BttttftaMar Farmlno, Saturday, Frtfuiry 14,1998
LOU ANN GOOD
Lancaster Fanning Staff
HERSHEY (Dauphin Co.)
It’s possible to sell $20,000 to
$28,000 an acre by growing flow
ers, according to Thomas Ford,
Fulton County extension agent
At the State Horticultural Asso
ciation held recently in Hershey,
Ford offered pointers to growers
on how to succeed in producing
and marketing field-grown fresh
flowers. *•
“The key is to grow stuff that is
different” he said. “New combina
tions and colors attract customers.
To find out what colors will sell,
read current magazines to find out
what colors are popular.”
From past experience. Ford has
found that almost anything colored
blue and spike flowers are in
demand.
“Dare to be different,” he said.
Orienta! eggplant foliage had
popular appeal for one grower. At
the same time, Ford cautioned
growers not to put too much
ground into exotic plants.
Flower marketing is a growing
business. In 1980, the Dutch said
that the U.S. was the most under
developed market for flowers in
the world. At that time, statistics
showed that Hollanders annually
purchased 103 stems per capita;
Germany, 43 stems per capita;
Great Britain, 29 stems per capita:
and the U.S. market fell far behind.
Wlldfiowers can be cultivated for the cut flower market.
Flower Fields Is
Blooming
(Continued from Pago B 2)
menl with a greenhouse that will
grow whatever she wants.
Call said that her background
had well prepared her for her voca
tion. Although the family moved
frequently, they followed a lifes
tyle of self-sufficient farming.
“We were poor and often didn’t
have enough to eat We learned to
make food out of nothing and
make do with whatever we had.
This concept has carried over
into her business. Unlike many
florists who think every bloom
must be perfect in size and shape,
she said, “I don’t waste anything. I
pick everything and sell it People
love it They don’t care if some of
the blooms are undersized in a
bouquet”
Her operation has been so suc
cessful that she sells all her flowers
within 24 hours.
She sells basket arrangements to
gift shops. The flowers in basket
Plan Now For Profitable Flower Harvest
In 1980, the Dutch spearheaded
an agressive campaign to sell gar
den and cut flowers to the U.S.
They made inroads into enticing
Americans to purchase more flow
ers. However, flower growers in
America started their own agres
sive campaign with the confidence
that they could grow the same
flowers that were being imported.
Strict quarantine laws also work
to local growers advantages.
According to Ford, “From 30-40
percent of all imported Dutch
flowers are destroyed because of
sand contamination.”
More and more Americans are
purchasing cut flowers on a regular
basis. To capitalize on this grow
ing trend. Ford encouraged grow
ers to be aggressive when
approaching florists, supermark
ets, and other outlets for flowers.
Ford encouraged small growers
to look at unusual markets such as
restaurants, garden centers, and
tourism.
White tablecloth restaurants
need bud vases filled.
Another marketing technique
that is growing in popularity is
pick-your-own-bouquets. To
decrease the danger of customers
trampling blooms, beds should be
planted four feet wide and 200 feel
in length for this type of operation.
This concept is also popular at
farmers markets where customers
can select blooms from containers
Success
arrangements are those that dry in
die basket
Call studied at New York State
Agriculture College and Cornell
University in New Yak.
Call admits to not liking to pam
per flowers. This can be avoided
by starting flowers properly to
reduce labor and problems later
on.
She lays black plastic and straw
between rows and uses trickle irri
gation to feed with nitrogen. She
uses lots of mulch and rotted man
ure, and sprays with Roundup
herbicide.
Call purchased an used walk-in
cooler for $7OO. She recommends
that growers who want to purchase
coders consider used ones, which
are often ideal for flowers although
they may not maintain even
enough temperatures for food.
Since she began her business.
Call has doubled the bom size and
is in need of doing so again.
filled with flowers. Prices can be
set by charging by the stem or by
the bunch.
“The trend is that consumers
want guarantees that flowers will
last from seven to 10 days. They
want no risk,” Ford emphasized.
“No matter where you live—
your product is fresher than those
being shipped in from other coun
tries,” he said.
However, growers have learned
the hard way that being fresher
does not necessarily guarantee that
flowers will last longer. Improper
harvesting can ruin the most beaut
iful blooms.
“Quality is not negotiable,"
Ford stressed.
Irrigation and weed control
must be maintained. When stems
reach 8-10-inches, they need some
type of support
Ford said to harvest early each
morning and transport to the water
cooler as soon as possible. (Check
Nellie Call’s method in another
feature in this section).
Water quality is important after
the flowers are picked. Alkaline
water reduces vase-life. Alkaline
water can be acidified by adding
citric acid. A pool pH kit can be
used to check water alkaline
levels.
