Becoming a Cut Flower Grower

Hello, welcome to Friday 3 April 2026. Happy Good Friday!

Storm 'Dave' has landed and it's very windy here. My honeysuckle arch blew down, the cockerels are getting blown across the field and anything I put down gets whisked away.

I've spent most of today in the greenhouse sowing more hardy annuals and it went really well. I'm going to need a lot more shelves in there at this rate. I've also been sowing seed that I collected from some of my unsold flowers in 2025 and I can't wait to see how they turn out.

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Hello, welcome to Tuesday 31 March 2026. 

Fuel prices are shooting up really quickly and it's already impacting many of us, in one way or another. I've often mentioned the statistic that 80 to 90 percent of cut flowers sold in the UK are imported but here’s the important question: where exactly are they imported from? And how is the current crisis going to affect the market and what does it mean for British cut flower growers?

Tonight I'm looking at what’s really going on behind the scenes of the cut flowers imports into the UK and where...

Hello, it's Friday 27 March 2026. 

** Apologies for the terrible audio quality in this episode. I don't quite know what happened but I think there's something wrong with the microphone (and the spare one because I changed mic midway through) **

The battle with the rats for ownership of my tulips continues and I have finally given in and put the tulip crates in the back of my car. Victory to me. I will put them in the ground over the weekend and hopefully that will fix the problem although it will add substantially to their c...

Hello, it's Tuesday 24 March 2026. 

Lots of news - some of climbing roses have finally gone in the ground, the phlox has been split and replanted and the crated tulips have been relocated on top of the duck house to stop the rats eating the remains of them. As I no longer have squirrels on the field, this may be a safe place and I might actually have some tulips available for sale.

I had a wonderful visit from a podcast listener yesterday, the wonderful Carolyn from Home Close Flowers, who shared her experience of growing c...

Hello, it's Friday 20 March 2026. 

It's been an epic couple of days: yesterday I got a flat tyre on an isolated road in the middle of nowhere and then I found bindweed on the field. On the plus side, my seedlings are doing really well, which is great. 

Today I had a meeting with my main wedding and event florist - all the details of that in the episode - and she's agreed to be a guest on the podcast so please send me your question(s) for her and we'll tackle th...

Hello, it's Tuesday 17 March 2026. 

Lots to tell you tonight. Everything is growing away nicely and I've been busy weeding and prepping the beds. I share everything else that's going on including the jobs on the field I have coming up. The greenhouse is also rapidly filling up with seeds and tonight I'll talk you through how I've been sowing differently this week.

The tulip disaster continues and needless to say, I won't be growing them in crates ever again. Even the rats are turning their noses up at the remains of my tulips bulbs. They h...

Hello, it's Friday 13 March 2026. Welcome to the episode.

Tonight' I'm focusing on my cut flower website.  You'll hear about which company I used to make it, who hosts it, how much the hosting costs per month, where I buy my domain names, which domains I buy, why it's so much easier to make a website these days (no coding required), how I get started when I don't know where to start, using photography to make an impact, making it personal, why it's crucial to optimise a website for mobile phone users, why you mustn't ignore S...

Hello, it's Tuesday 10 March 2026.

Tonight I'm talking about how I'm sowing my sweet pea seeds and share some techniques that save me time and money. Every penny (and second) counts when starting seeds because it directly impacts the cost of producing each flower stem. And this of course matters when I'm aiming for profit.

I discuss the soil blocker that I'm using (link below for the one I have, not an ad) and I'm wondering if you've tried the new 'Snail' technique that everyone on instagram seems to be doing? Does...

Hello, it's Friday 6 March 2026.

I started sowing my annuals today and it felt so good. I have been putting it off (no idea why) and I really did just need to get started and I instantly felt better. In tonight's episode I talk about how I did it including how I got on with soil blocking: this is a new method for me so it will be interesting to see how the seeds get on. Let's hope nothing eats them.

There's a lot growing on the plot at the moment, particularly the weeds...

Hello and welcome to Tuesday 3 March 2026.

It's March! At last! Spring is finally here.

Tonight's episode is a real reflection on how I'm feeling about beginning year 2 of my cut flower enterprise and it's really not what I thought it would be like. So I'm talking about my current mood and all the thoughts I'm having about the plot, including not having enough greenhouse space, not enough bed space, why I haven't even started my seeds yet and all the support I really could do with at the moment. 

It's quite d...

Hello and welcome to Friday 27 February 2026.

