The Business of Selling Flowers is For Sale!

When we started working together to teach other flower farmers, we really had no idea that we’d end up with a successful online teaching business. It’s been 7 years well spent, collaborating and sharing, working with growers to help them become more efficient, productive and profitable. We’re very proud of what we’ve achieved and the positive impact we’ve had on the availability and quality of locally grown flowers.

The time has come for change however. Carol and Paula are restructuring their flower farm businesses to account for changes in their personal lives and Claire has other projects she wants to develop. Support for our current students continues until August 2024, but our business partnership will cease in March 2024, although our friendship is lifelong and we’ll be messaging each other about plants forever!

So, what’s going to happen to The Business of Selling Flowers?

After discussing the options at length, we’ve decided to sell the business. It would be a shame for the learning and approach we’ve developed to just cease, so we’re hoping that an individual, a new partnership or grouping, will look at what we’ve created and want to take it further. The flower farming community is vibrant, forward thinking and progressive, with huge scope for learning and development. We’d love The Business of Selling Flowers to continue to be part of the landscape of flower farming for years to come.

What is for sale?

‘The Business of Selling Flowers’

Name, brand and current associated activity, which includes the following courses that are run by The Business of Selling Flowers

1. Introduction to Flower Farming – launched 2020, updated 2023

2. The Business of Growing Flowers – launched 2017, updated 2023

3. Rose Growing for Cut Flowers – launched 2018, updated 2023

4. Perennials for Cut Flowers – launched 2021

If you’re interested in taking on The Business of Selling Flowers, and would like more detailed information, contact us by email for a full prospectus of information, assets and financial info

carolclairepaula@thebusinessofsellingflowers.com

Reviewing and Roguing Your Dahlias

The peachy aisle!

Have all your dahlias done what was required of them?

Were they the right colours? where they what you expected? Did they last in the rain, or did they turn to mush?

A good mix of whites

I noticed that one variety had brown markings as a result of the rain, but the other was fine. So….suddenly the non-marking one is the better variety. Otherwise they are equally productive, similar size and usability. Given that we’re likely to get rain in September in most years, I need to make sure that I keep the better one, and propagate more of that one, and get rid of the browning one. September is the perfect time to review your dahlias - decide which plants to get rid of, which to propagate from. 

Brown markings on petals - this was the worst one, but all on this variety

I use a label code system to mark the plants. I know they have a cultivar label, but it’s not always easy to find until I come to cut down or lift them. So, to be easy, I have some coloured labels - Red for get rid, Green for best ones that I want to propagate from; blue for ok - keep, but not the best examples. This means I can easily go through them and push in a label at the base of each plant. Then when I come to cut down or lift them, I know which to keep in a ‘propagate’ box and which to chuck out.

I’ll also be marking some to collect seed from, by tying a piece of ribbon round the heads I'm keeping so I don't snip them off. See Paula’s earlier blog to read more about how she does this.

Why get rid of any? A few reason:

1. Just poor examples - even plants of the same variety can be very variable. I have selected the best examples over many years, and I've got good sturdy plants that do well in my conditions, and with a flower form and colour that I like. They may not be true to type, but if I like them, then that’s more important to me - I'm growing them to to use, not to show. For example, we all know Wine Eyed Jill can vary from lilac to yellow. I’ve just kept the ones that stayed the best colour for me, in my conditions, and got rid of the ones which I didn't like. The white dahlias which turned brown in the rain will be in this category.

2. Ones I didn't plant and don't want - either I’ve been sent the wrong variety or some tubers were accidentally left in the ground and have come through winter, or wrongly labelled last year and I’ve carefully lifted, stored and planted the wrong plants.

3. Disease - I will get rid of any plants which aren't thriving. If they're not thriving now, they are unlikely to improve next year. In particular, I look out for yellow mottled leaves which is likely to be a sign of virus and take these out straight away and burn them. Also any showing signs of gall.

4. Lastly, and perhaps most difficult - the varieties that I haven't sold, or aren't productive enough, or too short stemmed or whatever. Even if I like them.

Mottled leaves looking suspiciously like virus

Finally, I do a plan for next year. How many do I want to have of each variety, and what gaps or missed opportunities that I want to fill - for particular shapes/size/colour.  That’s where the fun starts!

I’ve sold all of this variety…

Which ones are you your list to stay and be propagated, and which ones will go? - Let us know over on Social media

Attrition V Wastage

What if every seed grew perfectly?

For a flower farmer, the ideal would be that everything that you planted would grow, there would be no weather events that destroyed anything, no pest or disease to stop your plants getting to full size and health and you’d sell everything that it produced.

I’m sure that there’s some snorting with laughter happening out there as you read that sentence, because it’s one of those “if only” situations!

BUT, how can you take into account in advance what might be happening to make your equation fail, and what can you do about it?.

