I sometimes wonder if Erin Benzakein, the most famous farmer-florist in the nation and possibly the world, had any idea of the impact she would have on locally grown flowers when she founded Floret, her farm in Skagit Valley, Washington. Erin’s blog, her training courses, her books, and, now her sale of seeds, has influenced and enticed many to dive into growing flowers for pleasure or profit or both. When I asked Emma Jackson of Cut Clover Flowers in Clarksburg, Maryland, what prompted her to a career in flowers, she answered: “Honestly? Erin Benzakein. It’s all her fault!”

Notwithstanding Erin’s influence, a love of nature and family heritage each played a part in the birth of Cut Clover Flowers three years ago. Emma told us, “I come by the flower bug honestly. My great grandfather was a farmer florist in the 1930’s. He was given a loan to build greenhouses by the Dupont family and made daily arrangements for their Nemours estate. One of my favorite photos is one where he and my great grandmother are all dressed up and she has two giant Dahlias stuck in the front of her dress!”

One of Emma’s apt descriptions of her life is “farming while momming. This year, Because of the pandemic, my childcare fluctuates-you never know when school will suddenly go virtual or preschool will be cancelled. So I have to be very creative about the ways in which I take care of my family and get my work done.” Emma says she is eager to expand her relationships with new florists and designers, even as she works to meet the needs of the former customers of Melane Hoffman at Hidden Ridge Flowers as Melane scales back.

Emma’s plan is to sell to florists, as well as bouquet subscriptions, and her crop plan includes what she calls “the weirdos” such as Love in a Puff and Jewels of Opar, which she believes designers are craving. “I love interesting foliage and accent plants. We are going to have a lot of different varieties of scented geranium this year. We were also lucky to get Eucalyptus seed, as it was hard to find due to the fires in Australia last year,” she said.

Family tradition is perhaps why Emma finds flowers miraculous. “I’ve always grown things but every year when I put a seed into dirt I think, no way is this going to work. No way is this going to turn into anything. And it’s a miracle every time. I love being outside in the dirt, in the sun. I love my deepening relationship with nature and the changing of the seasons. All of those experiences fill me with gratitude and awe in a way that nothing else can.”

Visit https://www.cutcloverflowers.com/ to find out more about availability, sign up for a bouquet subscription, or their June open farm day.

Thank you so much, Emma, for talking with IFDA.

I’ll be featuring different growers regularly here on the IFDA website. In between, the Maryland Cut Flower Growers Association is a terrific resource for finding flowers in this area: http://www.marylandgrownflowers.com/flowerfarms Travelling to design for a destination wedding? Find local farms all over the nation from the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers here: https://localflowers.org/find-flowers/

Ten years ago, Maya Kosok decided to combine her experience working in educational outreach for farms and her interest in urban agriculture and grow flowers. Today, Hillen Homestead comprises two city lots that total about half an acre in Northeast Baltimore. Maya supplies florists with field-grown blooms from March into November, as well as seasonal greens in December.

In talking with Maya, she brims over with enthusiasm for her business. “Flowers are beautiful, and I like working outside for sure, but, for me, it really is all about relationships,” she said. “I get to do it all in the context of other farmers and florists, at this point, working with people I’ve known for ten years sometimes. I have relationships with a lot of the neighbors near my garden sites. My cooler is across the street in a bakery. Some florists pick up right from my front porch.”

Because Hillen Homestead has no buildings or structures, everything is field grown, with an emphasis on annuals, although they grow peonies, other perennials, and woodies such as Ninebark, too. Maya said that, in the early days, “I rented shared space in a greenhouse, but then I had two babies, and I started buying plugs from Sharps and have never looked back. I focus on season extension with row cover and variety, but it is so much warmer in the city, that I can sell from mid-March to early November.”

Although she has occasionally participated in markets through the Farm Alliance of Baltimore, and she offers a four-week tulip subscription, Maya’s primary customer is designers. When asked, Maya instantly noted that communication is critical to a successful relationship between farmer and florist. “If you think something is off, the minute you know, tell,” she advises. If I know I will be short on something, I let them know ASAP as I don’t want them to be in a bind. I check in over the winter to talk about how the relationship worked, are there any updates, etc., so I can be forward thinking, and not just putting out fires.”

From her perspective, Maya believes that florists and designers can prioritize each other. “Early on, I didn’t necessarily have a huge bounty every week, but I was new, and people were working with me. “ Maya noted that, often, florists are looking for huge growers and growers want to land the biggest florists, but that it can benefit smaller businesses both to work together. “Be willing to take a chance on someone who is also newer, and help shape their business.”

Trusting growers to know their product also came up in our conversation. “Some of the florists who got my best stuff last year were the ones who said, ‘this is my color palette this week, I’ll take $300 from you.’ I send them a draft order, and they can still make changes, but that has been amazing.” With supply shortages last year, certain flowers were in demand, she says, but, “we have stuff that looks even better than what is in demand. For people who aren’t designing to a specific recipe, if you build in flexibility, you can really get the best product.”

So, how can you access the best product? Fill out the inquiry form at https://www.hillenhomestead.com/florists.html “People often find me via Instagram and reach out that way. I don’t really say no to anyone, but if someone is asking for the first time for burgundy dahlias the first week of October, that will be tough. The more consistently you are able to order, the higher priority you get.”

“All of my DC sales I do cooperatively with Two Boots Farm, so we can cover each other and offer a bigger variety – we complement each other, as she is Carroll County which is colder, so that extends the growing season for our customers. We send one availability list that has stuff from us both. We do twice-a-week deliveries to DC, April through October.”

Thank you so much, Maya, for talking with IFDA.

I’ll be featuring different growers regularly here on the IFDA website. In between, the Maryland Cut Flower Growers Association is a terrific resource for finding flowers in this area: http://www.marylandgrownflowers.com/flowerfarms. Travelling to design for a destination wedding? Find local farms all over the nation from the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers here: https://localflowers.org/find-flowers

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