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Ariella Chezar’s new book – Home in Bloom – is a vivid, inspiring look at the role of flowers and plants in interior design. Through her stunning, wild work, Ariella invites us to revel in the inherent drama of nature, encouraging us to infuse our living spaces with beauty and abundance, while fundamentally altering a room’s energy through the transformative power of flowers.

It’s been many years since today’s guest Ariella Chezar appeared on the Slow Flowers Podcast, so I’m thrilled to welcome her back for our first video episode.

The occasion is the recent publication of Ariella’s fourth and newest book, Home in Bloom, written with Julie Michaels. The benefit of recording for our Slow Flowers YouTube Channel is that you can see a preview of the interior pages of Home in Bloom as Ariella describes many of her beautiful designs and installations.

ARIELLA CHEZAR is a master floral designer and the author of Seasonal Flower Arranging, The Flower Workshop, and Flowers for the Table. Her work has graced the cover and pages of Martha Stewart Living, O Magazine, Better Homes and Gardens, Town and Country, and many more publications. She is a highly sought-after teacher and lecturer and has designed flower arrangements for The Obama White House. Ariella lives in The Berkshires of Massachusetts, where her garden serves as inspiration for her designs.

Home in Bloom celebrates the seamless integration of architecture, light, and natural landscapes into floral design. Ariella layers colors and combines improbable wild elements, resulting in arrangements that are as gorgeous as they are dynamic. With each page, she invites us to revel in the inherent drama of nature, encouraging us to infuse our living spaces with beauty and abundance, while fundamentally altering a room’s energy through the transformative power of flowers.

Home in Bloom is organized into chapters that celebrate every room in the home—Welcome, Nourish, Celebrate, Pause, and Wilding, as it takes us on a journey through flower-filled living spaces. The arrangements in each chapter are accompanied by detailed captions that inspire us to walk outside and bring the wilds of nature into our environments. The book features hundreds of gorgeous photographs by renowned photographers Andrea Gentl and Martin Hyers.

Thanks so much for joining me today!

READ: Mary Ann Newcomer’s review of Home in Bloom, recently published in Slow Flowers Journal online.

LISTEN to Ariella’s past guest appearances on the Slow Flowers Podcast
March 2014 (Episode 133)
June 2016 (Episode 251)

Follow Ariella on Instagram

Order Home in Bloom

Thank you for an inspiring conversation, Ariella!

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Slow Flowers Summit 2024 – News

We are swiftly into the countdown phase before the amazing 7^th annual Slow Flowers Summit – taking place June 23 through 25^th. I can’t wait to see you there! Today, we dropped our FINAL ticket promotion, so take note. Now through June 11^th, next Tuesday, you can take 10 % off your Slow Flowers Summit registration. Use the promo code LETSDOTHIS — all one word – to take 10% off your registration at slowflowerssummit.com.

And speaking of good news, last week, we were delighted with some incredible press coverage about the Slow Flowers Summit. In its coverage of the Slow Flowers Summit, the online floral lifestyle magazine called THURSD.com called it the “must-attend event for floral fanatics.” Thank you for affirming all that’s gone into creating such a valuable educational experience for flower farmers, floral designers, and farmer-florists interested in enhancing their skills and understanding around sustainable and slow flowers. The link to the article in THURSD is in our show notes.

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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 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.

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.   

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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!

---

Music credits:

Drone Pine; Gaena; Blue Straggler; Long Await
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

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Podcast Index | RSS | More

Françoise Weeks brings home the charm of the wild woods with her creative botanical arrangements that are so much more than bouquets of blooms. Our conversation about Wonder of the Woodlands, Françoise’s new book, includes an exclusive visit to her Portland garden and design studio.

Françoise Weeks is a good friend to the Slow Flowers Movement and she is a longtime member of our society. Regular podcast listeners will have met Francoise on a few earlier occasions, including on her first appearance on Episode 217 in the fall of 2015, during Lisa Waud’s Flower House Detroit – Françoise collaborated with Susan McLeary to design a fantstical vintage kitchen filled with flowers and root vegetables, plants, and foliages – it was a delight.

Françoise has influenced the floral community as an educator and artist, and we now have the delightful gift of her first design book – Wonder of the Woodlands, The Art of Seeing and Creating with Nature.

The book will be published on April 2^nd so you’re the first to hear all about it and if you check out the video interview on which today’s podcast is based, you’ll enjoy a peek into Françoise’s Portland, Oregon Studio, where we recorded our conversation.

