The Start of a New Year - The Subscription Shop is Open!

I hope that your 2022 has gotten off to a good and happy start. We have been enjoying some time with friends and family while the growing is slow-going.  For me, this is a time of reflection and for home projects that I don’t have time to do when the farm is in full swing.

Sign up at www.purpletuteur.com

We are ready to open the subscription shop for Early Spring and for Spring to Summer! Here is the link to the website: www.purpletuteur.com .  I will make a public announcement a few days after this email goes out. This gives our subscribers an opportunity to sign up first.

Fall will be opened up in June. Thanks to all who made our first offering a success iin 2020.

 I’ve had the opportunity to meet with several garden clubs and speak on various growing topics over the winter. It has been fun to meet some of you and others, and I look forward to meeting with two more groups in February.  Its great to know that the love of gardening is alive and well here in the Midlands of South Carolina!

Thanks to all of you who supported our bulb sales in the fall. If you got your ranunculus and anemones into the ground in the fall, you should be seeing the early signs of blooms, if not flowers. Ours have both started but are growing slowly during these cold days.

Photo: Becky Haggard

I always enjoy the photos that you send to me of your amaryllis and paperwhite bulbs. It does my heart good to know that you are enjoying them. They are such a ray of sunshine while we are indoors.  Our second-year bulbs are poised for the early spring subscriptions. I have been keeping them at 60F to keep them from blooming too early. It is time to turn the heat up to 70F so that they will have the temperatures they need to bloom.

We had such a warm fall that everything we planted to overwinter for spring has had a robust start. As a result, when the weather warms consistently, everything will pop! The extra green/larger plants make them more vulnerable to freezing so keeping them covered is critical. Our hoop house does the job for us.

The snow is a welcome sight for many of our cold-loving plants. We’re hoping this bodes well for great daffodils and peonies this year! We’ve added another 48 peonies this winter. It’s a big job to get them set up but we’ll be so glad to see them in bloom three years from now.

We will be a host farm again this year for the Richland County Ag+Art tour. This year, the dates are June 11th and 12th.  This is our annual open house and it is free to the public so come on out!

Thanks so much for all you do to support our farm. We are truly blessed.

Linda

Summer Farm Update

Cheyanne Goes Back to Clemson

With the students going back to school next week, it feels like summer should be over but we have 7 weeks left until fall!  Our intern, Cheyanne, headed back to Clemson for her final semester in Agriculture Education. We enjoyed having her work with us and the time flew. Since we’re a small operation, we were able to give her exposure to all aspects of flower production and sales. Her internship professor came to visit last week and gave her a big thumbs up on the experience. We’re looking forward to seeing what she does after she completes her degree!

Our Late Summer to Fall Subscription is Available to Order on the Website!

New this year, we are offering a 5-week subscription starting August 24th and wrapping up by October 15th. Our newest subscription offering brings fall flowers to your door, including dahlias, sunflowers, marigolds and more. Late season dahlias will add beautiful color to your bouquets and with a 4-5 day dahlia vase life, a weekly delivery will keep you in fresh flowers for the season. Our delivery window is 8 weeks so that, in case you need to skip a week, we can accommodate and still complete all deliveries by October 15th. We are offering a small number of subscriptions, so if you are interested, please sign up asap. We don’t want you to be disappointed. Here’s the link to more information: https://www.purpletuteur.com/subscription-information

New Classes at the Farm

We are also excited to be able to offer some classes this September.

September 4th - Making Garden Style Bouquets – Come with a friend to learn the basics of how to make a spiral bouquet to take home using flowers from the farm.  

September 11 - Growing Dahlias – Learn to grow these flowers in your home garden (or in a pot on a patio or a balcony). We will cover the specifics of growing them in our hot and humid environment.

You can find out more athttps://www.purpletuteur.com/aboutourclasses

Spring Bulb Sale

We will have amaryllis and paperwhites again this year. Some of you have requested other spring flowering bulbs so we are going to offer additional things that we can grow in our area – daffodils, iris , hyacinths, anemone and ranunculus are included. We will add these to our website shop by early November. Stay tuned!

