@floretflower

One of the most exciting parts of writing our upcoming book, Discovering Dahlias, was that we were able to devote an entire section to breeding. If you’ve ever wanted to learn how to breed new varieties, or what the process involves, then you’re in luck! Even though the book doesn’t come out until March, we have some really exciting surprises in store for everyone who pre-orders a copy, either from our shop (we have signed copies!) or any bookseller of your choice. I’ll be sharing more about these surprises soon! To learn more about Discovering Dahlias and pre-order your copy, click the link in my profile and then the “visit website” button. I can’t wait for you to finally hold this book in your hands!

Spent the weekend in the rainy garden collecting dahlia seeds, labeling the last of my breeding selections, take notes and photos, and getting everything to a place where I feel like I’m ready when the first frost arrives. This beauty is one of the dahlia varieties that came out of the breeding patch (name ideas welcome!) and behind it are seeds I collected this weekend from the breeding plot too. A lot of people don’t know that dahlias can actually be grown from seed. They don’t come back true to the parent plant like tubers do (they are a complete surprise) and seeds are where we get new varieties from. If you like a seedling you’ve grown can dig up and save the tubers in the autumn and they will come back true. It’s kind of a strange process. The second photo is my studio this afternoon, filling up with seeds, dying flowers and pumpkins. It’s awfully pretty in there right now!

A huge THANK YOU for all of your excitement and encouragement over the past few weeks. It has been amazing to see so many gardeners trying new things and gaining confidence in areas that were once intimidating. A big WELCOME to the class of 2021 into the Floret Online Workshop! We’re going to have an amazing time learning together in the months ahead. And lastly so much LOVE and gratitude to the ladies of who worked so hard behind the scenes to make everything come together so seamlessly. None of it would be possible without @buckeyeblooms @angela_strand_ @jillmjorgensen, Laura, @cherie_claire, @she_farmer, @briannboots and our scholarship review team 💕These dahlias are from the breeding patch and don’t have names yet.

Over the last few weeks it's been such a privilege to hear from so many incredible people from all around the world who have either applied for a workshop scholarship, taken our Fall Mini Course, or registered for the Floret Online Workshop. The amount of enthusiasm and love for flowers gives me so much hope for the future. When we transitioned our workshops from on-farm to online, I worried that we would never be able to replicate the same deep personal connections that took place at our in person classes. I also feared that I wouldn’t be able to connect with students in the same intimate and authentic way. But after hearing from so many people who participated in our mini course and online workshop gush about how valuable and meaningful the connections they made with me, the team, and other students in the flower community, I’m so incredibly grateful to know that it's possible to connect even though we’re all online. While we’re all so different and on our own unique paths, we are bonded through our shared love of flowers. Flower people really are the kindest, most generous people there are and I’m so excited to be welcoming the Class of 2021 into our community! Just a reminder that registration for the Floret Online Workshop closes today at 5 p.m. PST and won’t be open again for another year. If you have any questions (big or small) send me a direct message or email workshop@floretflowers.com and you can find all of the workshop details by clicking the link in my profile.

After opening enrollment for the Floret Online Workshop on Monday, we've received a flood of messages from new students around the world sharing their excitement about the upcoming course! We've also been fielding a lot of follow-up questions from folks wanting to know more specifics like: I live in a different climate than Floret. Will the tutorials apply to me? Is the course right for me if I don’t have a ton of gardening experience? What if I don’t have a lot of land to grow flowers? I have a busy schedule, will this work for me? My guess is that you probably have some of the same questions too so Jill and I filmed a short video to answer all of these and more. You can find a link to watch it in my profile. And if you have any questions about the Floret Online Workshop not covered in the video, please don’t hesitate to reach out and ask. No question is too small or silly—we're here to help!

I hear most often from people is that growing and sharing flowers with others brings them an incredible amount of joy. I recently connected with one of our workshop alumni, and one of my favorite floral designers @lamusadelasflores who gave us a video tour of her beautiful garden outside of Mexico City. If you need a little inspiration, here’s a glimpse of her small plot that produces an abundance of blooms for her floral design work. I hope Gabriela's story inspires you to follow your own flower dreams. If you don’t already follow her then you’re in for a real treat! And if you want to learn more about the Floret Online Workshop, there’s a link in my profile.

Ending the day in the dahlia breeding patch looking for new treasures. I’ve found so much peace in this little plot this season, walking the rows after a long day, discovering brand new varieties that have never existed before and imagining all of the gardens they will grow in one day. I have a few more new varieties to label and photograph and then I’ll be ready when frost arrives. These little cuties don’t have names yet and I would love to hear your ideas!

to finally be able to share! This year we've added a printed 1/4 Acre Cutting Garden Plan to the Floret Online Workshop. When you’re new to growing it can feel overwhelming knowing where to start and the goal with this plan was to help take some of the guesswork out of crop planning. This plan includes my list of tried-and-true cut flower varieties, a comprehensive plan designed to provide a season’s worth of flowers and foliage, suggested bed design and layout with plant spacing recommendations for each crop, and a complete seed starting and succession planting plan. This plan, along with our 270 page course book, is mailed to every student. And because I know you’ll ask, it’s only available to those enrolled in the Floret Online Workshop and can’t be ordered separately. Alumni, if you want a printed copy, check your inbox!

One of the brightest spots over the past year has been the incredible surge of interest in gardening. I hear over and over from so many people about how getting their hands in the dirt, planting a garden, and connecting with nature has brought much-needed calm and a sense of groundedness to their lives when everything feels out of control. I think one of the greatest lessons we’ve all learned this year is that nothing is certain, and there’s no better time to start following your dreams. But knowing where to start can be overwhelming. Today I’m sharing a simple exercise to help inspire you about what’s possible in your own life even if you have a lot of obstacles in your way. The link in my profile will take you to the video and worksheet. Pictured here: Dahlia KA’s Jubilee

Registration for the Floret Online Workshop is officially open. Join me and flower lovers from around the world for this amazing six-week course. We’ll dig deep into creating an abundant cutting garden, launching a successful flower-based business, and discovering the joy of growing and sharing seasonal blooms with your community. Enrollment is open October 5-9th. We offer this course just once per year. There's a link in my bio (Visit Website) where you can get all the details.

It’s hard to believe that we’ll be digging up our dahlia tubers here in a few short weeks. This process is one of my least favorite farm tasks because it’s so muddy, cold, and backbreaking, but I’m always so glad to have them tucked away safely for the winter. Even though it's a dirty job, there’s nothing more exciting than pulling an entire clump of tubers that you grew out of the ground and seeing the one tuber you planted in the spring multiply into an entire clump in just one growing season. If you want to learn moreabout this process, I’m teaching a class all about it! There’s a link in my bio to sign up. If you’re already signed up for the Fall Mini Course, check your inbox. Pictured here: Dahlia ‘Bracken Sarah’

I took a few hours today to wander the farm and take in all of the progress we’ve made this season. So much has changed this year, that it doesn’t even feel like the same place. We’ve been so dang busy, jumping from one big project to the next, that I haven’t really slowed down to take it all in yet. On my walk I picked a big bucket full of flowers and then put together an arrangement in my favorite @francespalmer vase for our dining room table. Her new book comes out this month! One of the projects this summer was to give my little flower studio (aka our garage) a freshening up and this spot is my very favorite. The vintage sink is from my sister @old_shed_vintage, the lights are from @marydavisvintagelighting in LaConner and the pumpkins are from @gordonskagitfarms. I’m excited to start making some beautiful things in this space again!