Flowers do well in water with
added sugar and citric acid. To pre
vent microbial growth, use an
acidic solution and maintain temp
eratures 0f33-38 degrees and rela
tive humidy of 80 percent Recut
stems undo 1 water.
In preparing flowers for market,
know the flowers. Some blooms
must be shipped upright, such as
snapdragons and most spike flow
ers. Stems will cur! up if the flow
ers are transplanted on the side.
Ford said that the biggest mis
take growers make is to think that
they are going to make a lot of
money from planting acres of
flowers. Then they plant 10 acres
in one or two varieties of flowers.
Not
LOU ANN GOOD
Lancaster Farming Staff
HERSHEY (Dauphin Co.)
Nancy Linvill Dole flicked
through slides of colorful dried
flowers at the Stale Horticultural
Association annual meeting held
recently. While this isn’t the sea
son to dry flowers, it is not too ear
ly for growers to be {dotting plans
for planting, harvesting, and
marketing.
Dole showed how Linvilla
Orchards, Inc. in Media used dried
flowers to their marketing
advantage.
The orchard got its start in dried
flowers 25 years ago when asked
to decorate for a downtown hotel.
The hotel was so pleased they
asked them to decorate for a
harvest show. The show was so
successful that Linvilla capitalized
on it The harvest show now draws
thousands who participate in hay
rides, in picking their own pump
kins, and other fall-related
activities.
Dole showed that simple touch
es such as twining bittersweet and
dried leaves with apples can make
a stunning display.
At first Linvilla gathered dried
flowers and weeds from the hedge
rows and fields to sell. They pre
served beech leaves by dipping
into a glycerine solution.
Linvilla dubbed the spot set
aside for marketing the dried
Herbs are used not only as seasonings but has delightful
additions to flower arrangements.
Unfortunately, it’s difficult to
market acres of the same type of
flowers. It’s better to grow 12 to IS
varieties to sell in bunches or by
the stem.
Potential growers must realize
that flowers are labor intensive and
should figure on spending 3-4
hours daily in picking flowers dur
ing the growing months.
Ford recommends starting by
growing one-fourth acre of flow
ers. Investment is small for this
type of operation. After a season or
two, growers can reevaluate
whether or not they want to expand
the business.
Dried Flowers
A Dying Business
materials the Weed, Pod, and
Posey Shop.
But the demand grew, and
plants could not be harvested
haphazardly from fence rows. For
a while the orchard tried growing
flowers for drying. But the time
consuming adventure proved cost
lier than importing flowers from
Australia. Africa and other
countries.
Linvilla changed the name of
the section that displays the dried
flowers to Hayloft Gift Shop,
reflecting the change in marketing
strategy to display the flowers with
gift items.
The most important factor in
marketing dried flowers, she said,
is “display, display, display.”
It may be as simple as a bunch of
baby’s breath in a crock or an ela
borate arrangement of imported
flowers, but the area must be eye
catching. Unusual blooms add
interest and focal points.
Old tables, cupboards, wagon
wheels, wooden wheel barrows
and an old window frame are
incorporated into displays.
Dole uses yards of fabric to cov
er tables and boxes on which to set
arrangements. The fabric adds col
or and texture that compliment the
arrangements. The fabric also can
be used to cover boxes on which to
build a multilevel display.
To keep costs low, Ford recom
mends using plastic for a green
house. Although it’s convenient to
have a walk-in cooler, you can use
a basement room with an oversized
air conditioner. Check into gov
ernment surplus sales for bargains
in purchasing a cooler.
Soil testing is recommended.
Generally soil should maintain fer
tility similar to that needed to grow
vegetable crops.
For more information on flower
{rowing, contact your county Penn
State Extension or call Ford at the
Fulton County Extension (717)
185-4111.
In addition, ribbon in all variet
ies, textures, and patterns are sold.
Linvilla has found it profitable
to offer classes by taking one flow
er arrangment and providing all the
materials and instructions to dupli
cate the arrangement While they
offer both morning and evening
classes, the evening classes are by
far the most popular.
Special events are held through
out the year that capitalize on
showcasing the dried flower
department One of these events is
a craft show. Grafters are carefully
selected with no dealers allowed.
Space is sold. At first Linvilla
feared that the craft show might
talrf. away from their own market
but they have found it works the
opposite.
“Some stands sell dried flowers,
but the show attracts a lot of craf
ters who will buy raw materials
from Linvilla for their projects,”
Dole said. “There is enough busi
ness to share. Sharing is good,” she
said.
Press releases about upcoming
events draw thousands of custom
ers. Linvilla asks for local fire
company volunteers to provide
parking services.
In Pennsylvania, a climate con
trolled drying room is a necessity.
Because light fades dried mater
ials, the displays must be
protected.