of connecting with the seasons’ rhythms and how flower-growing helps people appreciate the role of pollin...

https://youtu.be/xnlzif1Nue0?si=60_eh0nNVHX1Gg42 The theme of today’s episode is straight from our Slow Flowers Floral Insights and Industry Forecast – an insight that identifies cutting garden plants as an important business channel. Flower farmers are translating their expertise into new revenue streams by growing and selling cut flower seedlings and starts to flower lovers and fellow growers. Last fall, we produced a report for Johnny’s Seeds’ newsletter on this trend and today, three of the growers featured in that story share more about their cutting garden plant collections. As the idea of “gardening like a flo...

https://youtu.be/eZ8rhWdiXGI?si=dpx4iDhOEBb3420T Foxglove Farmhouse is a small, regenerative flower garden in coastal Maine. If you follow the tidal York River from the sea, up along the winding salt marshes to the west side of town, there you will find owner Elizabeth Brown and her flowers. Her purpose is a simple one -- to grow sustainable local flowers, and to encourage others to do the same. Elizabeth believes flowers have the power to heal, connect, and bring joy, especially when we need it most. Through her community-based Foxglove Garden Club for home gardeners, and t...

https://youtu.be/aZi_o0UniTU?si=qXVttU3ViO_6wIwD Everyone loves roses, and Janice Cox proves why in her new book, "Beautiful Roses: A Guide and Workbook for Growing, Using, and Enjoying America’s Favorite Flower." The book covers rose growing but also the endless ways you can integrate roses into cooking, crafting, and wellness. A nationally recognized expert in natural beauty, DIY skincare, and gardening for health and wellness, Janice is author of five books, and she has created a series of hands-on workbooks focused on growing, using, and enjoying herbs and flowers. A longtime Slow Flowers member, sh...

https://youtu.be/nEmy-vXnxos?si=3u8-foe5nFkee7KM Teresa Sabankaya believes that today’s technology gives us endless ways to communicate, yet we are often left searching for words when faced with a declaration of love, the loss of someone dear, or the marking of a pivotal moment. For centuries, people have turned to the language of flowers to express their most heartfelt emotions. In Teresa’s new book, “Modern Floriography,” she honors this enduring tradition while inviting readers to discover fresh, creative forms of expression. Teresa recently joined our Slow Flowers Podcast LIVE series, held at the Northwest Flower...

https://youtu.be/yjfsxcPy1H8?si=Y9WfgwZj_AX3Hbxm In her new book, “The Regenerative Gardener’s Handbook: Essential Techniques for Growing a Garden that Leaves the Land Healthier Than You Found It,” farmer-florist, YouTube influencer, and educator Briana Selstad Bosch translates her practices at Blossom and Branch Farm into backyard and residential gardening ideas for readers who want to change their relationship with the soil and with nature. In addition to sharing ways that she has eliminated chemicals and plastic from her farming practices, Briana inspires readers to prioritize the health of their own ecosystems, no matter the size...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XWxUGAMELY Nestled in the heart of Somers, New York, about one hour north of Manhattan, Honeybee Grove is a cozy little flower farm offering cut-your-own flowers, small events, workshops, retail pop-ups, and more. As owner Sarah Coldwell enters her fifth season, she joined me to share her story and discuss the benefits of planning a full year of events while managing the flow of production, sales, and customers. In addition to flowering her community with local blooms, Sarah incubates other small, local creative businesses through her weekly summer farmers’ markets and seasonal holiday markets th...

https://youtu.be/-5Orqho8D14?si=IS52JfiTWRg8Fybi Expert tree growers Chris Robinson of My Patio Tree and designer Anne Bradfield of Analog Floral recently joined me to share their insights on how florists and wedding and event designers can integrate flowering trees into their menu of services. Analog Plant Rental is the sister company to Anne's Seattle-based design business, Analog Floral, which she’s operated for more than two decades. As a spinoff company, her plant-and-tree service primarily supports corporate conferences and events -- and the venture has really taken off. After My Patio Tree joined Slow Fl...

https://youtu.be/v7pqI-dII0I?si=kZTRQdoz4Pz9SLW_ As we enter the 13th year of publishing our Slow Flowers Floral Insights and Industry Forecast, new impressions continue to infuse our mindsets and enthuse us. The Year 2026 presents a consequential time in our industry. We have been impacted by economic challenges that affect consumer confidence and spending choices; we’ve been clobbered by supply chain and tariff constraints; and we’ve continued to see consolidation and closures among large-scale players in the marketplace. As we look at “what’s next,” I believe we have even more reasons to feel confidence...

https://youtu.be/aGuwB5HbiKs?si=-4q1L4xSFOv9DCys There’s an Instagram trend going around as we flash back to 2016, sharing highlights from one decade ago. Today’s episode does just that, as I reunite with Hudson Valley farmer-florist Marybeth Wehrung of Stars of the Meadow Flower Farm. In 2016, I visited Marybeth, toured her farm, and interviewed her about the emerging local floral scene in her region. Today, many of those dreams of creating a hub for seasonal and sustainably-grown flowers have come to life. Learn how Marybeth has manifested a more sustainable future for her farm by f...

