It took some time for me to convince my very practical husband that flowers were a necessary thing on the farm…and then we started keeping bees. Almost overnight, Thomas became a convert when he saw how much the bees revelled in the different types of flowers on the farm.
Bumblebee on Crimson Sunflower
Back as a teen wanting to go to university, I had two very practical parents who told me that if I wanted to go to school, I’d need to get myself a decent job. Being the artsy-pants writer type, I landed a job at the local flower shop, and for five years after that, I translated my love of whimsy and colour and scent and form into floral arrangements and two degrees. When I began teaching full time and started to pursue postgraduate education, I had to leave my work at the flower shop behind, but I never lost the love of arranging (and growing) flowers.
Alley of Sunflowers
This summer, Thomas and I were gifted five days of holiday from the farm: my parents covered for us as we took a whirlwind roadtrip to the coast to visit my sister and her husband on Vancouver Island. Nutty farmers that we are, Thomas and I couldn’t resist dropping in on a number of small farms along the way. We even dragged my sister along for the ride one afternoon! The three of us ended up at a small farm with a beautiful cutting garden, Blue Moon Farm, Winery, and Ciderworx, and I started dreaming.
Jenna’s Sis in the Dahlia Garden at Blue Moon Farm, Winery, and Ciderworx
Watching my sister’s face light up as we chose dahlias right from the garden, I started thinking how great it would be if Thomas and I could start up a cutting garden back at Larch Grove Farm. I’d been reading gorgeous flower farm blogs all winter and spring and daydreaming about places such as Floret and Cultivated, and I wondered whether we could actually have a small flower operation on our farm in the North Country, too.
Like so many of the projects we undertake on the farm, the flower operation will begin with daydreaming. That’s what the fall and winter will be for: to prepare the soil; to peruse catalogues and choose seeds; and to dream, dream, dream. Come February, we’ll be starting the first seeds for our new venture indoors under lights while the winter still howls outdoors.
Garden Flower Arrangement