2023 Issue 4 Jul/Aug Focus - Mid-South Magazine

In early June, I left
Midtown and ventured
out to Bartlett to visit
Angie Arnold at her newly
established flower farm.
The farm sits on three
acres of property that was
a dairy farm at the turn
of the century and, along
with the home she shares
with her partner and son,
includes a large silo and a
repurposed barn and pump
house. Gardening since
she was in her twenties,
Angie has only been
operating Flower Friend
Farms since last spring and
is slowly expanding. Upon
entering the garden, there
is a tangle of blackberries
and raspberries that have
enveloped the chain
link fence, then rows of
deliciously sweet sunripened
blueberries pop
into view. I’ll stop here to
say that the raspberry I
tasted during my tour was
the most raspberry-tasting
raspberry I’ve ever had,
the most delicious candy.
(Sorry folks, none of the
food grown at the farm is
currently available to the
public!) What begins next is
the vast array of rows and
rows of colorful flowers:
gladioli, lilies, roses, dahlias,
heirloom mums, zinnias,
liatris, figwort, blushing
lanterns, vervain, marigolds,
hydrangea and so much
more.
Growing has its many
challenges. Inhospitable
city ordinances and
unpredictable weather
(which most likely will
continue to worsen as
climate change progresses),
can ruin or delay growing
seasons and farming
practices. This year, for
example, spring came early
encouraging young buds
and new growth that late
frosts subsequently killed.
Arnold lost plums, peaches,
blueberries, and apples,
among others. And as many
gardeners and home owners
can attest, the extreme
weather of last year—the
summertime drought
followed by extreme
and prolonged freezing
temperatures in winter—
killed or damaged many
trees, shrubs, and perennials
around town. I, for one,
haven’t seen a single fig tree
that emerged unscathed
(or even alive) and the list of
beloved plants lost (azaleas,
camellias, tropical milkweed,
etc.) goes on and on. It’s
important to note here that
native plants fare the best
in this extreme weather and
will continue to be more
robust than exotic or tropical
species in the face of this
new normal. The questions
that Angie is already asking
herself—“How do I deal with
this unpredictability? Do I
select for heartier crops?
Or later blooming ones?”—
are questions that all of us
will eventually be asking
ourselves.
While the Bartlett
operation is still quite
modest and mainly focuses
on selling quality cut
flowers to local florists
and event planners—such
as Everbloom Design on
Broad Ave. and Snapdragon
Floral out East—Arnold
has plans to eventually
acquire a second property
to grow annuals exclusively
so that she can continue to
expand and focus on her
perennial operations at the
original site. Additionally,
a recently installed walkin
cooler in the old pump
house will allow the farm
to keep and store flowers
for much longer. Angie has
also become a member
of the Memphis Flower
Collective, a recently
organized group that builds
direct connection and
relationships between local
flower farmers and florists.
Wondering what you can
do to support growers like
Flower Friend Farms? Buy
locally-grown flowers from
florists. Ask for them! Look
for them! Like Angie says:
“Your flowers should be
grown by people who love
them.” As I’m sitting down
to type this, the lilies she
gifted me have opened and
are filling the room with the
most fragrant smell, made
all the sweeter by knowing
they were grown right here,
with love, in Memphis, TN.
Find Angie on Instagram
at @flowerfriendfarms or her
website flowerfriend.farm.
JUL+AUG 2023 | focuslgbt.com | Memphis Green 17