First you need to know what Attrition and Wastage are.

Attrition is everything that stops a plant getting to the point where it might make a harvestable crop.

It could be Pest and Disease, Growing conditions or Poor seeds or plants, or Lack of experience, concentration.

Perfect seedlings being given the right amount of light, water, and growing medium.

Wastage is what happens when a flower gets to the point where it is harvestable, but it doesn’t make it off the farm

it could be Poor Quality, Lack of orders, or you may have grown too much, of the wrong thing for the wrong customers

A whole row of Ageratum produces a lot of stems each week. If they don’t all get sold, they are wastage.

Both Attrition and Wastage are bad. They are energy drainers/ time wasters, and they make your work hard, without giving you an end result.

Growing more flowers with less work is the holy grail of flower farming. Making sure you have the right plants for your customers, and that you know what those customer want and how many stems they need from you is the core or our Business of Growing flowers course.

You’ve now got just one more week to sign up, - Registration for the last run of this course with Claire Brown, Carol Siddorn and Paula Baxter closes next Saturday 30th September. - If you want to see what’s included , pop over to our course information here. If you’d like to see the timetable for the modules and therir live zoom calls, do have a look here. If you want to ask any questions to check if this course would be right for you, do email CarolClairePaula@thebusinessofsellingflowers.com

5 Annual Flowers to keep your Buckets Full in Autumn

Vibrant rudbeckia, shaking off an autumn rain shower

It’s the time of year when annual flowering plants can often start to tail off, die off & give up, just when late season orders pick up and autumn weddings loom on the horizon. It’s at this point in the year when half hardy annuals are really invaluable. Half hardy annuals generally have to be sown in late April/May to prevent losses to late frosts and they come into bloom later too.

Here’s our top 5 Half Hardy annuals, the ones that are still filling our buckets in September:

1. Cosmos - the ultimate autumn cut and come again bloom. The more you pick, the more it flowers. There are some great varieties in a bigger range of colours to keep you going all autumn. Try Apricotta or Tango for unusual colours and Cupcakes or Bonbon ranges for different shapes.

2. Aster - we’re talking about the China aster (Callistephus chinensis) here, not the perennial aster. Good sized heads in a huge range of colours make this bloom a star of September bouquets. It gives 4-6 blooms per plant so doesn’t have the longevity of cosmos, but the colours and forms are brilliant! Try the chrysanth flowered varieties and peachy apricot colours, they’re always a winner for us.

3. Rudbeckia - in rich colours that fit right into autumn colour schemes, rudbeckia is another cut and come again star. Sturdy and unbothered by rain, rudbeckia just keeps on going. Sahara is a double variety with a softer colour range and Gloriosa Daisy has tall blooms with lots of burgundy markings.

4. Tagetes - African Marigold bring scent as well as drama in the autumn. Not to be confused with French Marigolds, which are too short to be useful for most flower farmers, African Marigolds (Tagetes erecta) grow on long slim stems. They’re available as focal blooms and also with smaller, more delicate heads. Fantastic Mix is as it says, a fantastic mix of large headed tagetes, Kilimanjaro has creamy flowers, Burning Embers is a gorgeous, rich red and Starfire has sprays of delicate smaller heads.

5. Zinnia - not always the easiest to grow in a UK climate, so they may need some protection, but zinnia can provide a welcome harvest in a broad range of colours and sizes. The whites can be a bit off-white sometimes. Zinderella and Queen Red Lime go with most other colours and there are lots of bright mixes on the market too.

Switching Banks for a Greener Tomorrow: Our Journey Away from Fossil Fuel Support

As flower farmers, we’re all eco-conscious, and try hard to be sustainable, but have you thought about your bank account? - Here’s the story of our The Business of Growing Flowers partnership money.

Back in 2020, when we formed our Partnership, as well as updating the course, we had a list of all the boring admin bits we needed to do. One of those things was set up a bank account. At the time during the pandemic, the only bank that was taking on new partnership accounts was HSBC. We needed somewhere to bank our course fees, so with a great deal of faff, we set it up. Mostly at that time we were concentrating on whether the 3 of us could access it via the internet, rather than us having to be in a physical bank.

However as time passed, and our environmental awareness grew, we began to question our decision. A lttle research into our chosen bank revealed a not - so- rosy picture. It turned out that our hard earned money was indirectly supporting activities that went against our ethos, including funding fossil fuel projects.

Our Business of Selling flowers partnership stands for quality, integrity and transparent information, something that none of the big banks are sharing. An article in Ethical Consumer magazine in 2021 was the final straw, and we set about to make a change - a change that wasn’t just about swapping banks but making a statement.

So why does changing banks matter so much in the grand scheme of things?

