Last Saturday, I traveled to Port Townsend, Washington, to speak at the Yard and Garden Series 2011, an educational program produced by the WSU Jefferson County Master Gardeners. Such a great audience of enthusiastic kindred spirits.

After my talk and floral design demonstration on Sustainable Flower Growing and Design, I promised to post some of the resources for seasonal, local, and sustainable flowers. Here they are:

California Organic Flowers (www.californiaorganicflowers.com); Here’s a link to our post about visiting this cool farm in Chico, California

Jello Mold Farm (www.jellomoldfarm.com); Our friends Diane and Dennis grow sustainable cut flowers in Mt. Vernon, Washington. Read their list of “where to buy” (including Farmer’s Market, CSA orders and Seattle area retail shops)

Peterkort Roses (www.peterkortroses.com), a fabulous, family-owned rose farm in Hillsboro, Oregon. Their roses are grown sustainably in hoop houses year ’round. The colors are pure, the scents are not cloying, and the flowers are totally fresh. While Peterkort sells wholesale only, you can ask your local florist to order from them directly. Demand for locally-grown ingredients will help give flower consumers more choices and eventually replace those steroidal mega-rose imports. ReadSandra Peterkort Laubenthal’s blog for news and updates on the rose-growing world.

Wild Ridge Organics (www.wildridgeorganics.com); Specializing in Australian and South African cut flowers, based in Salinas, California. These are the awesome exotics used in my arrangement that one lucky audience member took home with her.

Upcoming: My collaborator, photographer David Perry, and I are hitting the lecture circuit in 2011 – spreading the word about their passion for locally-grown flower crops and the designers who use these ingredients. 

If you are in the Seattle area, come hear from and meet us at the Northwest Flower & Garden Show, February 23-27, 2011. Our appearance details (click on the links below for lengthier course descriptions):

Thursday, February 24th

• 12:15 p.m. Hood Room: “Conquering Your Digital Camera: Making Beautiful & Memorable Garden Photos,” with David Perry
• 2:30 p.m. DIY Stage: “Floral Design with Spring Bulbs: Bring Spring Indoors with Beautiful Blooming Bouquets,” with Debra Prinzing

Friday, February 25th

• 12:15 p.m. Hood Room: “A Year in Flowers: Seasonal, Local & Sustainable Floral Ingredients,” with David Perry
• 2:00 p.m. DIY Stage: “The Winter Bouquet: Sustainable Floral Designs From Winter’s Bounty,” with Debra Prinzing