Behind The Scenes of The Columbia Metropolitan Article

After a year of secrecy, we are thrilled to be able to talk about the Columbia Metropolitan article on local flower farmers! In case you missed it, here is the link:  https://columbiametro.com/article/a-blooming-passion/

Photo: Michael Trawick

When Columbia Metro called to tell me that they were writing a story about area flower farmers and wanted to include us, I was thrilled. They needed to come out to take photos in the next week or so. It was March.  So many things are not in bloom in March! Of course, I said yes and started getting prepared.

This all happened just days before the Covid lock down. I wondered if they would have to cancel. Fortunately, they did not.

We were in major Tulip season so plenty of those on hand. We had Daffodils, Anemone, Pieris and Hellebore. The Ranunculus was planted but not in bloom. This was the season before we had the hoop house up and the walk-in cooler built, so the Ranunculus would be blooming in April.

As a graduate of Clemson’s New and Beginning Farmer Program, I was able to rent cooler space that year at the Incubator Farm at Sandhills.  As grace would have it, Brinton Fox of Boone Fox Farm, was and is a grower at the incubator farm. She was also featured in the article. Clemson was closed for all but essential workers and Brinton and I were able to continue working at the Sandhills site during the lockdown.

Brinton grows beautiful Ranunculus and she already had a hoop house up, so hers were ready! I purchased some Ranunculus from Brinton and they were included in the photo shoot. Grace again, since the photographers would not have been granted access to Clemson to take photos in her growing space during the lockdown.

Farming has many challenges. We work with and around the weather to bring crops to market. Pests and insects can do significant damage and destroy crops. Issues may not be apparent until the crop is supposed to be ready.  So, we flower farmers support each other as best we can. We buy from each other before going elsewhere if we need something we didn’t successfully grow. I like to call it “the sisterhood of the flowering plants”.

We got things ready at the farm and waited. I exhaled when Muffie Wells called to confirm their visit.

The day of the photoshoot was so much fun. We got to see other professionals in action. Robert Clark was looking for a cloudy day to take the photos and got it. They took their time finding the shots that they wanted. They asked questions about the flowers and our growing methods. They shot in the field and in our inside workspace, used for making bouquets and bunching flowers. They were genuinely interested.  A lovely experience with a group that does so much to raise awareness of the happenings in the Columbia area.

Remembering Ted Williams

As we mourn the loss of our good friend Ted Williams. I can’t help but reflect on the many contributions he made to my life as a grower.

Born in Japan, educated at Rutgers and worked an esteemed career in the military, Ted lived a successful life. He loved his wife Margaret dearly along with his four children. He was an intelligent, disciplined, deep thinker who demanded excellence and got it. He appreciated the accomplishments of others as much as his own.

Ted was retired from the military when we met. After seeing our garden, Ted encouraged me to apply to the Master Gardener program. He had completed the program and was in a leadership role as Treasurer of the organization.  I completed the program and began volunteering at Riverbanks with the Junior Master Gardeners. Ted worked at Riverbanks too.  He coordinated the volunteers and ran the Urban Horticulture Center.

During social occasions Ted would always ask me about my gardening activities. When I told him about the farm I was thinking of starting, he was encouraging and enthusiastic. He wanted to help.

The farm remained in the concept stage for a number of years. I ran ideas past him and asked a lot of questions. I went to conferences and reviewed new ideas with him. I had also completed training from a flower farm on flower farming specifics. He was my sounding board and council.  

When I finally retired from corporate life, I was ready to move the farm to the incubation stage. I invited Ted to be my team mate in the New and Beginning Farmer program put on by Clemson. This program teaches the business of farming, not anything about growing. We had to develop a business plan to be presented at the end of the class. We met weekly at the farm to review the material and apply it to my business plan. I wrote the material and Ted was my editor. At the end of the program, there was a contest for grants provided by the S.C. Farm Bureau. I had 5 minutes to tell the story. Ted timed me at rehearsals. We took second place and won $2000 for needed farm projects.