Here’s a bit more about the new book:

Containers lined with bark to replace ordinary glass vases. A bed of moss to cushion a vibrant spring arrangement. Ever-changing wreaths to showcase acorns, branches, lichen, twining vines, and delicate ferns throughout the year. A cloche holding an arrangement of dried mushrooms that might have come out of a fairytale.
 
In this gorgeous celebration of the woodlands, renowned floral designer Françoise Weeks offers all the ways, from simple to complex, that you can bring the wildness and wonder of the forest to your indoor arrangements. Each chapter of Wonder of the Woodlands features the materials Françoise uses most—barks and logs; acorns and seeds; ferns, branches, moss, and lichen—and showcases how she builds her unique, beautiful arrangements, which last far longer than a vase of cut flowers.
 
Inside are also Françoise’s insights on seeking out the most unique natural materials for arrangements, and how to responsibly forage or source them in a shop. And you’ll find her tips on how to reuse materials so you can enjoy lots of different arrangements without increasing your environmental impact.
 
Bursting with images of nature and suggestions for weaving that magic into your interiors, Wonder of the Woodlands is a celebration of arrangements that are inspired by a walk through the trees. With stunning photography of wild and wonderful wreaths, table arrangements, wall décor, and more, you can re-create the peaceful majesty of spending time in the forest in your own home.

In this gorgeous celebration of the woodlands, renowned floral designer Françoise Weeks offers all the ways, from simple to complex, that you can bring the wildness and wonder of the forest to your indoor arrangements. Each chapter of Wonder of the Woodlands features the materials Françoise uses most—barks and logs; acorns and seeds; ferns, branches, moss, and lichen—and showcases how she builds her unique, beautiful arrangements, which last far longer than a vase of cut flowers.
 
Inside are also Françoise’s insights on seeking out the most unique natural materials for arrangements, and how to responsibly forage or source them in a shop. And you’ll find her tips on how to reuse materials so you can enjoy lots of different arrangements without increasing your environmental impact.
 
Bursting with images of nature and suggestions for weaving that magic into your interiors, Wonder of the Woodlands is a celebration of arrangements that are inspired by a walk through the trees. With stunning photography of wild and wonderful wreaths, table arrangements, wall decor, and more, you can re-create the peaceful majesty of spending time in the forest in your own home.

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Françoise was born in Belgium and started her business in 1996. She has infused her work with a quintessential European reverence for flowers and nature. Combined with creativity and mechanical ingenuity, she has crystalized her singular style of Textural Woodlands and Botanical Haute Couture pieces, garnering a global following.

Her innovation and love of teaching have brought her to many cities in the US in studios, at wholesalers, at garden clubs, Art in Bloom events and conferences, including at AIFD Symposium. She also taught in Mexico, Canada, England, Sweden, Iceland, France, China and Australia.

Her dynamic work has been published in national and international publications such as Fusion Flowers, Modern Wedding Flowers, Huffington Post, Flutter and Millieu.

Françoise’s studio is located in Portland, OR where she teaches and offers online courses, including Zoom workshops.

She created “The Herbal Recipe Keeper,” a blank journal featuring her artwork, published by Timber Press in 2018.

Before we start the interview, I want to mention that you’ll occasionally hear the voice of botanical artist Julie Beeler of Bloom & Dye, a Slow Flowers member who lives in Trout Lake, Washington, outside of Portland; Julie joined me on my visit to Françoise’s studio last week and then the three of us had lunch together. I had wanted these two women to meet and I’m so delighted that it worked out. Julie and Françoise share a mutual love of mushrooms and Julie has a forthcoming book – out this fall – called The Mushroom Color Atlas, A Guide to Dyes and Pigments Made from Fungi, so keep an ear out for her appearance on this podcast.

Click here to find Françoise’s upcoming book events, classes, and workshops and a link to order your own copy of Wonder of the Woodlands.

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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 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.

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.   

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. Learn more at redtwigfarms.com.

---

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

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; Gaena; Drone Birch; Homegrown
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

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Podcast Index | RSS | More

I’m so happy to introduce today’s guest to you, Susan Chambers of bloominCouture, a San Francisco-based floral design studio that combines the beauty and aesthetics of a European luxury florist with the relaxed elegance of the California lifestyle.

