Future Harvest: Farming flowers

2.01.06

By MELANIE DeVAULT

“Almost any cut flower you can make money on — although I don’t recommend roses, carnations or mums,” Dave Dowling told a packed conference room crowd at the Future Harvest “Farming for Profit and Stewardship” annual conference Jan. 13 and 14 in Hagerstown, Md.
Those three cut flowers are just too readily, and too cheaply, available on the market from foreign sources. But the new president of the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers (ASCFG) wowed his audience with how-tos on a list of 25 moneymakers from A (Anemone) to Z (Zinnia, of course!).
Like all ASCFG members, Dowling is quick to share information with those in, or interested in starting in the flower business. Along with practical varietal tips, the owner of Farmhouse Flowers and Plants, Brookeville, Md., often talked about his pricing — and a bit of wisdom to those who give away their hard work: In the grand scheme of things, he doesn’t bend over to cut a flower for less than 50 cents. (For those who give zinnias away for 10 cents stem, listen up.) Getting more is even better. Dowling grew 40,000 lilies in crates last year which he sells for $2.50 a stem, or three for $10 at four Maryland/Washington, D.C. area farmers’ markets. Dowling also sells to five florists.
The Future Harvest conference, attended by nearly 200 and in its seventh year, aims to “provide educational information to our members on sustainable and organic agriculture, with a good blend of farmers and educators,” explains Mark Davis, conference committee chairman.
This year’s conference talks covered everything from heritage turkeys to advanced marketing. As Davis told the group, “It’s all about people.”
To be a successful flower grower, add quality and knowing your market to the mix. The local flower grower, Dowling says, has a big edge over imports on many varieties for longevity and fragrance. Take ranunculus, for example. His will last for two weeks, compared with those purchased from a retail outlet that buys imports which may last two or three days due to handling and travel. Dowling’s tulips, many of which are grown in crates in soil or in hydroponic crates, will last 10 days, compared to shipped flowers that usually last a few days.
Here’s the scoop on some other of Dowling’s favorites:
• Anemone and ranunculus: He does these in the same greenhouse (he has five greenhouses all together) because they both require cooler nights. If the temperature/soil are too warm, the corms/roots will rot. Anemones sell at the farmer’s market for $1 a stem, 80 cents to florists. Their stems are tough and vase life is more than a week. Ranunculus, selling at $1 a stem, and with a two-week vase life, have another benefit to the grower: They are dormant in summer “so we put asters in when the ranunculus finish and we can grow two crops in the same raised bed.”
• Bachelor’s Button: As all flower growers know, these are a pain to pick. But planted in September, they’re ready in late May, early June when everyone is ready for fresh, local flowers. And the colors are perfect for this time of year. His 80-foot row can bring in a couple thousand dollars. Selling by the stem means much less labor, he adds.
• Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta; Indian Summer, Prairie Sun and Double Gold varieties): Start seed in August and plant in September or grow as an annual and start seed in February and plant in March or April. Dave recommends using plastic support netting to support the bottom foot of the plants.
• Cosmos (Versailles): If you pinch at 8 inches, you can get three cuttings of this prolific flower, which can be direct seeded the first of June, or start seed indoors and it’s ready to go in the garden in a couple weeks. He sells cosmos for 75 cents a stem. The foliage is great in bouquets, too.
• “Sticks”: Don’t forget about those woodies — Curly Willow (Salix, Golden Curls), Red Twig Dogwood (Cornus) and Pussy Willow. “We call them sticks and you can sell them any time of year,” he says, either as fresh or dried. “Keep them cut short and cut a lot.”
• Dahlia (Karma): Specifically bred for cuts, Karma dahlia are patented (so propagation is illegal) and sold as plants from the Michigan supplier through Gloeckner or Germania seed companies. Dowling recommends timing planting to sell most of them for fall “because people think of dahlias as a fall flower.” They need support netting and a pinch or two (the first pinch at two to three sets of leaves. This will give you more flowers. Flowering generally occurs about nine weeks after the last pinch.
• Foxtail Lily (Eremurus): These delightful, tall stems will bloom the first year, with four to five stalks per plant. “Get good roots,” says Dowling. They’ll last about two weeks for your customers, and flower from the bottom up.
• Hydrangea: These sell like hot cakes at $1 each, and it’s important to know your varieties. Dowling likes Hydrangea paniculata (Peegee, Limelight) which bloom every year, and should be pruned in late February-March, cut back to two nodes. Hydrangea arborescens (Annabelle is the main cultivar) produce big white flower clusters that turn green, then brown and are good at any stage. They should be pruned every spring. Hydrangea macrophylla, the big leaved hydrangeas that produce colorful clusters and are good for drying, bloom on old wood. The problem with this variety, Dowling points out, is if you have a late frost, you won’t get flowers.
• Lilies: He grows his tens of thousands in crates in a 40- by 50-foot greenhouse. The prepared bulbs can be purchased from a bulb supplier such as Zabo or Ednie for succession plantings. Dave plants them in Pro-mix and waters by hand to ensure that the crates get the right amount of water (some growers run drip irrigation lines through the crates).
• Lisianthus: Dowling’s advice: “Buy plugs.” Lisianthus take 12 weeks to bring you a few leaves. He plants his 210 plugs in the bed in the high tunnel, instead of bumping them up, from the beginning of April to early June. Growing lissies in the high tunnel cuts down on wind and rain damage, but he has grown them in the field. His big tips: Grow them in white plastic, because lissies like cool roots and heat on the flower. Cut them back after blooming, and they will bloom again, and possibly again. He over winters them in the greenhouse, too (either keep nighttime temperatures to about 40, or Reemay them in the high tunnel). Adding one tablespoon of sugar to cut flowers will make the unopened buds open better, with color. He gets $1 a stem, $1.50 when stems are big.
• Salvia leucantha: This fall-blooming star has been hard to find (from cuttings; try Yoder/Greenleaf Lancaster) and it helps extend the season, when covered in the high tunnel, well into November for Dowling. He pinches at one foot. If the plant is big and bushy, you can pinch a second time. He gets 75 cents a stem.
• Sunflowers: He likes Pro Cut Orange, Sunbright Supreme and Sundown, listed as a branching sunflower which pinched back at 6 inches will be a dynamo. Direct seeded or started as plugs, and ready in about two weeks, sunflowers sell well at market.
• Zinnia: Dowling likes all colors of Benary Giants except white. He succession plants three or four times, and pinches the top out when the plants are about 8 inches tall. He plants by color to make picking easier. He sells zinnias for 75 cents a stem at market and $5 a bunch to florists.