Updated January 19, 2024

As a floral designer and flower farmer sometimes I’m asked, “Why don’t you just buy your flowers like other florists? Why do you bother with the trouble of growing your own?"

My answer is simply:

Because I care where things come from. I care about where my money goes and what industries I support with my spending. I care about the impact I have on this planet and future generations to come after me. I care about making a difference and I truly believe I can make a difference with my own-grown, organic flowers.

flowers from the store carry a lot of ugly baggage

The traditional floral industry, as we know it today, is damaging to both the earth and the humans that work in the greenhouses and fields. The majority of flowers that are sold in grocery stores (available to you, the Consumer at retail pricing) and Floral Wholesalers (available to Florists at wholesale pricing) have been grown halfway across the world, causing harm on multiple levels.

Flowers are flown in planes overseas and then driven across the country using massive amounts of petroleum to be delivered to grocery stores and flower shops. Most of these flowers have been grown using chemicals so bad they’ve been banned in the United States. These harsh chemicals cause serious harm to the growers who, more often than not, are working too-long hours for not enough pay.

Most flowers are completely covered in chemicals to prevent the transmission of diseases from other countries, and to prevent rotting during transit. The health of our planet, along with OUR health, is much less important to those who run this nasty flower business than their profits.

FYI, that last Rose you sniffed… it was dipped in a toxic, fungicidal soup before it was packed up in plastic and cardboard to be shipped to your local grocery store.

you can choose to support a different flower supply chain

Without going any deeper, I want to make a succinct point. When you’re aware of these issues, and you continue to buy these flowers, you support the chemical companies with your dollars. By buying these flowers, you say: Yes, I’m okay with all the natural resources that were wasted to get these flowers into my home. Your money says: Yes, I support this industry and I want this to continue to be the norm for flowers in my grocery store.

Whether or not you mean it, your money is supporting an unsustainable system that is causing great harm to humans and our planet.

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buy flowers from a local flower farm near you

Though not all small flower farmers have the same values (some do use harmful chemical sprays to control diseases and bugs), the solid majority of us are what I consider “Open Land Conservationists.” We take care of the land and ecosystems by planting a diversity of plant life. We prevent harmful development from occurring. We build wildlife and pollinator habitats, all the while, producing the most gorgeous, fresh flowers you could never find at your local grocer (unless you shop at a grocery store that does supply local flowers — some Dash’s and Lexington Co-Op grocery stores actually do in Western New York… bravo!)

As a flower farmer, I work hard to produce beautiful blooms and foliage because I believe in earth- and human-loving work. I believe that if I put myself and my earth-centered values fully into this work, then other people will see that value reflected in themselves, too. That people might become aware of the impact they can have by supporting small businesses with earth- and human-loving values. That people may realize our fresh goods (food, flowers) shouldn’t come in excessive packaging and doused with chemicals. People like me are doing this work, in part, to challenge the status quo.

You have the power as a Consumer to put your dollars toward whatever you want. Will you continue to support the dirty, earth-damaging global floral business (grocery store flowers, online flowers from Costco, etc) or will you choose to support a local, organic, earth-hugging farm that is dedicated to having a positive impact on your community and local ecology/economy?

The choice is yours to make.

how you can find and support local flower farmers

How do you find a flower farm near you, to buy flowers? There is a wonderful website for that: LocalFlowers.org/Find-Flowers

LocalFlowers.org is run by the Association for Specialty Cut Flower Growers (ASCFG) which is the cut flower growers’ membership association of the world. Any flower farmer who is a member of ASCFG will be on this map. Each flower farm has a profile with their website, contact information, and a description of the services they provide (detail of info is dependent on how the farmer filled out their profile).

Visit the LocalFlowers.org Find Flowers Map to see how many flower farmers are selling flowers near you — I bet you will be surprised to find there is at least one or two within a reasonable distance from you!

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how you can buy flowers from heirloom soul florals

If you are in Western New York and want to support a local flower farmer, we offer the following options for people to purchase our flowers, goods, and stay in the loop: