August on the Farm

An August to remember!  What a month it’s been- so full that it’s felt like it’s gone by in the blink of an eye. The farm is in full bloom, and amongst it all, I announced my book, started seed collection, shared about our bulb sale, hosted an on-farm workshop, and started my book publication media with podcasts, videos, and interviews! My heart (and schedule) are so full.

The announcement of my book pre-orders is something I have been looking forward to for over four years. Throughout everything you have seen of the farm, I have been behind the scenes writing away and editing so that everything is perfect. If you’re here reading this, I bet that you are a lover of flowers and have either already discovered (or want to discover!) the magic of sweet peas! I wrote this book for you. It’s my love letter to my favorite flower and to the gardeners who love it like I do, and I can’t wait to share the full printed copy! Pre-orders have been amazing; I’m so happy to finally share a sneak peek into what I’ve been working hard at. 

With the release of the book, it has made this season even more sweet. The beginning of August is a special time where the sweet peas overlap the blooming of the dahlias. Does it get any better than that?! Although it's sad when the sweet peas die down, it's always exciting to see all of the seed pods on the plants! With so many new varieties in the fields, planning has begun for our new introductions. I can’t wait to see what varieties you plan on including in your garden’s next year!

End of Summer is a great time to start planning out the Spring blooms. With fall planting just around the corner, August is filled with bulb and corm orders. August brought the introduction of our 2024-2025 bulb catalog, in which we shared all of the varieties we’ll be featuring in our sale this year. 

With all the planning that happens, it can be difficult to remember to enjoy the flowers that are right outside! As always, the rainbow dahlia field is filling me with so much joy. So many special varieties to grow- my evening walks through the field have been filled with so much eye candy. Some of my favorites have been (In photo order) Hollyhill Serenity, Fawn, and Westerton Pearl pictured below. With honorable mention of our own new variety, Farmer Finn!

Amid all the blooms, some of you joined us for a very special gathering in the meadow. Flower Arranging on the Farm is something I’ve been dreaming of for quite some time, so it was so wonderful and memorable to see it come to fruition. If you’re a gardener or grower, you know the joy of walking through your rows and sharing all your hard work with those you care about! Getting to spend the day with others who love flowers and see the magic in the farm just like I do is something I won’t soon forget.

September Garden To-Dos:

• Cut Flower Harvest:
• Dahlias in particular are cut and come again flowers, meaning the more you cut, the more they bloom! Make sure you stay up on cutting so that your flowers don’t go to seed prematurely. Other popular summer flowers that this also applies to are cosmos, scabiosa, and zinnias. 
• Fall Preparations:
• As summer winds down, now is the perfect time to make sure that you are ready and prepared for fall. For the dahlias especially this means making sure that all of your plants are tagged and labeled in plenty of time before frost and digging commences. Here on the farm we use 12 inch plant stakes from Macore.com but you can also use flagging tape or whatever your preferred method of labeling might be. Getting this task done in September will ensure that you are ready for whatever Mother Nature might throw your way and believe me once frost hits and all of your plants look the same you’ll be so glad that you did. 
• Spring Planning:
• End of the summer is often the most busy time of year for many of us since so much is in full bloom! However, it’s a great time to start prepping for fall planning. Start ordering bulbs and corms for early fall delivery. Before fall sowing, make sure you check your growing zone on the recommended time to plant bulbs in your area! Check out our Spring Lookbook here.
• Seed Collection:
• As some of the annuals start to fade, now is a great time to collect seed! Some seeds that you collect will be true to the variety with no variation (sweet peas) while others will create a new form with some of the existing genetics! Flowers like dahlias and zinnias are fun to save seed from and see what you might get the following year! Some other varieties that are easy to save seed from that you might want to try are cosmos, cress, scabiosa and strawflower. 

As always, gardening is a great practice of staying present and enjoying the current moment. The days can sometimes be hectic, but the evenings are my special time to soak it all in and enjoy every second of it. Long days, but short seasons- it’s hard to believe we’re mere weeks away from Autumn. The coming months bring even more excitement, and I can’t wait to share more as the season continues.