I first met Susan in 2016 at a creative writing workshop in Healdsburg, California. We wrapped up the two-day floral design, video and writing sessions when each student sat down with me for a personal interview to share her story. I collected several of those short conversations into a podcast episode that aired December 2016, including Susan’s segment. So technically, she is a return guest to the Slow Flowers Podcast. But I want you to hear the full story today!

Seven years have passed and Susan is running her floral enterprise exactly how she always dreamed of doing. She also is featured in my book, Where We Bloom, in the pages of which I describe Susan as a “fashionista who offers bespoke floral design.”

Her unique branding approach connects her clients, many of whom commission multiple floral arrangements for their homes on a weekly basis, with the concept of sustainability and locally-grown botanicals.

I’m so thrilled to introduce you to Susan today. The interview takes place in two parts: first, you’ll join in as Susan and I chat about her business, her path to flowers, her studio setup, and her aesthetic as a floral designer. That’s followed by part two’s design demonstration featuring a classic bloominCouture seasonal arrangement with the best locally-grown flowers available right now — from farms up and down the state of California.

You’re bound to enjoy this dose of floral inspiration, as we slowly creep toward the first day of spring.

Find and follow bloominCouture on Instagram and Facebook

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Celebrating our 500th Episode!

I want to take a moment to acknowledge that this is our 500th consecutive episode of the Slow Flowers Podcast. Yes, for 500 weeks without interruption, ever since the first episode aired on July 23, 2013, I’ve brought you original programming about local, seasonal and sustainable flowers and the people who grow and design with them. We were and always will be the first-ever flower podcast on the airwaves and through the internet. Many have emerged since, a sign of the growing demand for floral content, but ours is the only show true to the values and practices of the Slow Flowers Movement. It stared here.

The Slow Flowers Podcast is different. I’ve described our audio storytelling as inclusive and welcoming, and I have previously pictured the time you spend here with our program as one during which we are sitting together in a beautiful field of flowers or curled up around the fireplace sipping mugs of tea — talking about our favorite topics. This show is a community gathering place for voices, insights, ideas and encouragement, bringing you nearly 10 years of informative and meaningful content — delivered through your ear-buds. The Seattle Times has called this podcast “a lively platform for voices in the local-flowers movement throughout the country, which will have you craving blossoms and blooms.”

Each week, you join my engaging conversations with flower farmers, floral designers, cut floral and plant experts, authors, entrepreneurs and innovators in the Slow Flowers Community. And I thank you for listening. I thank our sponsors for helping to underwrite the costs of research, recording, editing, and producing this award-winning Podcast.

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 at johnnysseeds.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.

---

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

---

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. And NEXT WEEK will be very very special — our 500th ever episode of the Slow Flowers Podcast! I can’t wait to start celebrating and I’ll meet you then!

---

Music credits:

A Palace of Cedar; Blue Straggler; Drone Pine; Gasland; 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

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Podcast Index | RSS | More

https://youtu.be/v-51vvHyJPs

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I’m thrilled today to welcome Joseph Massie back to the Slow Flowers Podcast.

I wanted to share the great news of the arrival of Joseph’s first book, The Flower School, which has a subtitle: “the principles and pleasures of good flowers,” published by UK-based Hardie Grant and is now available online for pre-order. Click to read more about The Flower School book.

AND….we have a beautiful copy for a giveaway, so read on to learn how you can win!

The Flower School is an impressive, 305-page book, brimming with full-color photography of the elements, principles and theory of floral design. There are 25 step-by-step floral arrangements – for the home, gatherings, celebrations and the pure pleasure of flowers.

Before we welcome Joseph, here’s a bit more of his story:

Frequently referred to by the media as ‘the floral artist of his generation,’ Joseph Massie is widely regarded as one of Europe’s top floral artists.

When he was just fourteen, Joseph desperately wanted a weekend job, and after successfully applying to the local flower stall, he began spending his weekends working there in his hometown of Liverpool, UK.

Perhaps to some it was an uncommon interest for a fourteen year old boy, but Joseph quickly found his vocation amongst the buckets of blossoms and buds.

Taking steps to pursue his passion, Joseph self funded his education and began to hone his practice and develop a creative ethos, participating in intense training sessions with top international designers and artists. To further build his artistic vocabulary, Joseph began to participate first in regional, followed by national, floral design competitions, and at age nineteen, won his first national design competition, the BFA Young Florist of the Year 2007.