https://youtu.be/qge-cJ0Z_XU On a sweet, 6-acre country parcel in Rochester, Minnesota, Deb Majerus and Joel MacDonald are creating a place of beauty and sanctuary, spreading joy to their community as an oasis just beyond busy roads, paving and residential developments all around. Minnesota natives who dated in high school and reunited years later, Deb and Joel grow spring perennials, peonies, and specialize in native plants for floral design and to create a more welcoming, regenerative habitat for their farm. I sat down with this engaging couple recently to hear more about their story and the path...

https://youtu.be/WO7OgXBJtks?si=hA2AbAvNFiOTBN1q According to Brooke Palmer, the ranunculus is THE iconic bloom of early springtime. A seasoned grower and owner of Jenny Creek Flowers, based outside of Ithaca, in New York’s Finger Lakes Region, Brooke grows a wide array of specialty cut flowers that she sells through her flower CSA and a seasonal U-Pick program. Students take her workshops in person, including a successful dahlia-growing course, and she sells bulbs, tubers and plants to avid gardeners. After trialing the best ways to grow ranunculus, Brooke has landed on a successful approach that ta...

https://youtu.be/0HFUC-qb-3Q?si=ftg-AyUSDwYRpKoV Luxury floral designer Susan Chambers, owner of San Francisco-based bloominCouture. She’s a longtime Slow Flowers member whose high-end residential and corporate clients support her sustainable values, which do not compromise her design aesthetic or her approach to seasonal sourcing. Many of you first met Susan when she and her shop appeared in our 2021 book, Where We Bloom. Since opening doors of her postage-stamp-sized storefront in San Francisco’s Russian Hill neighborhood in early 2020, Susan has provided bespoke florals with an emphasis on locally-grown, foam-free designs. Later, she expanded bloominCouture to include a prod...

https://youtu.be/NilyUEdksYA?si=G8oSgsVXGSVQPzlz As a special year-end episode of the Slow Flowers Podcast, you’re invited to join me today in conversation with garden tour producer Lois Moss, and my dear friend, Lorene Edwards Forkner, artist, author, and regular contributor to the Seattle Times. Together, we are planning a one-of-a-kind botanical tour in Spring 2026 – a unique Slow Flowers Experience that takes us to Holland and Belgium in April for a 7-day river boat cruise, plus several optional floral excursions and festivals.Here at Slow Flowers, we declared Floral Tourism a top insight in 2017 and in the subs...

https://youtu.be/VminWzvUNIk In 2018, we named Slow Pottery one of our ten floral insights of the year, and the interest in combining locally-grown flowers with curated pottery and vase collections has only continued to gain momentum. The demand for American-made pottery first caught our attention in a 2015 New York Times article titled “The Budding Ceramics-to-Table Movement,” with the subtitle: “Why handmade ceramics are white hot.” The story noted that ” . . . the rejection of factory-produced sameness in dinnerware and vases reflects a desire to get back to something more essential.”Over the past decade, Slow Pottery has continued to be a theme of interes...

https://youtu.be/iDXNEEP74dg?si=95xtQpkBIExFdBQd You may be familiar with today’s guest, Jennifer Gulizia of The Flowering Farmhouse and The Backyard Bouquet Podcast. Like many of us, Jennifer’s story began in her own garden, as her flower-growing fascination naturally melded with her professional photography career. In 2019, she and her husband, T.J., built a modern farmhouse on a 1/3-acre lot, in Oregon’s Hood River. While it was not enough space for a true flower farm, Jennifer planted almost 200 dahlias and eventually leased more land from her neighbors to expand. Join me on a visit to The Fl...

https://youtu.be/D6ZrP98HNEg?si=xnsb-hjNywgQYrPr Today’s guest, Eva Eliasson, joins me from Stockholm, Sweden, where she is the chairwoman of Snittblomsodlare, the association of cut flower farmers in Sweden. We met virtually earlier this year when Eva reached out to introduce herself while on a family trip to the U.S. We scheduled time to chat further and I learned about the emerging market for locally-grown flowers in Sweden, a country with about 11 million citizens. Snittblomsodlare was formed in 2020 and has grown to include about 200 members across Sweden – representing farms in a diverse range of growing zone...

https://youtu.be/LBywkd_2XK8?si=ZHwpJ8cUm23yV4cS Feathers & Flowers is a small, family-run, flower farm growing seasonal, sustainable, and local flowers in Wenatchee, Washington. The farm’s cute logo includes an illustration of a KuneKune pig, a few chickens, and of course, a vase of flowers. I recently visited Feathers & Flowers as Rachel Burgoon’s guest at the first annual grower and florist gathering for the greater Wenatchee Valley. As a natural connector, Rachel says she’s long dreamed of bringing together her region’s floral professionals – growers and florists alike. With no agenda other than an end-of-sea...