You join me on the plot today for some thoughts about what's going on this week. I'm not quite myself this week and I think it's my hormones again so I talk about this a little bit. If you're feeling a little bit "off" then this may (or may not) resonate with you, and if it does, you're not alone. 

Today's Plant Profile Series continues with Hazel: a wonderful shrub for long straight stems of very useful and desirable foliage. It's a super-easy plant to c...

Hello, it's Tuesday 24 February 2026.

I have lots of news from the plot to tell you in the first part of tonight’s episode including planting my new perennial plugs, removing nettles from the old nigella bed, and tidying Kylie’s room plus more. I also started to make a dead hedge with apple prunings, which I’m very proud of. 

In the second part of the episode I’m sharing all the prep work involved in getting my greenhouse ready for seed sowing including cleaning the glass, replenishing the soil base, sorting the shelving, getting the trays...

Hello, it's Friday 20 February 2026.

In tonight's episode you join me on the plot where it's windy and rainy (at one point we even had sleet) and the hens make a guest appearance when one of them scared themselves and then frightened all of the others. I'm talking about what's happening on the plot right now including all the new growth I'm seeing, the plants which are still fast asleep, or in the wrong place, or have just been put in the right place but not actually planted (sorry, phlox).

In the second part...

Hello, it's Wednesday 18 February 2026.

Happy Shrove Tuesday for yesterday!

Today I'm talking about a Floret video I saw on instagram about using a rich potting mixture for sowing seedlings rather than just a plain seed compost: it's really interesting and Erin shares the recipe if you want to take a look. I've always used a nutrient-poor compost for germinating seeds and had excellent results but I'm fascinated by what Erin is suggesting so I'm going to try it, see what happens and report back to you.

Valentine's Day in Spain was a very...

Hello, it's Friday 13 February 2026. Are you superstitious about Friday 13th?! I hope it was a good day for you.

In this episode I continue talking about pricing. I talk about how I did it in 2025 as a year 1 grower including the market research I did and the places I hunted for prices, how I worked out my costs of production (and what I didn't record) plus I share with you what this actually meant when I grew my Cosmos last year. I contrast my Cosmos data with that of my Hazel, which I didn't have to touch...

Hello, it's Tuesday 10 February 2026.

Today's episode is a big one and it's all about pricing. It's such a hot topic: everyone wants answers and so I thought I'd share my experiences of it. I'm covering the nitty-gritty details including why pricing properly matters, what information you need to calculate the cost of producing stems (and how you do this), how I do the sums, all the elements growers have to consider, margins for wholesale and retail customers, the importance of market research, why imports are cheaper and why customers in the...

Hello, it's Friday 6 February 2026.

The stats are in: we've had a lot of rain. According to the Met Office my region of the UK has had 188% of its average rainfall in January. It's no wonder I have been grumpy this month: missing days of work and nothing doable on the field. On the plus side I have collected a lot of rainwater but I'd swap that for some dry days. 

In light of this I'm discussing the impact of flooding and waterlogging, what makes it worse and action we can take, i...

Hello, it's Tuesday 3 February 2026.

Another wet week! 

In today's episode I realise that I don't have enough growing space for all the annuals that I'm planning to grow, which is a problem. I have come up with a solution and hopefully you'll agree it's a good one (although the chickens may not approve).

I discuss my seed sowing plan in great detail including all the calculations I have made and the reasons behind them. I'm playing it safe with the dates. The formulas behind the numbers mean that I can make any number o...

Hello and welcome to Friday 30 January 2026.

Tonight I'm talking all about the magic of compost. I absolutely love making it, talking about it and using it. Given the price of compost these days, it's so much better to make my own plus it has the added benefit of being tailored to my soil conditions. So I talk about how to make simple compost bays, what to add (and what to avoid), turning it (or not), covering it (or not), plus the importance of using the right compost for the right plants (and the science behind...

Hello and welcome to (a very wet) Tuesday 27 January 2026.

The disasters are coming thick and fast this week (and it's only Tuesday). There is endless rain, my car window has broken (again), and something has eaten a third of my tulips. To console myself I've just made a gloriously rich and decadent tartifette and will worry about the calories in the spring.

Tonight I have two epic chats for you: the first concerns the recent news that the Church is considering a ban on floral foam and imported flowers. It will be formally debated soon...

Hello, it's Friday 23 January 2026.