Concurrently we were planting a variety of flowers at the farm on a trial basis to see how well they would grow here. I knew what I wanted to grow and Ted had a lot of local growing knowledge. I insisted on sustainable, no-till practices. These were new to Ted but he embraced learning them too.  Ted was fully engaged - spreading compost, planting bulbs and other hands-on work.

When Ted had his first heart attack, it was a severe one. Margaret had to deal with so much at that time. Ted was not ready to stop living, however, and he slowly recovered. When he could drive again, he came back to the farm. He wanted to work. He had lost a lot of strength but he was determined. He could strap on a backpack sprayer and feed the plants. At first, I put a chair in the field so he could sit and rest as needed. He came out week after week and built back his strength. He could feed the entire field in 2 hours. After he was done, we would sit and he would review with me what he saw. Maybe something needed more water, some pest infestation was starting up and needed attention or something was almost ready for harvest.

Those were not the only discussions. He told stories about his military life. He was an avid reader. His favorite historical figure was Mahatma Gandhi.  He had a keen interest in the workings of Washington DC, regardless of who was in office. Having served in the military he had an insight that made for great discussions. He was soon bringing me books to read and we would discuss them too.

When his health would no longer allow him to work at the farm, he continued to support it by purchasing flower subscriptions for Margaret.  Pre- covid, I would deliver and we would catch up for a few minutes on the porch. During the Covid era, I could only leave the flowers on the porch.

One of Ted’s last visits to the farm was during the 2019 Ag+Art Tour. Margaret and two of their girls came and we had a toast after the last visitor left. He was planning to come again this year and I was excited to show him all the progress that we’ve made. He would have been happy to see it.

So, Godspeed my friend, on your ultimate journey. Thank you for everything. Your life mattered. You made a difference, no doubt in many lives, but certainly in mine. I am so grateful to you for your kind friendship and all that you taught me. Rest in peace.

Fall is Just Around the Corner!

Hello Friends!

We’re happy to be back after some time off in July and August. While we still have flowers in these hottest months, the work is more of an effort in the heat and we can work less hours outside.  With the arrival of September, the temperatures are finally starting to trend downward, and everything, including me, is starting to perk up!

We continue to offer flowers at the Lake Carolina Farmer’s Market and at Soda City (through Fabel Farms) until the end of October.  Thanks to all of you for your support of us and the other vendors at the markets.

As fall arrives, the dahlias will be coming on. We planted a few new varieties over the summer and look forward to seeing them. We will also have sunflowers and lisianthus in our bouquets now.

The infrastructure projects at the farm continue to move forward. Our walk-in flower cooler was completed last week! I have been renting cooler space at another farm which was a big help, but nothing beats the convenience of having a cooler on site. So grateful that my husband Rufus, a.k.a. Mr. FixIt was willing to take this project on.

In addition to the work being done on the processing shed, we are putting up a hoop house (a.k.a. high tunnel, unheated green house) this fall. This will allow us to extend the growing season to the colder months. The first goal is to have local flowers for Valentine’s Day. The beds are ready for planting and the structure will be added over them.  There is much to be done to make this happen, so stay tuned!

We are planting significantly more flowers this fall than we have to date. The community support for our subscriptions continues to grow and we are forever grateful for that. We are delighted to have orders for several DIY weddings next spring, not only for the flowers but for the hope that there will be a vaccine and we can gather in greater numbers. We also anticipate that event planners and florists will have increased demand so we want to be ready to support these sister businesses that buy local flowers as we are able to.

We had hoped to have some classes this fall, but there is still much to be done before that can happen. We will continue to work toward that goal in 2021.

We will be offering amaryllis and paperwhites again this year between November 1 and December 15th. More on that to come!

We feel blessed to be able to provide to you and your loved ones with these little bundles of happy beauty. Thank you all for your continued support. Stay healthy and happy,

Linda

Updates From The Farm

Since it has been awhile since I posted anything, I wanted to let you know what we have been up to!

I hope that you have enjoyed the long cool spring as much as I did! In addition to delivering our spring subscriptions, we’ve been taking advantage of the cool weather all season to get extra projects done at the farm.

