The No-Till Flowers Podcast podcast | Listen online for free

Available Episodes

5 of 46

10 Late Season Flower Crops for November Sales with Dave Dowling
Dave Dowling is back for this episode. He’s a fan favorite and if you haven’t already listened to the Everything Tulips episode and Everything Ranunculus episode here, be sure to go back to grab those. Dave is well-known in the flower farmer sphere for his wealth of knowledge and decades of experience in farming and sales. I asked Dave back so he could help me hash out what flowers are viable crops for November sales. I’ve heard more and more growers talking about skipping summer production in favor of focusing on the shoulder seasons, myself included. The summer heat can flatten you. And summer sales tend to drop off as everyone goes on holiday. And after a whole season of training customers to buy from you, it’s a shame to just drop them at the first frost. Here in the northern Hemisphere, there’s tremendous opportunity for brisk sales in November, if you have some infrastructure like a high tunnel or greenhouse. Retail sales reach a near fever pitch as customers realize cold weather is setting in and they’ll soon be without their local harvests. Thanksgiving can be a big floral holiday here in the U.S.. Wedding florists are still quite busy too in November as many couples have opted for a shoulder season date to either save a little on the budget or to also avoid that damn summer heat. The problem is that usually we just think of mums when it comes to end of season sales. And even with all the specialty and heirloom varieties available to growers at the moment, mums alone don’t make a bouquet. Weather you’re selling at farmers market, doing weddings yourself, or selling wholesale to florists, you need a more diverse product mix to grab interest and bigger sales. Dave and I go over a list of 10 late fall crops that can be harvested for gorgeous November bouquets and a really nice injection of cash in your bank account right before winter. Be sure to have a notebook handy when listening so you can jot down the particulars of each. For easy reference, here are the 10 crops we discuss (NOTE, these are crops grown in a tunnel/greenhouse): Stock Flowering Cabbage/Kale Snapdragons (Group 2 or 3) Sunflowers Lisianthus Lillies (LA Royal Sunset and Callas) Alstromeria Mums Celosia Eucalyptus WANT TO LEARN MORE? Join the Regenerative Flower Farmers Network (RFFN) for just $20/year if you'd like to continue the conversation on topics covered in this episode. You'll also gain access to lots of helpful articles, discussion boards, and online courses. On-demand Online Courses for Farmers Available on RFFN: Foliage for the Win Successful Flower CSAs and Subscriptions CREW: Hiring and Managing Simple Steps to Better Marketing Woodies: Playing the Long Game Tap into the above courses and resources any time you need. These are available on-demand through the Regenerative Flower Farmers Network. >>> FOR THE MONTH OF MARCH, GET 3 SHORT COURSES FOR $300. Past episodes with Dave Dowling further listening include: Everything Ranunculus with Dave Dowling Everything Tulips with Dave Dowling HAVE IDEAS AND FEEDBACK ABOUT THE PODCAST? Share your opinions in this brief survey. As always, if you appreciate this podcast and all the education it provides, please take a moment out of your day to rate and write a review for it on Apple Podcasts or wherever you are listening to it.
--------
1:00:16
How Farmers Can Improve Plant Health with Endophytic Microbes: A Conversation with Dr. James White
I’ve long followed the fascinating research of Dr. James White of Rutgers University in New Jersey. He is a plant pathologist with a PhD in mycology. His specialty is "symbiosis research", particularly the impact of endophytic microbes in plant development and behavior. The nerdiest among you will rejoice at a science-rich episode in which Dr. White helps us understand how bacteria and fungus enter a plant as endophytes to help plants defend against stress, diseases and pests as well as provide the nutrients they need for growth and development. Turns out plants are farmers too! And in many ways we human farmers need to get out of their way and let them do their own work! In this episodes we talk about the rhizophagy cycle, in which microbes – not humans – provide the nutrients plants need. We also talk about how we can support the rhizophagy cycle by boosting soil biology as a whole, something many of you are already doing through regenerative farming. And we talk about how seed production can be adjusted to produce stock for healthier plants and greater resiliency in the face of climate change. So if you’re seed saving, make sure you listen closely to that part! What’s really exciting about Dr. White’s research is two parts: First, his work has shown that if we pay attention to soil biology – namely endophytes -- we create disease suppressing soils. With a bounty of diverse biology in the soil, devastating diseases like fusarium and pythium not only become benign but may even become beneficial! Whaaaaa??? Secondly, while Dr. White has not conducted research directly on homemade inputs like JADAM Liquid Fertilizer and other brews a la Korean Natural Farming, he absolutely sees a correlation between them and his studies of the impact of endophytic microbes on plant health and production. In particular, he sees these inputs as very beneficial at the time of seed starting, helping to load up the soil surrounding the seed with diverse and bountiful biology, which will lead to better root development and disease resistance. Which means this is a great time to remind you to go back in the archives here of No-Till Flowers and relisten to Episode 28 where I talked with Lisa Zeigler about Seed Starting, Regenerative Style. Learn more from Dr. James White by listening to these two episdoes on the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast with John Kempf: Reshaping How Agriculture Sees Plant Nutrient Uptake How Plant Absorb Living Microbes and Convert Soil Pathogens into Beneficials And read some of Dr. White's research papers on Research Gate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/James-White-31 WANT TO LEARN MORE? Join the Regenerative Flower Farmers Network (RFFN) for just $20/year if you'd like to continue the conversation on topics covered in this episode. You'll also gain access to lots of helpful articles, discussion boards, and online courses. On-demand Online Courses for Farmers Available on RFFN: Foliage for the Win Successful Flower CSAs and Subscriptions CREW: Hiring and Managing Simple Steps to Better Marketing Tap into the above courses and resources any time you need. These are available on-demand through the Regenerative Flower Farmers Network. >>> FOR THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY, GET 3 SHORT COURSES FOR $300. Past episodes that discuss soil health and biomes for further listening include: Episdoe 29: Nutrient Balancing in Living Soils with Bryan Mason Episode 34: Why I Love to Spray at My Farm: Boosting the Phyllosphere Episode 17: Natural Inputs with Nigel Palmer Episode 15: Korean Natural Farming and JADAM in Flower Farming with Tony Gaetz of Bare Mountain Farm HAVE IDEAS AND FEEDBACK ABOUT THE PODCAST? Share your opinions in this brief survey. As always, if you appreciate this podcast and all the education it provides, please take a moment out of your day to rate and write a review for it on Apple Podcasts or wherever you are listening to it.
