What are my first steps?
If you follow me over on Instagram you will know I’ve decide to dip my big toe (well ok maybe one whole foot) into becoming a flower farmer in 2022. My plan is to grow cut flowers for market. Which market? That has yet to be determined and will be dictated to how much space I have (or will dedicate) on our farm to this project.
Space is the limiting factor
By space, I’m not simply talking about physical room to grow flowers, but I also must consider what constraints different growing conditions on our property bring with them. Knowing these factors in advance will allow me to know what type of flowers I can grow, as well as how many.
Here are 5 factors, in this order, I considered when I chose my cut flower garden site:
- Ease of access to water
- Amount of sunlight
- Soil condition
- Pests
- Physical Space
Ease of Access to Water
Oddly enough, even though I live in the Pacific Northwest (growing zone 8b on Vancouver Island, Canada) plants do not get free water from the clouds as often as you would think. As a matter of fact, with climate change our weather has been trending steadily drier throughout our summers to the point that last year we had a heat dome of temps well over 35C stall overhead for nearly a week. We also went over 90 days with no rain!
Without easy access to water, this endeavour would turn from a dream to a nightmare pretty quickly. So, a crucial part of my decision making on where to situate my new garden has had to consider where my water source is, and/or if I am willing to invest in the installation of an irrigation system to make life even easier. I do have a hose bib in my vegetable patch at the rear of the big house, and I also have one on the garage backing onto our big field that I could tap into. My irrigation system on the little house is likely too far away to provide adequate pressure, so I will need to create one from scratch for the market garden should I decide to go that route.
Amount of Sunlight
Many flowers require a lot of sun, but how much sun is too much? The site I am considering given easy access to water gets sun from about 9 a.m. until sunset. For most days that’s great, especially in the spring. But what about those hot summer days? Is there a way I can manipulate the site through how I situate my rows and what I plant in what order. For example, my vegetable gardens run north to south right behind the big house. That means the furthest north and east corner of the gardens stay shady until 10-11 a.m. That’s where I plant my lettuces and cooler loving vegetables. My sun-loving tomatoes go on the south end of the furthest west row; therefore, they receive the most amount of light. Can I recreate this in the flower gardens through strategic structure placement and planting. Do north to south rows make the most sense in this situation, or should I try east-west?
Soil Condition
Any gardener who has been doing this for long enough will tell you that your soil is the most important part of the equation once you are ready to grow. Poor soil equates to poor plant babies. Unhappy plant babies don’t spark joy or sell!
Bad soil can be fixed, but it’s expensive and time consuming. I don’t like either of those options so I’ve had a hard look at the soil around the property and carefully considered what it was used for in the past. I also considered its drainage, soil type, grade, etc. Lastly, I have a huge compost pile on the farm that I can access for free, and a MR with a tractor who can help deliver and spread it. Both of those lessen the expense and the labour.
Having taken a look around, the area directly west of my vegetable gardens used to be part of my father-in-law’s huge vegetable patch. Even though it is grass now, I know he amended it over many many years. The only machinery that’s been run over is is a riding lawn mower, so compaction isn’t likely an issue. I believe this is the most viable place to situate my new gardens.
Pests
I don’t know about you, but I never imagined the damage a few bunnies could do to my space until I started vegetable gardening. An even bigger surprise to me was just how fast the herd of deer could wipe out new trees in the orchard or munch down my hostas without stopping to take a breath. I had to extensively deer fence my vegetable garden. I know going into it I will have to contain the market garden as well. Since beautifying is my goal, the t-stake and deer netting are not going to cut it anymore. I know I have to be willing to invest in a better fence this time out.
Physical Space
Given ALL of the above, how much room on the farm do I actually have in order to start this endeavour and give it its best chance of success? How does this space allow me to arrange it to most benefit my new plant babies I’ll be raising? How does that arrangement align with five year plan for this business? Do I have enough money to put into the infrastructure AND to plant the whole space now, or should I divide it into phases over the next five years?
Space is more than physical
As I said at the beginning, space is the limiting factor in how many and what type of flowers I can grow. The space, and the business, demand that I look at the investment from a financial perspective. What will the initial infrastructure cost, how many seeds, tubers, and plugs can I buy, and how do I want this space to fill out over the next five years? All of this has been considered before I made my flower choices for the coming first season. I want to set myself and my flowers up for success.
So come grow with me and I’ll teach you what I know and what I learn. Next up in this series I will show you the space and my plans, and let you know which seeds, tubers, and plugs I’ll ultimately choose.
Happy Growing!
xoxo
Judy