With a clutch of prestigious awards, Joseph turned his attentions to artistic endeavours working across ten countries, on a wide variety of art projects including botanical couture, sculptures and installations. He has received seventeen national & international awards, including five consecutive RHS Gold Medals – and four Best in Show awards – at the world renown RHS Chelsea Flower Show — the youngest person ever to achieve this feat.

Joseph’s work has since been featured in press including The Times, The Independent, The Daily Mail and his work commissioned by international institutions and brands.

Enjoy this sneak peek into The Flower School. You can learn more from Joseph at these links:
🌿 SIGN UP TO FOR JOSEPH’S FREE BEGINNERS COURSE : For the Love of Flowers : Beginnings
🌿 FLOWER CLASS MEMBERSHIP: Join the Flower Class community, for exclusive classes & coaching each and every month.
🌿 BLOG : Discover more free resources on The Cultivate Blog
🌿 PODCAST : Check out The Flowers After Hours Podcast
🌿 TOOLS : For all Joseph’s favourite floral tools & supplies

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Thanks so much for joining me today. That was an inspiring conversation and I hope you were just as enchanted by Joseph’s story and love of floral design as I was.

As Joseph and I discussed, this book reflects his true passion to share his knowledge to encourage and inspire absolutely anyone who wants to work with flowers to be able to do so – and do it well.

He wants everyone — professionals and flower enthusiasts alike — to be empowered by the learning process of skills, techniques and principles for a strong floral design foundation. I couldn’t agree more.

By the way, Joseph was a guest on Episode 346, which aired April 2018, after we taught together at Tobey Nelson’s Whidbey Island Workshop. If you want to hear more about Joseph’s fascinating journey to flowers, you can listen to that conversation. I’ll share the link in today’s show notes..

If you’d like to enter our random drawing to win a copy of Joseph Massie’s new book, The Flower School, check out our Instagram promotion @slowflowerssociety — we will accept entries through Saturday, August 27th at midnight Pacific Time and announce the winner in next week’s Podcast episode.

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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.

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.

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.

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.

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Thanks so much for joining us today! The Slow Flowers Podcast is a member-supported endeavor, downloaded more than 879,000 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.

---

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:

Lady Marie; 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

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Podcast Index | RSS | More

Today, I’m so delighted to share my wonderful conversation with artist Ronni Nicole Robinson. Ronni creates works in plaster and paper and all of her pieces are botanically-inspired, utilizing flowers, branches and stems she clips from surrounding gardens and nature to incorporate into her embossed surfaces.

When planning the 2022 Slow Flowers Summit, “Flowers as Artist’s Muse” emerged and felt like the ideal theme to connect the stories, aesthetic, and craft of each of our gifted presenters. I knew I wanted to invite Ronni Nicole to share her unique point of view and her floral-embellished artwork to inspire Summit attendees.

And today, she will inspire you too. Ronni Nicole has been creating “flower fossils” in plaster and paper, pursuing her art full-time. She comes to us from the Ron Nicole studio in New Hope, Pennsylvania and I know you’ll enjoy this gifted artist as she discusses her process and techniques, as well as her philosophy of art, design, nature and beauty.

If you like what you hear today, please consider joining us at the Slow Flowers Summit where Ronni Nicole will share her remarkable journey as an artist and one who draws creative and soulful guidance from nature and especially from flowers. Ronni’s presentation takes place on Monday, June 27th (Day Two), and is followed by a Q&A.

Follow Ronni Nicole on Instagram

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Slow Flowers Summit News: Flower Donation Program

If you’re a regular listener, I know you’ve heard me talk about the upcoming Slow Flowers Summit, our fifth conference, which takes place June 26-28 at two venues just outside New York City. We’ll gather on Day One at the Red Barn at Maple Grove Farm in Bedford, New York, a beautiful private event venue, and then, we will continue Days Two and Three at Stone Barns Center in Pocantico Hills, New York. One of the ways you can get involved with the Summit is to participate in our Floral Donation Program to support design demonstrations and our Floral Design Takeover at Red Barn.

We’re inviting domestic flower farms and growers to provide donated flowers and foliage to be used throughout the 3-day event. In exchange, floral donations will be featured in Slow Flowers Summit social media, in our printed program, as well as at the in-person Summit. Interested? Click below for all the details.

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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. 

Thank you to 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.

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.  Learn more at redtwigfarms.com.