--------
1:21:23
Regenerative Flower Farming with Jennie Love: A Replay from The Flower Podcast
In today's episode, we are replaying an interview that originally aired on The Flower Podcast, where host Scott Shepherd interviewed yours truly, Jennie Love, about regenerative flower farming. This seemed like a great conversation to include in the archives here on No-Till Flowers. Deep gratitude to Scott for sharing it with us! Be sure to follow The Flower Podcast for more great flora-focused conversations. And there are new fresh episodes coming soon! A few guests got hit with the flu and it's pushed back our production schedule. But we're getting everything rescheduled and will be hitting the air soon with those! WANT TO LEARN MORE? Join the Regenerative Flower Farmers Network (RFFN) for just $20/year if you'd like to continue the conversation on topics covered in this episode. You'll also gain access to lots of helpful articles, discussion boards, and online courses. On-demand Short Courses for Farmers on RFFN: Foliage for the Win Successful Flower CSAs and Subscriptions CREW: Hiring and Managing Simple Steps to Better Marketing Woodies: Playing the Long Game (coming in February 2025) Tap into the above courses and resources any time you need. These are available on-demand through the Regenerative Flower Farmers Network. Current RFFN members shoud follow this link to access the Short Courses at the discounted member rate. Past episodes for further learning about regenerative farming practices include: Episdoe 29: Nutrient Balancing in Living Soils with Bryan Mason Episode 34: Why I Love to Spray at My Farm: Boosting the Phyllosphere Episode 17: Natural Inputs with Nigel Palmer Episode 15: Korean Natural Farming and JADAM in Flower Farming with Tony Gaetz of Bare Mountain Farm HAVE IDEAS AND FEEDBACK ABOUT THE PODCAST? Share your opinions in this brief survey. As always, if you appreciate this podcast and all the education it provides, please take a moment out of your day to rate and write a review for it on Apple Podcasts or wherever you are listening to it.
--------
1:12:01
Organic Seed Breeding with Will Hazzard
In this episode, we’re digging into organic seed production. Seed saving and breeding are all the rage in the flower farming world at the moment, which is an exciting way to dive even deeper into the world of flowers and get even nerdier. And we all love getting nerdier, don’t we? :-) Today's guest, Will Hazard, is the zinnia breeding project lead at the University of California, Davis. Through the SCOPE program -- which stands for Sustainable Crop Production and Enhancement, Will and his team of fellow research students have been breaking new ground in flower breeding that benefits both the environment and future generations of farmers. In particular, they’ve honed in on zinnias to breed for better stem length and disease resistance. In this conversation, Will unpacks the challenges, the innovations, and the incredible potential of this vital field of study. Mentioned in this Episode: UC Davis SCOPE Project Video demo of saving zinnia seeds properly UC Davis Zinnia Bulletin 2024 UC Davis Instagram (with lots of zinnia breeding photos) Tips for Getting Involved in Organic Seed Breeding Podcast with John Kempf and Dr. James White discussing seed biomes Email Will directly at [email protected] WANT TO LEARN MORE? Join the Regenerative Flower Farmers Network (RFFN) for just $20/year if you'd like to continue the conversation on topics covered in this episode. You'll also gain access to lots of helpful articles, discussion boards, and online courses. On-demand Short Courses for Farmers on RFFN: Foliage for the Win Successful Flower CSAs and Subscriptions CREW: Hiring and Managing Simple Steps to Better Marketing Woodies: Playing the Long Game (coming in February 2025) Tap into the above courses and resources any time you need. These are available on-demand through the Regenerative Flower Farmers Network. Current RFFN members shoud follow this link to access the Short Courses at the discounted member rate. --- If you enjoyed this episode, you might also want to listen to: Episode 28: Seed Starting, Regenerative Style with Lisa Mason Zeigler Episode 24: Farming to Heal the Ecosystem with Dr. Doug Tallamy Episode 31: Beneficial Insects and Natural Pest Control with IPM Expert Margaret Parks of Evergreen Growers Supply --- Sign up for our newsletter so you'll be the first to know about special events and other opportunities. Follow @notillflowers on Instagram for more content. HAVE IDEAS AND FEEDBACK ABOUT THE PODCAST? Share your opinions in this brief survey. As always, if you appreciate this podcast and all the education it provides, please take a moment out of your day to rate and write a review for it on Apple Podcasts or wherever you are listening to it. Thanks for tuning in!