Shifting financial institutions holds the potential to be 21 times more effective in advancing environmental causes compared to focusing on other individual actions (like going vegan or driving less or taking no flights) This assertion is grounded in the economic reality that banks are attentive to customer behaviour - especially when it involves a substantial number of customers reallocating their assets due to ethical concerns.

The other banks that the Ethical Consumer report warned against were Barclays (who also had the joint lowest score with HSBC) , NatWest, RBS and Ulster bank. Santander and Cater Allen and Coutts were also in their Red warning level.

So we looked for an account which better followed our values, and our account is now with The Cooperative Bank. We closed our account with HSBC, and sent them a message about why were were closing it - no reply, but we’re hoping the message got through.

By shifting our account to a bank that’s all about green initiatives and ethical investments, we’re sending a powerful message. We’re telling the world that we refuse to be passive supporters of industries that harm our planet, while we as flower farmers are trying to encourage customers to take the low carbon choice. We’re putting outrmoney where our hearts are - investing in a future where renewable energy, sustainablity and a clean environment take centre stage.

Our journey from choosing whatever bank came first through to thoughtfully aligning our finances with our values and has been eye-opening. It’s a small step, but with the world having it’s hottest July on record, we can feel we’ve taken some climate action.

So whether you’re an individual, a sole trader, a partnership or a registered company, please do remember that your choice of bank can be a catalyst for change. Let’s make a difference - one bank transfer at a time!

There’s more information about Green banking in this Ethical Consumer report

There are now Apps that help you to change bank accounts (more personal than business ) like SwitchitGreen

10 Tips to make your Growing Business More Profitable

If you weren’t able to get a place on our free Live Zoom last night, or see us in person at the Flowers from the Farm conference in January, here’s a summary of our 10 Tips to make your Growing Business More Profitable.

We focus on profitability in all our courses because it’s the key to sustainability. If we can’t make a living from growing cut flowers, it’s not sustainable. We need lots more growers producing quality blooms for sale to maintain a vibrant and viable local cut flower industry.

Here’s our 10 Tips to make your Growing Business More Profitable

1. Grow for Your Customers

   Make sure you grow the flowers that your customers need. A few blooms will be useful across the board, but a lot will be more suitable for particular markets. For example, poppies are great cut flowers for events and weddings but less so for market bouquets.

2. Right Plant, Right Place

   Grow what grows best where you are. Paula is the only one of the 3 of us who can grow lupins well. They like her deep, damp soil and thrive, providing buckets of fabulous blooms over 6-8 weeks in early summer. They need no irrigation or special care. Carol has a few but they need watering and don’t produce the same quantities of stems. Claire has dry clay soil so can’t grow them at all. She can grow amazing sedums though. Find out what grows well where you are, on your soil and in your climate, and you’ll produce good quality flowers with little effort, more profitably.

3. GRow mulitpurpose plants

   If a stem is useful as cut foliage, flower, dried and as a seedhead, you have 4 chances to cut and use it and it’s unlikely to be wasted. Achillea can be cut fresh or dried and also stands for a long time on the plant, making it more usable as it doesn’t go over before you have the chance to cut it.

4. Stop Wasting Your Time!

   What do you do that fritters away time? Do you spend 20 minutes looking for the tools you need before you can start working? Are you forever walking around things to get to where you need to go? Do you walk up and down the field with a single bucket to cut an order? There are lots of ways to waste time and that might be OK if you’re just growing a few flowers for the house, but when it’s your business, efficiency increases productivity. The less time you waste, the more effort you can put into producing great flowers. And you’ll also have some energy left at the end of the day to have a life!

5. Look After Yourself

   If you’re ill or injured you won’t be able to work for your business and you’ll have to turn down orders or pay someone to do your job. There are lots of things we all need to do to look after ourselves. An obvious and straightforward one is to use the correct safety equipment when using tools. Eye protection, ear defenders, safety helmets and workboots are all as essential as seed packets and watering cans if you’re a flower farmer. Use them!

6. Price it right

   Make sure that you’re charging the right price for your work. It selling flowers doesn’t make a profit, you won’t be able to make a living and your business will be unsustainable. It can be a challenge to get pricing right, but it’s worth the effort (Claire does a great course!). If you sell too cheaply, you’ll undercut other growers and impact on their businesses too - unlike TV shows, in the real world small businesses work together and support each other.

7. Understand what profit is

   You might have a great income and take lots of money for your flowers, but if your costs are high your profit will be low. Do you include your car mileage for deliveries? Have you worked out a percentage of your household bills if you work from home? It’s easy to think we’re making a profit, make sure you actually know it!

8. Sell All your flowers

   A successful flower farm has an empty field and a full bank balance! If you put money, time and effort into growing fantastic flowers, also work at making sure they’re all sold at the end of the week.