---

Thanks so much for joining us today! The Slow Flowers Podcast is a member-supported endeavor, downloaded more than 851,000 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. 

Music credits:
Heliotrope; 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

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Podcast Index | RSS | More

I’m so happy to share today’s conversation and design demonstration with you. My guest is Jennifer Driscoll, owner of Oakland-based Redwood Wild Florals.

I met Jennifer last summer at the 2021 Slow Flowers Summit, held at Filoli, not far from her Bay Area backyard. You know how you start following someone you’ve met on social media and then want to learn more about their story and their creativity? That’s what’s happened with us. I invited Jennifer to join me to share about her floral journey and give us a floral design treat.

Her tagline for Redwood Wild Florals is: “Seasonal, Handpicked, & Foraged Garden-Style Florals.”

While a self-described gardener who loves to share her flower bounty and find beauty in community, Jennifer’s artistic super power is her background in interior design.

Drawing from her design training, and combined with her passion for gardening, Jennifer arranges an array of organically grown flowers, straight from the garden, to create lush, artful, and refined florals.

Enjoy this lovely peek into Jennifer’s world.

Follow Redwood Wild Florals on Instagram and Facebook

See Jennifer’s interior design style at Studio Driscoll

I loved seeing all of the cutting garden ingredients that Jennifer grows and includes in her bouquets and arrangements. Take inspiration from her story and perhaps you’ll borrow some of the ways Jennifer blends two creative pursuits into her lifestyle!

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This week’s Slow Flowers’ News

Coming up this Friday, May 13th, you’re invited to join the Slow Flowers Member (virtual) Meet-Up for the month. It’s our Slow Flowers Summit Design Preview with Xenia D’Ambrosi and TJ McGrath, two of our Slow Flowers Summit featured floral designers who will join me  for an inspiring conversation about seasonal growing, sourcing and design!

Xenia and TJ are part of our inspiring Day One speaker lineup (June 26th) and they will both present a design demonstration using all locally-grown botanicals at the Slow Flowers Summit.

At the Meet-Up you’ll have a chance to learn more about their floral enterprises and how they stay true to their missions. Their missions are based on seasonality, sustainability, and connecting clients, customers, and their communities with the beauty and meaning in their flowers. I hope you’ll join this enriching gathering!

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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 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 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 at johnnysseeds.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.

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Thanks so much for joining us today! The Slow Flowers Podcast is a member-supported endeavor, downloaded more than 846,000 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 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 at slowflowerspodcast.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. 

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Music credits:
Silver Lanyard; 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

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Podcast Index | RSS | More

Today, we’re sharing more insight about one of the themes of the 2022 Slow Flowers Floral Insights & Industry Forecast, released last month. 

Our second insight is Plant Your Own Bouquet and today’s guest, Jen Healy, is one of the people who helped me realize this important shift in the marketplace.

When Jen first joined the Slow Flowers Society with her business J&B Garden Center, we jumped on the phone so I could get to know her better. That was very early in 2021 and I learned that J&B is an independent, family-owned retail garden and home decor destination in Albany, located about 70 miles south of Portland near Corvallis. 

Jen and I discussed the important intersection between gardening and cut flower growing, and how she’s integrated the two world through the business she and her husband Brent Pockrus started in 2019. 

Today, we’ll meet Jen, talk about the floral program at J&B — and as a bonus, Jen will share her observations from last month’s Dallas Home & Gift Market. We’ll discuss five key trends that she noticed there — lifestyle and decor themes and concepts you will want to know all about for your floral enterprise.

Click below to download a PDF of our presentation deck with all of Jen’s scouting slides.

Thanks so much for joining us today to meet Jen Healy and learn from a true trendspotter who’s bringing her passion for cut flowers into the retail environment.

Find and follow J&B Garden Center:
On Facebook

On Instagram

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As I mentioned in last week’s episode, Slow Flowers is moving into Valentine’s Day by producing five days of floral design workshops for the 2022 Northwest Flower & Garden Festival, which begins today, February 9th and continues through Sunday February 13th.

Be sure to follow our IG stories at slowflowerssociety.com each day, to see our design instructors — all Slow Flowers members. They include Bethany Little of Charles Little & Co., who is teaching romantic wreath design today; Bethany Syphers of Crowley House Farm, who will teach a flower crown workshop on Thursday; Kiara Hancock of K. Hancock Events, who will be teaching a centerpiece workshop on Friday; mom-and-daughter team Kim Gruetter and Tonnelli Gruetter of Salty Acres Farm, who will teach the tiny bouquet workshop on Saturday and Tobey Nelson of Tobey Nelson Events & Design’s botanical jewelry workshop on Sunday.