--------
1:31:48
Feeding Our Own Biomes with Functional Medicine
Welcome to Season 5 of No-Till Flowers! It's good to be back!! We’re starting off with a fairly personal episode as I share what’s changed for me and my health in 2024. This past season was my 17th season farming and selling flowers. There has been a lot of wear and tear on my body, mind and spirit along the way. I would wager heavily that no small business owner understands what they are signing up for at the beginning. Or even many years into it. The first 10 or so years are just holding on for dear life. The highs and lows of this rollercoaster ride lurch your emotions and mind all over the place. For too long, we define success as making a sale and making a customer happy. In most cases, we outright forfeit our own well-being. At least that certainly was the case for me. When our bodies are under chronic elevated stress and we’re not eating well (which pretty much describes every farmer), our internal ecosystem starts to break down. Our bodies host trillions of microbes that that make us surprisingly similar to soil biomes. In this episode, we learn about how to better support our personal gut biomes so we can better support our farms and larger communities. My guest today is Susan Brown, a functional medicine practitioner I've worked with over the past year to improve my own biome. If you’d like to work directly with Susan, her website is https://www.nourishwithsusanbrown.com/ Find a functional medicine practitioner near you with this site: https://www.ifm.org/find-a-practitioner If you’d like to learn more about supporting your gut biome and supporting your body as a whole, here are a few links to podcasts that can help you learn more: Dr. Zach Bush interview on Feel Better, Live More Podcast Dr. William Li interview on Feel Better, Live More Podcast How to Control Blood Sugar on Feel Better, Live More Podcast The Dr. Hyman Show Susan mentioned a supplement, Ion Biome, made from ancient soil. Here’s the link to that. Please note that I have not tried this supplement personally so can not speak to its effectiveness. Other Supplements she mentioned were: Cytozyme-AD for adrenal support Magnesium glycinate LMNT for electrolytes and magnesium Vitamin D3 K2 (remember to eat some fat at the same time you’re taking this one – like an avocado) Here’s a recipe for a quick and healthy meal you can take into the field with you: CHOCOLATE CHIA PUDDING - 1 can of unsweetened full fat coconut milk (Try Native Forest brand) - 1 scoop chocolate protein powder (Try SunWarrior brand if you don’t have a favorite already) - 6 Tbsp chia seeds - 1 tsp vanilla extract - 1 pinch of sea salt - dash of cinnamon (optional) Mix everything together. Use an immersion/stick blender to get it all really combined for a smooth creamy pudding. Divide out into glass jars or other containers you can grab on the go. Keep cold. Can be stored in the fridge for 3-4 days. When you're ready to eat, top with fresh berries and/or shredded coconut. Why is this recipe so good for you? Coconut milk is a superfood that heals and supports for your gut microbiology. And all the good fat in it balances your blood sugar levels so your energy is stable throughout the day (no more sugar crashes!). Chia seeds, also a superfood, have tons of fiber and omega-3. The protein powder helps your muscles recover from fatigue faster. The sea salt adds some micronutrients and electrolytes. And the fresh berries on top add more fiber and antioxidants. Plus it's just dang yummy! Would you like more recipes and a chance to connect with others who have experiences similar to yours? Join the Regenerative Flower Farmers Network (RFFN) for just $20/year if you'd like to continue the conversation on topics covered in this episode. On-demand Short Courses for Farmers Available on RFFN: Foliage for the Win Successful Flower CSAs and Subscriptions CREW: Hiring and Managing Simple Steps to Better Marketing Tap into the above courses and resources any time you need. These are available on-demand through the Regenerative Flower Farmers Network. >>> FOR THE MONTH OF JANUARY, GET 3 SHORT COURSES FOR $300. Past episodes that discuss soil health and biomes for further listening include: Episdoe 29: Nutrient Balancing in Living Soils with Bryan Mason Episode 34: Why I Love to Spray at My Farm: Boosting the Phyllosphere Episode 17: Natural Inputs with Nigel Palmer Episode 15: Korean Natural Farming and JADAM in Flower Farming with Tony Gaetz of Bare Mountain Farm HAVE IDEAS AND FEEDBACK ABOUT THE PODCAST? Share your opinions in this brief survey. As always, if you appreciate this podcast and all the education it provides, please take a moment out of your day to rate and write a review for it on Apple Podcasts or wherever you are listening to it.
--------
1:28:38