The laptop is back and normal service has been resumed so today's episode has the proper introduction and music, phew. However the audio quality isn't brilliant at the beginning so apologies for that. It does get better about five minutes into the episode so maybe I did something silly with the microphone.

Tonight I'm talking about photoperiodism: what it is and why it matters to cut flower growers. I have been looking into this recently so that I can treat my plants in the best possible way...

Hello, it's Tuesday 20 January 2026.

Tonight’s episode sounds a little different because there’s no introduction or music because my laptop is at the repair shop and I’m having to upload this episode in a completely different way.

Since last week’s episodes I have received lots of really great questions from listeners about my seed sowing plan so I thought I’d answer these in this episode, including the point of a financial goal, how planning now makes things easier when it gets busy, and how the notes I’ve made about my annuals will...

Hello, it's Friday 16 January 2026.

My seed/crop planning is still in progress and just when I think I've cracked it, I discover more things that I need to work out. So I have been drowning in a complicated spreadsheet this week as it has poured down with rain outside. I've also ordered a new wall calendar plus thousands of sticky dots to stick on it. And I've realised all the additional data that I need to collect this year.

In the second part of tonight's episode, I continue my Plant Profile series with Sweetpeas. These...

Hello and welcome to a rainy Tuesday 13 January 2026.

Lots of things going on at the moment including a broken inner car door handle, more rain than I thought possible, outrageously elevated hormone levels and getting into the Alpine spirit with home-made Tartiflette. 

Crop planning started in earnest today and I'd like to share my thoughts with you on this episode. I started out with an enormous list of plants I planned to grow (which needed revising down to start with) and ended with a concise (and far more manageable) list. But the actual 'seed-starting dates' e...

Hello, it's Friday 9 January 2026.

Welcome to the latest episode! I've been hunkered down indoors this week finishing my new website, which I'm excited to say is now live. It has taken me a while because I wanted to write the text using all the information I learnt on my recent flower faming business course with Jenny Marks. So I hope that I have captured the spirit of the plot on the website.

The second part of this episode is the first in a new series of flower profiles that I thought...

Welcome. It's Tuesday 6 January 2026.

We had more snow today! It was so pretty and fluffy but it did settle on the plot and made negotiating the slope a nightmare. It's melted away now but in the next few days we have a named storm coming in bringing with it a ton a rain. Always useful for topping up the water bowsers but not so good for getting any physical work done. 

With that in mind, I've created a list of nine things I could be doing when it's not possible to work outside. Topics range f...

Welcome. It's Friday 2 January 2026.

Tonight I'm talking about the new year resolution I've made to improve my time management and fingers crossed I can do better in 2026. I really must stop running around like a mad thing.

I'm also answering three brilliant questions from listeners in this episode that I've received in the last couple of days and I hope you enjoy the answers. The first one is about my rose planting technique (and how this differs from how I would plant roses in a garden); the second is about the interplanting of my bearded...

Welcome to Tuesday 30 December 2025 and the 100th episode of this podcast!

To celebrate this milestone, today's episode is an extra long one because I wanted to include the hens and then take you on a walk around the plot to chat about what's going on, and then finish part 2 of my review of 2025. 

The hens are an integral part of my cut flowers: they provide much needed organic fertiliser for the soil and they do help to keep pests away and aerate the soil. They're also the best company and I love working with them a...

Welcome to the latest episode on Friday 26 December 2025. I hope that you've had a great Christmas.

 It's Boxing Day and to celebrate the end of Christmas and (almost) the end of the year, this episode is part 1 of my End of Year A-Z Review where tonight I chat about everything on the plot from Annuals to Ladybirds via Cosmos to Irrigation, Bells of Ireland to (lost) Keys, Hydrangea to Leafmould, tonight's episode covers a lot. It's been really fun to look back at everything I've been doing this year and assessing whether things were a success or n...

Hello, it's Tuesday 23 December 2025.

It's a shorter episode tonight - I'm feeling a bit blue. I'm missing my regular routines and I'm not enjoying the disruption. I also have a mole on the field which I was very excited about and then realised it may well cause havoc with everything I've planted so far (and what's still to come). 

Routines are a mainstay for me: I need them to stay sane and I like to have structure in my day so I really struggle at Christmas time, and this year is no exception. So in t...

Hello, it's Friday 19 December 2025.

