Rozanne Delamore of The Ledbury Flower Farmer shares her stories from the Flower Farmers' Big Weekend over the past three years, charting the growth of her business and everything she gains from welcoming people into her growing space.
"My first experience of the Flower Farmers' Big Weekend was in 2020, before I had even sowed my first seed. It was a Covid year, and I was glued to social media enjoying online tours of other people's plots up and down the country."
"In 2021, I had my plot to share, and so did a few tours and made posies for people to take home. I loved the enthusiasm of my visitors, with lots of questions answered and learning on both sides. I was asked by Jo Thompson, who runs Wye Valley Flowers just down the road, to speak at her open day, which gave me the perfect excuse to join in with one of their tours. I also had the opportunity to hear Shanna from nearby Harebell and Bee talk about her wealth of experience with drying and pressing flowers. All this was followed by a delicious cream tea."
"This year, my Big Weekend was a lot bigger. On Friday, I spoke at my local flower club about the different crops and varieties I'm growing this season, as well as some of my growing methods and techniques. I made a hand-tied bouquet and took some flowers ready to be dried at home as raffle prizes."
"On Saturday, I gave a tour of my farm and then a demonstration of a large, sustainable urn arrangement. Sunday saw another tour followed by a hand-tied bouquet demonstration. My tours take about an hour and cover everything from seed saving, sowing, and propagating methods to growing and how I sell my flowers."
"I also opened up my new PYO patch for this year's Big Weekend, which had been my primary growing space in my first season, after which I decided to expand my business and more than doubled my plot. It was lovely to welcome people in from as far afield as Oxford over the weekend to take home a bucket of flowers to arrange in their own time."
"After the success of my FFBW tours, I have offered quite a few more this year. I love interacting with people and being able to help them grow their flowers, whether this is in their garden or as part of a new business. Next year I am planning to do some hands-on workshops and let people wander around the garden and cut patches in their own time. I always offer tea and cake to be enjoyed on my patio, as well as having some small bouquets on sale for inspiration."
"If you find yourself near Ledbury in Herefordshire next year, I would love to welcome you here and show you around. If not, keep an eye on the Events Page of the Flowers from the Farm website to find out what your local grower is doing and when. As an organization, we are all about engaging with the public and spreading the word about local, sustainably grown flowers."
For more information:
Flowers from the Farm
www.flowersfromthefarm.co.uk