Spring Subscriptions

This year we were able to start the spring subscriptions in March, earlier than in years past. Everyone is tired of winter by then and it has been our goal to get flowers to people as early in the year as possible. We added some new flowers to our bouquets, including several new specialty tulips and ranunculus in several colors.

Masks and hand sanitizer were de rigeur on subscription delivery days!

We are wrapping up the final deliveries this week. With Covid in our midst, we all seemed to appreciate the beauty of fresh flowers a little bit more this year. Since we had to be extra careful with the drop offs, I still haven’t seen some of our new subscription holders in person! I hope to be able to meet you as conditions improve.  

Thanks to all of you for a wonderful spring season!

The new barn/studio

On-Farm Projects

As you may know, we are transforming the old barn into a new barn/studio. We will have a walk-in cooler for the flowers along with a large work area. There should be room for small gatherings inside, but there is also a large covered porch on the front where we can gather when the weather is agreeable. We’re looking forward to holding some classes/workshops there in the future. I expect that we will have this ready before the summer is over.

The salvage tarp is used to kill the grass where the new beds will go without using pesticides. Darkness and heat can do the job.

We added a shade bed for plants that require little sun. Hellebores and ferns have been planted there and a few other things will be added in the fall. These will be ready for use late winter of 2021.

We are also working on some new beds that will be covered by a new hoop house in the fall. A hoop house is an unheated green house. This will allow us to grow flowering plants over the winter in conditions that will make them bloom over the winter. We’re hoping to have flowers ready by Valentine’s Day 2020.

Hello Summer!

First real warm-season harvest.

Summer temperatures and humidity have arrived! We have been turning the beds and planting more heat-loving summer flowers and foliage.  Our warm season favorites are finally getting the conditions they need to thrive.  Zinnias, celosia, cosmos, dahlias, rudbeckia, sunflowers and lisianthus are some of what is coming on now.

We are also trying some new warm season growers – alstroemeria, lavatera, bee balm, jewels of opar and Greek oregano. We will see how they do in our heat and humidity!

Where to Find us This Summer

1.   You can pick up our flowers at the Lake Carolina Farmers Market or contact us through the website www.purpletuteur.com or through our facebook page to place a special order.

2.   I am also working with one of my classmates from Clemson’s New and Beginning Farmer Program to make flowers available at the Soda City Market when it opens again. Once I have the specifics on this booth location, I will send an update out.

3.   We also offer bouquets at B79 in Blythewood as flower capacity allows. Follow us on Instagram for announcement of pop-up sales at B79.

4.   A few other discussions are underway in an effort to make farm fresh flowers available to you, so stay tuned!

What’s Next?

We have had several requests for a fall subscription offering. We are looking at this now. Certainly, with the prospect of a second wave of Covid 19 in the fall, this may be the best way to get flowers to everyone safely. We will be looking at the feasibility for this over the summer.

Finally, I want to thank you all for your continued interest and support in our small farm. It is our pleasure to bring you fresh blooms and to make you smile. In these challenging times, everyone can use a little joy.

Linda

Life with Corona's Influence

Hopefully you are well, if socially isolated, as I write this.  We are certainly living in turbulent times. I expect that we will see some fundamental changes to life as we know it when we get through this period of uncertainty. Many of us are of the age to have experience other turbulent times. They can be very unsettling but as we know, this too shall pass. Not without disruptions and disappointments. Wishing you as much normalcy as possible through this transition to life with Corona in our midst.

Here on the farm, we are continuing to plant, grow and harvest. We will deliver our subscriptions as planned.  We will be taking special requests and fill them as our flower supply allows. We offer delivery for these special requests for a small fee.

We’ve added many new beds for more growing capacity, both in sun and in shade. Work is progressing on the new barn. Our fall planted hardy annuals came through winter just fine. A couple of additional weeks of warmth and they should begin to bloom!