Phew - we've made it through another week and I've had so much rain here in the UK. My Six Figure Flower Farming course with Jenny Marks of Trademark Farmer has come to an end and I'm feeling rather sad about it: I will miss everyone. I realised in the final graduation video call just how much material we have covered in the last month (it's been a lot!) and just how many techniques and tips I've acquired. 

My list of jobs to do on the field remains exhaustive and I h...

Hello, welcome to Tuesday 16 December 2025.

I've been busy since we last spoke - lots of digging and planting on the field and most of the dahlias are now in the ground, together with my new geums, veronica, astrantia and peonies. I went on a wreath-making course with a friend over the weekend and we had the best time making mini wreaths, eating s'mores cooked on an open fire and making stars out of sticks. I also tested out the compost toilet! I've also (finally) finished my own wreaths thanks to some euphoric dance music and free evergreen...

Hello, it's Friday 12 December 2025.

Another busy week: wet gloves, wet tools, muddy clothes, and never-ending lists of things to do. I hope you've had a good week. All of my roses have now been delivered which is wonderful and now they all need planting asap. My dahlia mentor, Richard Bailey, has kindly given me more of his unwanted dahlia tubers including Weston Pirate and some incredible Kilburn Glow (which has petals which actually do seem to glow).

In tonight's episode I talk about a breakthrough I had this week on my flower farming course with...

Hello and welcome to Tuesday 9 December 2025.

What a wet and windy few days! Another named storm has rolled in and everything is very wet. The plants on the plot are fine (benefit of being on a slope) but everywhere else on the field is somewhat treacherous (downside to being on a slope). 

I've had a busy time since we last caught up and tonight I talk about having lunch with my best wholesale florist client and the useful things we discussed, including a heads-up on her wedding colour schemes for 2026 and my new roses (which h...

Hello and welcome to Friday 5 December 2025.

It's been a very wet and chilly week: I've been soaked too many times to remember this week and it's not been nice! Thank you if you sent me a comment about the last few episodes - it's always good to hear what you think. I have (finally) placed my large rose order and I can't wait to get them and see the blooms next year. My course is going well and I'm just starting a module on marketing, which I hope will prove useful.

I take a deep...

Hello, it's Tuesday 2 December 2025. Welcome to December!

Tonight's episode is all about buying imports vs British-grown flowers (or wherever you're growing if you're not in the UK). It's a very hot topic and this episode is based entirely on a podcast I listened to this morning between two UK florists who talk about the pressure they feel to only use British flowers, and why they actually have to use Dutch imports.

There are many reasons why florists can't rely on British flowers for 12 months a year: we just can't grow everything all year round so...

Hello, it's Friday 28 November 2025. 

Today's episode discusses the million-dollar dahlia question: to lift or not to lift tubers? It's a question that many growers have a dilemma about every year and I'm no exception. This year I'm leaving mine in the ground and I'll explain why here. The majority of this episode is therefore a discussion of the pros and cons of lifting - or not lifting - and the growing conditions that native dahlias thrive in. 

In other news, I've been busy measuring all of my bed space and calculating exactly how much I ha...

Hello and welcome to a chilly Tuesday 25 November 2025. 

Tonight I'm talking about the foliage that I'm growing for 2026 and beyond. I realised that I needed more foliage about mid-way through this year when I suddenly started selling buckets and buckets of beech and hazel. Then I thought that perhaps I needed to buy some more foliage plants for adding to bouquets and mixed buckets and that's what I've been doing over the past few months. So in this episode I'm sharing what I'm growing and why.

In other news, I'll update you on how I'm g...

Hello, it's Friday 21 November 2025. 

Welcome - I'm in a much better mood tonight! It's been a busy week, both indoors and outdoors. My course is going well: module 2 has just dropped which is all about pricing. Can't wait to start that. Pricing is such a huge topic and one that not everyone talks about. I know I've struggled with it this year. I've also just taken a free online floristry tutorial with top florist, Joseph Massie, and I'm working my way through a Lennie Larkin course. She is holding a Flower Summit at the moment with lots o...

Hello, welcome to Tuesday 18 November 2025. 

Winter is here! The temperature has plummeted and I'm bundled up in so many layers that it's hard to even bend down sometimes. Tonight's episode gives you an update of my progress on the new course with Jenny Marks of Trademark Farmer in the US, and news of what I've done with my dahlias over the weekend.

Yesterday I visited a fellow grower's plot for a meet-up of local fellow growers which was very interesting and gave me the biggest plot envy ever! There's news about gathering holly for wreaths a...