Reflections on 2018

Reflections on 2018

This past year has been a year of learning and building for the future at STILL WATERS FARM AND GARDENS. We began the year attending a Flower Farming conference in Virginia and a Grower’s school in Ohio. We also attended the 30th Anniversary ASCFG Conference in Raleigh, NC.  Not only did we have the chance to learn from experts in the field (literally the flower fields), but these events were a great opportunity to network and build relationships with fellow flower farmers from around the country. The added benefit for us in attending these events this year was that they coincided with a birthday and anniversary making them even more memorable.

Over the past year on the farm, we experienced success growing snapdragons, larkspur, bells of Ireland, bachelor buttons, rudbeckia, zinnias, gomphrena, strawflowers, sunflowers, dahlias, chrysanthemums, and lavender to name a few. We sold our flowers to several local businesses as well as at our roadside Farm Stand featuring an attractively decorated Flower Wagon.  

One area we focused on this year was edible flowers. We researched how different varieties of edible flowers can be used to decorate, garnish and flavor many types of dishes, soups and desserts. We are planning to continue exploring culinary uses of these beautiful flowers.  

As mentioned earlier, we also decided to invest for the future, which included a 5 foot rotary tiller attachment for the tractor. This time saving implement has allowed us to prepare new beds much quicker and turn over existing beds in a shorter time.

We learned much in 2018 and now are eager to apply these principles in 2019.

STILL WATERS FARM AND GARDENS Flower Wagon