Search results for: 'ARM'

Stephanie Hall is part of a growing trend in the florist trade to source flowers locally and in season. Her farm in North Carolina, Sassafras Fork Farm, has a two- acre plot dedicated to approximately 70 different varieties of cut flowers. Says Hall about the farmer-florist movement, "It's a stark contrast to the conventionally grown, imported flowers of the commercial floral trade."  Stephanie grew up in Chapel Hill, the daughter of a UNC professor.  In 2011, she and her (just retired) father deci...

I met Jennifer and her husband Hans of Six Dutchess Farm at our local Pawling Farmers Market in the Hudson Valley, NY.  On display, and for sale, are some of the most gorgeous bunches of flowers I’ve ever seen. They also have a CSA pick up there every Saturday from June through September. What’s also on display, but not as visible, is the farming ethos they practice.  Call it regenerative or restorative agriculture, where you give back more to the land than you take. The idea is that the connective...

Mother nature can be quite unpredictable to say the least. Sometimes in early Spring after bulbs have emerged from the ground and are beginning to flower, a sudden cold snap will bring temperatures down below freezing for a few days.  I always wonder what will happen to those delicate plants when temperatures fall so unexpectedly.  More often than not, I'm amazed at the resiliency of these hardy plants. [caption id="attachment_975" align="alignright" width="210" caption="Yellow Tulips"][/caption] ...

Growing up in Colorado Chelsea Willis’ mother would tell her “get your hands in the dirt. It grounds you.”  Chelsea recognized the wisdom of these words at a young age, and never forgot them. After completing a degree in somatic psychology, a discipline that focuses on processing trauma through movement (body-based therapy rather than talk therapy), Chelsea moved to Oregon and began working with teens who had been incarcerated and were transitioning to semi-independent living. She was also doin...

Natasha Bowens Blair didn’t believe you could grow plants in a meaningful way that weren’t edible or medicinal until she experienced the joy of growing and arranging flowers at Native Mountain Farm outside of Frederick, Maryland. The farm, situated on a lush piece of landscape at the base of South Mountain in Boonsboro, is operated by Natasha and her mother-in-law Julie Blair on land Julie and her late husband Billy purchased 32 years ago. [caption id="attachment_3868" align="alignleft" width="207...