January 03, 2019

Favorite Sources for Seeds, Supplies, etc.

January 03, 2019/ Nicolette Irving

Winter on the farm follows a slower, less frantic pace than the rest of the year. I have a massive list of projects to complete before the pace picks up again in March, but there are no flowers to be picked or buckets to be washed. Nothing is urgent and its a feeling that I relish. One of the top priorities in winter is making sure my crop plans are in place, seeds have been ordered and supplies are fully stocked. Ordering seeds early is important to ensure that I get the varieties and quantities needed.

November 12, 2018

Fresh Color Palette Inspiration

November 12, 2018/ Nicolette Irving

If you follow along on social media, you are probably well aware of my love for vibrant color. From the flowers that I grow on the farm to the bouquets that I design for weddings and elopements, I am all about color.

October 02, 2018

Spring Flowers You Can Plant Now

October 02, 2018/ Nicolette Irving

Each year in October, I feel a sense of relief that the season of rest is quickly approaching (that season of rest is also known as Winter), and also the feeling that there are not enough hours in the day to get everything done. Fall is also the time to plant cold hardy annuals, also known as cool flowers. Pansies come to mind for most people when thinking of cool flowers, but there are so many more to plant now for spring blooms!

August 19, 2018

My Favorite Zinnia Varieties + A Farm Update

August 19, 2018/ Nicolette Irving

This has been hands down our most challenging farming season yet. We knew that it would be inherently difficult because we moved the farm from our leased location in Candler to our new farm in Asheville (and moving a farm is not for the faint of heart), but between the weather and unforeseen circumstances, its been exponentially harder than we imagined.

May 10, 2018

Pantone Project with Carley of 'Long Live Simple'

May 10, 2018/ Nicolette Irving

Most of you know how important collaboration is to me personally and to what we do at Flourish. Whether its collaborating with photographers for styled shoots or a calligrapher to create special details at our workshops, I love working with other local artists and creatives! So I was so excited to have the opportunity recently to interview local Asheville graphic designer Carley Lee, owner of Long Live Simple.

April 24, 2018

Tenacity: How We're Breaking Ground at the New Farm

April 24, 2018/ Nicolette Irving

Spring has brought a blend of great progress and heartbreaking setbacks. Not only has the weather been some of the worst on record, the process of moving a farm is exponentially difficult. Going into 2018, I knew that this year will likely be the toughest I've lived thus far, so back in January I taped the word TENACITY onto my desk and repeat it as a mantra.

March 20, 2018

My Top 6 Favorite Summer Flowers

March 20, 2018/ Nicolette Irving

Because today marks the first official day of spring and you're probably itching to get your hands in the dirt, I wanted to share my top 6 favorite summer flowers to sow now. Even though dahlias would definitely be near the top of my list, this list is focused on flowers you can easily plant from seed, whereas dahlias are grown from tubers. While in most areas its still too risky to plant any heat loving flowers outside yet, it is the right time to start these seeds indoors.

March 01, 2018

Snippets of Spring

March 01, 2018/ Nicolette Irving

Spring is teasing us here in the Blue Ridge Mountains. After an unseasonably cold and wet winter, we had a couple cherished weeks of warm temps and sunny skies. It felt like you could literally watch the plants grow overnight! Here are some scenes from around the farm over the past week or so . . .

February 07, 2018

Flower Farming Books

February 07, 2018/ Nicolette Irving

I love reading! Give me a good book over TV any day and I'm a happy gal. But sadly I don't have (or make) the time during the busy farm season to do much reading - probably because I fall asleep as soon as I sit down. So winter is my chance to catch up on all the reading that I daydream about during the summer. While historical fiction is probably my "escapist" reading of choice, winter reading is also about catching up on research and new ideas too. So here are some recommendations from this winter, plus all time favorites for inspiration and reference that have a permanent place at my desk.

January 28, 2018

Sweet Pea Seeding + A Giveaway!

January 28, 2018/ Nicolette Irving

Even though winter has been more severe than anyone predicted or hoped, I'm still full steam ahead with preparing for the coming season. The very first flowers that I seed in the winter are sweet peas. I have tried for the past 2 years to overwinter them in the field and in the hoop house, and both methods were unsuccessful - the vines were too damaged by wind and cold to recover, even under a layer of row cover.

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