For 2020 flower subscription holders, we have flowers for you! As you know if you have subscribed before, it is hard to predict when the first blooms will be ready in spring. So much depends on the weather conditions and they vary widely from year to year.  I will begin checking in with each of you to see who wants flowers this Friday or next Tuesday. This will not be the start of the weekly deliveries. There will be gaps until spring really gets going, but most of us are hungry from some blooms this time of year so I like to get them to you as soon as possible.

What are you doing to adjust to live under these circumstances?

New perennial beds

Future home to the flower cooler and a classroom

New shade beds

Winter hardy annuals uncovered for spring

This is an early blooming tulip called Double You

Wishing you and yours good health along with faith, hope and love.

Linda

Transitioning From Fall to Winter

Fall can be a very busy time on a flower farm and ours is no exception.

This year, we had a long, warm fall that let us keep cutting dahlias and zinnias into November.

Behind the scenes, we were busy turning the existing beds, adding new beds, sowing seeds and planting bulbs for the spring crops. It is really important to get this done so that we can bring you flowers as early as possible in the new year.  All the beds have been covered with frost cloth to protect the plants through the winter.  We have added new varieties and colors to our offerings and are excited to share them with you next spring!

In addition to getting those flowers to market, we offered holiday amaryllis and paperwhites for the first time. Hopefully, some of you are seeing yours in bloom about now!

As we are now officially in winter, we have wrapped all that up and can turn our attention to family and friends! We are happily taking a break while the cold weather sets in and will be unavailable until January 6th.

This has been a great year on the farm and we are so very grateful for all of your support. We could not do it without you!

Wishing you and yours a wonderful holiday season and the happiest new year!

Linda

So Long Spring!

The recent weather shifts certainly have brought changes to the garden.  No rain for weeks including three days of 100 degree heat, followed by 5 days of rain. And it is only June!

The spring flowers die out as the heat comes on, so ours were quick to fade under these weather conditions. Each year we try something new and this year we tried one called Basket Flower.   

Basket flower (Centaurea americana), native to the United States, is an annual in the same family as Bachelor Buttons. Seeds were sown in the fall and overwintered in the garden.  The first bloom did not show until late May, much later than Bachelor Buttons.  The stems are 4 ft tall, and some growers had them even taller. They grow in full sun/partial shade. The flowers are 2-3” across. They make a lovely cut flower, with a 4 – 5 day vase life.  In the garden, they would do well at the back of the border. Bees love them, so planting them will also help the ecosystem.  Give it a try!

 We hope your summer is getting off to a good start,

Linda

Hello Spring!

Spring arrived a couple of days ago but today really felt like spring. The cherry trees are blooming and the sky is thankfully clear. The temperatures are warming up and the day length is now longer than the night. These are excellent conditions for getting the fall-planted flowers out of dormancy. The covers are off the beds and we can begin feeding to further encourage growth. In another month to six weeks, we will be able to have blooms like these available on a consistent basis.

Wishing you a wonderful season!

Getting Ready for Spring

Larkspur

In warm climates like South Carolina’s, spring flower preparation starts in the fall. We plant ‘hardy annuals’ in the fall to provide them with enough cool weather to thrive. This group of flowers blooms profusely in the cooler spring and then they fade in our summer heat. This includes things like Bells of Ireland, Bachelor Buttons, Corn Cockle and Larkspur. Most are started from seed sown directly in the garden.

Here at the farm, we have been nurturing many of these varieties since last September. They have needed the heat of late summer to germinate and get established. Then, as the days got shorter and the temperatures dropped, they slowed down above ground but continue to develop strong roots. As the weather has warmed up, the plant growth has resumed. When we get the magic combination of longer days and consistently warmer temperatures they will burst forth, revealing the miracle that they are.

 Between now and then, the fluctuating temperatures call for some special attention. The plants are getting larger and the vegetation is more vulnerable to cold. Frost cloth is used to protect them when we get temperatures below freezing. A freeze is in the forecast for next week, so everything is being covered so that it is protected.  

Looking forward to the end of winter and the day when we can share the spring blooms with you! If you are considering a bouquet subscription, there is still time. You can sign up at www.purpletuteur.com

Dianthus under cover