https://youtu.be/Fz6QYN9w3ik For ten years, New York-based artist and illustrator Abbie Zabar had unique, early-morning access to the Great Hall at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art. With colored-pencils and a small square of paper, Abbie drew the dramatic floral arrangements on display in the Great Hall, designed by Chris Giftos, the Met’s floral master who served from 1970-2004.Now, Abbie’s tiny masterpieces are collected in a beautiful new book called BOUQUET: Floral Arrangements at the Metropolitan Museum. From holiday arrangements of magnolia leaves, red berries and flyaway branches to summertime fiestas of pal...

https://youtu.be/SoA1IvHkzaM?si=urT9z6upZ5F639zr Earlier this year, at the first of April, a long-awaited hub for flowers grown in the NY-Connecticut-New Jersey tri-state region opened its doors. Unlike many of the emerging North American hubs selling local flowers, Flower Aggregate is not a collective or a cooperative. It is a privately-owned wholesale florist serving the floral trade with the distinction of local and sustainable botanicals. I met co-founders Jessica Balnaves and Annie Quick in June, when Flower Aggregate hosted a signing event for The Flower Farmers book. The event was a chance to...

https://youtu.be/Nk5_XDmAcXM?si=A5_xWCB13cYlaYQP Join me in a virtual tour of Hautau & Sons, a third-generation greenhouse grower of uncommon specialty cut flowers. Founded in 1902, Hautau & Sons is now run by Brian and Kimberley Hautau, who are both stewarding the family business that Brian’s grandfather started; it was later operated by Brian’s father and uncle, until, in 2010, Brian and Kimberley acquired the business. With Brian’s decades of experience in horticulture and landscape design-build contracting; and Kimberley’s decades in financial accounting, the couple has turned to flower farming for their second chapter. In doing so...

https://youtu.be/OBDEhr2XYTs?si=PhY4qua4rCiVhSR2 The beauty of dried botanicals is a fitting topic for our first episode of November, as the interest in and demand for these preserved florals represents significant financial influx for flower farmers and floral designers. My recent visit to Charles Little & Co. in Eugene, Oregon, illustrates the story as I interviewed both Charles and Bethany Little, return guests of the Slow Flowers Podcast. Join me on a farm tour with Charles as we discuss interplanting strategies for annuals and woody ornamentals, plus check out his favorite annuals to grow for drying...

https://youtu.be/_Kl8Bmx6U84?si=ih_0q-H_9QvPoz3g We’ve been working closely this past year with lily bulb growers around the country, with the goal of providing more lily education to both farmers and florists. For today’s Lily Episode I wanted to learn more about what’s required to have a year-round lily program. I began my conversations with Jessica High of Flamingo Holland Bulbs, a Southern California-based vendor of Dutch-grown lily bulbs for specialty cut flower growers. That’s followed by a visit to Peterkort Roses, a longtime Slow Flowers member, known not only for grow...

https://youtu.be/E54I-BYySnQ?si=CUJgETTQRIc8VRPe Join me for a great conversation with farmer-florist Kelly Brown, owner of Do Right Flower Farm in Santa Cruz and founder of the Santa Cruz Flower Hub. We also welcome return guest Amelia Ihlo, founder of Rooted Farmers, a longtime Slow Flowers partner and podcast sponsor. Together, they will discuss Santa Cruz Flower Hub’s origins and growth, touching on the many opportunities and logistical challenges that farmer collectives are facing. Kelly and Amelia walk us through these topics and highlight some of the ways that the Rooted Farmers platform has helped th...

https://youtu.be/t38z93GptXU?si=Um3XyaE1ocAKU4UA At Penflora, sustainable floristry meets thoughtful design. Founder Melissa Olson recently hosted me for a book-signing event at her Bay Area shop where we celebrated the publication of The Flower Farmers and enjoyed her beautiful floral design demonstration. It was one stop during a full weekend of floral, garden, and book events and you’ll love joining me on a tour through Melissa’s Slow Flowers-centered business. She founded Penflora in 2017 as a design studio that has expanded into a beautiful retail shop in Burlingame, just south of San Fran...

https://youtu.be/celZnV8yrZg?si=pYtq6P5iOTXJOXXK Compared to the way today’s guests view the role of herb plants for the landscape, for culinary and medicinal purposes, and especially for floral design, I feel like the herb repertoire in the Slow Flowers Cutting Garden is in need of a major makeover. Learning from herb-lover and edible landscape designer Stefani Bittner of Homestead Design Collective and Rose Loveall, herb grower and nursery owner at Morningsun Herb Farm, both based in the San Francisco Bay Area, has been so eye-opening and enriching. We recently collaborated on a Flower & Herb ev...

A visit to Japan for two weeks in September was the ultimate dream come true. My husband Bruce and I, joined by three dear friends, experienced some of the country’s incomparable beauty, culture, history, and tradition during our time in Kyoto and Tokyo. We watched World Class athletes compete in Tokyo’s Olympic Stadium at the World Track Championships, ate authentic ramen, sushi, and tempura, and put in our 10k+ steps each day. I also had the wonderful experience of spending one day away from my traveling companions, immersed in Japan’s emerging slow flowers community. Thanks to Megumi Hagiud...