I’m super excited to get a jump start on spring and the NW Flower & Garden Show is definitely the way to do it here in Seattle. Oh, and I can’t overlook shout-outs to our members and Bloom Imprint authors who are also speaking at the show: Jennifer and Adam O’Neal of PepperHarrow Farm are speaking three times, including about their new book Small Farm, Big Dreams, and competing head-to-head on the Container Wars stage (I’ll try and grab footage of that match up!), and Julie Beeler of Bloom & Dye, who will teach Colors from the Dye Garden.

So what are you waiting for? If you’re in the Seattle area and you want a pair of tickets, I’ll be giving away two sets of tickets to the first two Members who comment in today’s show notes at slowflowerspodcast.com or who send us a DM at slowflowerssociety on IG.

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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 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 U.S. flower farms by purchasing more than $10 million dollars of U.S.-grown fresh and seasonal flowers and foliage annually. Discover more atfarmgirlflowers.com.

Our next sponsor thanks goes to Store It Cold, creators of the revolutionary CoolBot, which you just heard Carlee mention as a new addition to her studio.  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   

Our next sponsor thanks goes to 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 — and find flowers and foliage from California, Florida, Oregon and Washington by using the “Origin” selection tool in your search. Learn more at flowerfarm.com.

Our final sponsor thanks goes to 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.

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Thanks so much for joining us today! The Slow Flowers Podcast is a member-supported endeavor, downloaded more than 813,000 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 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 at debraprinzing.com

---

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:

For We Shall Know Speed;
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

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Podcast Index | RSS | More

Over the past year, you’ve heard from many of the panelists and personalities scheduled to present at the upcoming Slow Flowers Summit, scheduled for June 28-30, which is right around the corner. And today, I’m bringing you straight to our Summit destination, Filoli Historic House & Garden based in Woodside, California, where we will gather for the first two days of the conference.

I am so excited for the opportunity Summit attendees, speakers, sponsors and guests will enjoy as we immerse ourselves in the beauty and legacy of this Bay Area cultural institution. We will spend two full days experiencing the historic property, including Filoli’s legendary landscape and cutting gardens, which you’ll learn more about today. We also will have unprecedented access to design a ‘floral takeover’ in ‘The House,’ California’s most triumphant example of the Georgian Revival tradition and one of the finest remaining country estates of the early 20th century.

For now, I’d love to introduce you to the horticulture team at Filoli, because they are the ones whose involvement in the Slow Flowers Summit will ensure a thoroughly immersive plant and floral experience.

Today, join me in a conversation with Jim Salyards, Kate Nowell and Haley O’Connor.

Jim Salyards is the director of horticulture, a 26-year veteran of Filoli!

Kate Nowell is the horticulture production manager, with about one decade at Filoli, and Haley O’Connor is Filoli’s new formal garden manager who joined about six months ago.

Let’s jump right in and take an audio (virtual) botanical tour with three talented plants people.

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Thank you so much for joining our conversation today! There are still a few spaces left to attend the Slow Flowers Summit and you can find all those details at slowflowerssummit.com. We are so excited to welcome our attendees to a safe, in-person, COVID-compliant and mostly outdoor setting at Filoli Historic House and Garden. The countdown begins!

And by the way, if you’re not attending the Summit, watch Slow Flowers Society on Facebook, Slow Flowers Society and Slow Flowers Summit on Instagram for live feeds coming to you from the Slow Flowers Summit, including a behind-the-scenes tour that I will lead on setup day, Sunday, June 28th.

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Something really fun happened this past week as I traded places at the microphone and answered questions posed to me rather than being the person asking those questions. Our good friend Jennifer Jewell, producer and host of Cultivating Place, an award-winning public radio program and podcast, invited me to join her to discuss all things Slow Flowers. I’ll share the link to that episode in today’s show notes. You’ve heard Jennifer here as a past guest and you may already subscribe to Cultivating Place. If not, please check out her amazing, inclusive and expansive weekly radio program about plants, people, place and other conversations about natural history and the human urge to garden. Jennifer is coming to the Slow Flowers Summit as our capstone speaker on day two — and I’m so honored that she shared our story – your story – the story of Slow Flowers – on her terrific show.