9. Get help

   It can be counterintuitive to pay extra for help to be able to make more money, but if it’s done carefully it does work that way. Cutting flowers is where we all started to pay for freelance help. It has to be done in a defined period of time, often on a specific day and one person can’t physically cut more than a certain amount. Getting help with cutting means you can accept more orders and be able to sell ALL your flowers (see Tip no 8!).

10. Make it Your business

    Your business needs to work with your life. It doesn’t have to look like anyone else’s business, serve the same sorts of customers or grow the same flowers. We’re fond of saying that there’s no blueprint for a successful flower farm, and it really is true. Make your flower farm YOUR business, with your own aims and values in mind, growing flowers you love, enjoy it and it’s got the best chance of success!

This is just a flavour of the information, guidance and support available in The Business of Growing Flowers online learning programme, but it will give you an idea of our approach and philosophy. Our aim is always to support other growers to build their own businesses and provide high quality flowers and foliage for their local market. This is the final time we’ll be running The Business of Growing Flowers, our lives are changing and our own businesses are adapting too.

For more information on The Business of Growing Flowers, press the button below

The Business of Growing Flowers course : What's the timeline for our course this winter

Tomorrow morning the booking opens for the Business of Flowers 5th and final year of our

The Business of Growing Flowers learning programme (TBOGF)

Hosted by Claire Brown, Carol Siddorn and Paula Baxter, this online programme is designed by us, three full time flower farmers in the UK who are constantly evolving their businesses to provide a sustainable income and to suit their lives.

Flower farming is hard work and over the years we’ve worked together sharing techniques and strategies to help our productivity, efficiency and quality, without sacrificing our quality of life. We’re keen to help other growers to work in a thoughtful way, developing businesses that grow quality flowers, and also sell them at a profit!

So what does this programme cover and what is the timeline for learning this Autumn /Winter season.

• Our first module starts on the 1st of September, and we’ll be covering Autumn planning and preparation. - Yes, we cover the flowers you can sow and grow in September for next year, plus propagation that can be done in Autumn, but we also look at plot planning, infrastructure and mulching, to get you ahead for the spring. - Our Zoom call for this module will be on Thursday 28th September at 8.00pm

• Our 2nd module is the first half of October, and is the all important topic of Market Planning. - Unless you know who your customers are, you won’t know what to grow for them. We’ll talk about the different markets you can sell to, growing what your customers need, and planning the planting quantities. We also talk about getting the balance of customers right for you life. - Our Zoom call for this module will be Monday 16th October at 8.00

• Our 3rd topic for the 2nd half of October is Growing More Flowers with Less Work. The 3 of us have been working really hard at this over the last few years, and we’ll talk about plot layout, reducing waste, doing less work, the tools needed, and protected cropping. The zoom call will be on Thursday 2nd November at 8pm

• The 4th Module will take place in November is and titled What to Grow - We’ll work more on the information we looked at in market planning, and talk about colour and trends, choosing plants that you can grow and finding the suppliers you need to get the right seeds, bulbs and plants. The zoom will be on Monday 20th November 8pm

• Module 5 is our December topic, and we talk about Managing Customers and Suppliers. The all important Terms and Conditions, how you work with your customers, suppliers and collaborators to get the best business results and behaviours. We also deal with feedback and complaints, and collecting data from your customers. Our zoom will be on Thursday 7th December at 8pm

• In January we’ll start the new year with the topic of Making Yourself More Productive. We’ll look at how you work with stress and how to keep to targets, we’ll look at optimising your productivity and training and growing with your business. We’ll also look at the all important topic of getting help when you need it, and the zoom for module 6 will be on Thursday 11th January at 8pm

• The second module in January will be looking at Record Keeping. An oh so important topic, and we’ll look at all the methods that can be used, and what records you need to keep. The Zoom call for module 7 will be Monday 22nd January at 8pm

• Module 8 is Growing Techniques to make you Profitable, and we’ll look in more detail at propagation, propagators and lights, and saving seed. The Zoom for this module is Monday 1st Feb at 8pm

• Planning for the future is the topic for February, looking at the sustainability of your business, and future proofing and succession planning. We’ll have a zoom call for module 9 on Monday 26th Feb at 8pm

• Our final module 10th module is in March and is a separate Cutting and conditioning module. We’ll give you photos, videos, tips and techniques to make sure your flowers are cut at the correct time, and displayed to ensure your customers see their value and worth. We’ll have our final zoom call on Thursday 14th March.

There will be support in our Facebook group, and by regular email newsletters through the season, with the course support ending on the 31st August 2024

If you have at least a season of testing your flower growing and want to do more, more efficiently and to make a profit, then The Business of Growing Flowers is for you! It will provide you with the tools, techniques and support to go into the 2024 season knowing how to get the most from your farm and yourself without working more hours., to make a profitable business, and also have time to have a life!