Specialty Cut Flower Production and Marketing - UC Agriculture and ...

Yes, a bride can be quite choosy or not. Iguess it depends on the individual. Somewant to know what is going to be in each corsageand bouquet, and others just want to gowith a color scheme and, perhaps, a style.Generally, the brides who contact me (and90 percent of the time it is the bride) at thefarmers’ market seem to be the most fl exible,maybe because they see my bouquetsand feel more comfortable or know that is thestyle they want. (Larsen, 2004)Contract GrowingIf someone asks you to grow fl owers for awedding or other event, but you are not preparedto do any more than that, you can getsomeone else to do the arrangements. Onefall a young woman who had purchasedfl owers from me for several years came bythe farmers’ market to tell me she was gettingmarried the next summer on July 9and wanted me to grow the fl owers for herwedding. She had chosen Stargazer liliesas her main fl ower and set the July weddingdate because that is when Stargazersbloom locally. The only other fl owers shewanted were additional Oriental lilies andglads in colors to harmonize with Stargazers.During the winter, I referred her to severalWeb sites where she could view liliesand glads, asking her to let me know whichvarieties she liked. I ordered bulbs andplanted them on two different dates, hopingthat enough would bloom at the right time.Then I started wondering about how thefl owers would be delivered to the chapel 50miles away and who would arrange them.I knew I wouldn’t have the time, skills, orvases to do this. I asked my friend whethershe had someone to arrange the fl owers.She hadn’t thought about that yet, but proceededto fi nd a fl oral arranger, anotheryoung woman I had met at the farmers’market. What a relief. That left me withnothing to do but to keep hoping the fl owerswould bloom at the right time and deliverthem to the farmers’ market, where thearranger would pick them up. I expressedmy concern about the lilies being in bloomat the right time to the floral arranger.She assured me that she could get themfrom a wholesaler any time of the year.More relief.www.attra.ncat.orgInternetIn the past decade,the Internet hasbecome an importantmarketing tool. TheInternet allows growersto reach customersthat they couldnot have reached inother ways withoutconsiderable expense.More than 6 percentof all Internet transactionsinvolve flowersales. (Carter, 2004)Simple e-mail messages can be used toinform and educate customers, let themknow what is available and when, and buildrelationships. E-mail can also be used totake orders. Third-party Web sites, whichoffer a template for you to use to list yourfarm and products at no or low cost, areanother way to inform and educate.Building your own Web site is a big step,but it may be an excellent way to increaseyour markets. The Thiessen family farm inOntario began accepting Internet orders forfl owers in 1996. The family has 30 acresof apples and offers wagon rides, a cornmaze, and PYO apples. They say, however,the Internet sale of fl owers has generatedthe most profi t for the farm and kept it inbusiness. Sales have grown to the pointthat other growers, one in Connecticut andthree in California, have joined the effortas suppliers, with Thiessen supplying about40 percent. The products can be seen atthe Web site www.GrowerFlowers.com.(Carter, 2004)Related Products andAdded ValueDepending on your market, you may beable to increase your income with relatedproducts.•Posted to ASCFG Forum on how to chooseflowers suitable for weddings, by FarmhouseFlowers & Plants (Dave Dowling), on June29, 2004:I picked lisianthus yesterday and tossed a badflower on the ground. Today the leaves havewilted, but the flower still looks fine. You can doa test on any of the other flowers you are thinkingof using. Pick a couple of each variety, cut thestems to about 2 inches, and leave them lying onthe table. See what still looks good after a couplehours and again at the end of the day. Thoseshould be OK to use. Also think about crush-abilityof the flowers. If Grandma gets hugs all day,you don’t want her corsage to look like it wasstomped on by the grandchildren.Bulbs. Daffodils, tuberoses, and crocosmiaare a few that multiply andneed to be divided occasionally. Ifyou have earned a reputation amongother gardeners for your beautifuland unusual fl owers, they will beATTRAPage 9