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As you know, in the buildup to American Flowers Week, June 28-July 4, there is much to celebrate. This Friday, you’re invited to join our Slow Flowers Member Virtual Meet-Up, June 11th at 9 am Pacific/Noon Eastern. The topic: Botanical Couture for American Flowers Week 2021 Collection. The guests? Several of the creatives responsible for this year’s expansive and flourishing fashion collection! Get a peek at the behind the scenes and hear from the creatives — Slow Flowers member farmers, designers and floral artists who rose to the open call for floral wearables. We have one-dozen looks in all this year — a feat of talent, ingenuity and inventiveness! Can’t wait for you to join us — all the details and the link to log in are available in today’s show notes. See you there!

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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.

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, and providing competitive salaries and benefits to team members based in Watsonville, California and Miami, Florida. Discover more at farmgirlflowers.com.

For each Podcast episode this year, we thank three of our Major Sponsors.

Flowerfarm.com, is a leading wholesale flower distributor that sources from carefully-selected growers 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.

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.

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.

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Thanks so much for joining us today! The Slow Flowers Podcast has been downloaded more than 734,000 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

I’m Debra Prinzing, host and producer of the Slow Flowers Podcast. Next week, you’re invited to join me in putting more Slow Flowers on the table, one vase at a time. And If you like what you hear, please consider logging onto iTunes and posting a listener review.

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. 

Music Credits:

Flattered; 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

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Podcast Index | RSS | More

Welcome to a very special episode of the Slow Flowers Podcast — Episode 500 — in our weekly podcast series about Slow Flowers and the people who grow and design with them. Since we launched this special program in July 2013, I have regularly featured the voices of influencers, stylemakers, pioneers and heroes in the Slow Flowers Movement — and today we celebrate an impressive milestone with Episode 500!

It’s been a busy and exciting week here at the Slow Flowers Society! In January, I introduced you to creative director Robin Avni, my partner and co-founder of BLOOM Imprint, the book publishing branch of Slow Flowers Society. You can listen to our conversation from January’s Episode 490 here, in which we discuss the goal of telling stories by and about Slow Flowers members through the medium of books!

BLOOM Imprint’s first title is at the printer right now and we can’t wait to tell you all about it. Where We Bloom is an information and idea-packed volume filled with 37 intimate and inspiring floral studios, workshops, storefronts and growing spaces like greenhouses and barns — all home to creative floral enterprises of Slow Flowers members.

You may have seen the cover art because I’ve shared a few sneak peeks across social media and in Slow Flowers’ newsletter, but today I’m excited to introduce you to the woman responsible for the delightfully engaging space featured as our cover destination to illustrate the concept of Where We Bloom.

Please meet Cynthia Zamaria, Toronto-based designer, flower grower and stylist whose studio is called Cynthia Zamaria House & Flower. Cynthia will share a bit about her journey with flowers and the three of us will discuss the central themes of Where We Bloom, about which I write in the introduction:

• The importance of devoting space to the pursuit of one’s art
• The way environments can inspire individual expression and reflect one’s aesthetic style
• The ways one’s studio or workshop can inspire the senses.

There is also the intangible feeling of security and comfort that creative individuals may feel when they can escape to a destination where their ideas flourish and, yes, blossom!

Debra Prinzing, where we bloom

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Let me tell you a bit more about Robin and Cynthia:

Based in Gig Harbor, Washington, Robin Avni is a creative veteran in the media + high-tech industries. Her experience includes more than 15 years in the publishing industry and eight years at Microsoft in design and creative management. She has successfully managed innovative, award-winning design teams and high-profile projects as well as received numerous national design awards and photo editing honors for her own work. Robin has produced 10 books, including collaborating with Debra on the Slow Flowers Journal.  

In 2004, following Microsoft, she founded bricolage*, a consultancy specializing in creative strategy, content development, and trend analysis for home + garden. She has worked with Fortune 500 companies, national advertising agencies and award-winning media properties, applying timely actionable insights to their businesses. ​

Robin received a BA in journalism from Indiana University, Bloomington and a Knight-Wallace Journalism Fellowship at the University of Michigan; she holds a Master of Communication in Digital Media from the University of Washington. 

Find and follow Robin Avnia & BLOOM Imprint at these social places

Robin Avni on Instagram

BLOOM Imprint on Instagram

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Based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Cynthia Zamaria is an interior and floral designer known for character-filled spaces and carefree flower displays. With an infectious creative spirit and a belief that we all need more beautiful in our lives, Cynthia shares inspiration as an interior and floral editorial stylist, content contributor, writer and workshop teacher. Her work is regularly featured in leading lifestyle media. ​

An advocate of the Slow Flower Movement, Cynthia sustainably grows small-batch speciality blooms and designs unfussy seasonal arrangements. This soulful aesthetic spills into Cynthia’s interiors which are true-to-the-space, trendless mash-ups of scale, texture and colour.​

Cynthia and her husband Graham Loughton share a passion for saving forgotten houses and have restored a range of period properties. A former public relations executive, Cynthia now devotes her time to family and creative projects from her home base in Toronto.

Find and follow Cynthia Zamaria at these social places:

Cynthia Zamaria on Facebook

Cynthia Zamaria on Instagram

Cynthia Zamaria on Pinterest

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Sneak peek to more inside pages:

Thanks so much for joining me today. You can pre-order a signed copy of Where We Bloom at BLOOMImprint.com and we are offering bulk discounts to retailers — so reach out if you’re interested in quantities. Don’t forget to join Robin and me, along with many of the talented Slow Flowers members featured in Where We Bloom at our Virtual Book Launch party on Tuesday, April 27th at 4 pm Pacific/7pm Eastern. We’ll be sharing some giveaways and introducing you to a few creatives featured in our pages. Join us via this link!

If you’re in the Seattle area, please come out and say hello, at two upcoming booksigning events — we’ll be wearing our masks and observing careful social-distancing practices! On May 1st, 2-4 p.m., Gillian Mathews and Ravenna Gardens, Seattle’s boutique home and garden emporium, will host a signing and we expect that some of the creatives featured in Where We Bloom will join us! On May 8th, 1-3 p.m., we’ll be at PaperDelights in Burien, just outside Seattle, where we are joining Teresa Rao of Belle Petale at her Mother’s Day floral popup. Teresa is featured in the pages of Where We Bloom so we’re thrilled to share this event with her!

To find out what’s next for BLOOM Imprint, sign up for our newsletter and follow us on social media – I’ll have the links for you in today’s show notes. Later this year, BLOOM Imprint will publish two exciting books by Slow Flowers members. First, we’ll release an essential guide to rose growing from Felicia Alvarez of Menagerie Farm + Floral; and then we’ll publish Holly Chapple’s long-awaited first book, A Life in Flowers. And we have four other titles in the catalog for 2022, including as you heard, Cynthia Zamaria’s book, House & Flower. What a dynamic lineup of creativity!

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And save the date for this Friday’s April member meet-up for the Slow Flowers Community. That’s right, on Friday, April 9th, join our monthly meet-up via Zoom. The time is always 9 am Pacific/Noon Eastern. This month, we welcome two Slow Flowers leaders who will share their approach to Sustainable Floral Design and green practices. Learn more about the definition of “sustainability” in floral design and gain insights about how you can adapt your floral enterprise to be safe, healthy and beautiful!.
You’ll learn from Tobey Nelson of Tobey Nelson Events & Design and Sustainable Floral Design (Whidbey Island, Washington) and Becky Feasby of Prairie Girl Flowers and Sustainable Flowers Workshop (Calgary, Alberta, Canada). You can find the Zoom link to join us in today’s show notes and come prepared to ask your important questions about this important shift in floristry. We’ll have some fun giveaways, and you might win one of our drawings! See you there!

Thank you to our Sponsors

This podcast 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.

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, and providing competitive salaries and benefits to 240 team members based in Watsonville, California and Miami, Florida. Discover more at farmgirlflowers.com.

For each Podcast episode this year, we will also thank three of our Major Sponsors:
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.com.

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.

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.

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Thanks so much for joining us today! The Slow Flowers Podcast has been downloaded more than 711,000 times by listeners like you. We wrapped up the month of March with 13.5k downloads — wow — that’s the highest in the past year. 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

I’m Debra Prinzing, host and producer of the Slow Flowers Podcast. Next week, you’re invited to join me in putting more Slow Flowers on the table, one vase at a time. And If you like what you hear, please consider logging onto iTunes and posting a listener review.

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. 

Music Credits:

One Little Triumph; Turning on the Lights; Color Country; Loopy; 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