A Season of Learning

This spring has been one of learning. On top of welcoming our first baby, I pushed through my first ever tulip crop failure. This was my first major crop failure in 6 years of flower farming and it was mixed with the sleep deprivation of the newborn bubble. Not for the weak!

Last fall we planted out roughly 3,500 tulips, nearly double what we have planted in years past. My husband helped with much of the fall planting during my pregnancy. The blooms peaked through the surface of the soil just as our little one was born and they continued to produce healthy green foliage in the early days of spring. If you live in the area, then you know we were hit with historic rain falls mid April. Unfortunately this extreme moisture mixed with unseasonably warm temps hit the tulip crop HARD. An entire bed, containing half of this year’s crop, turned from green to gray. All of the buds became shriveled and the tulips essentially stopped growing. A major loss. Not only did this loss mean we were out thousands of dollars of anticipated income, it also meant I would need to conserve every healthy bud for spring bouquet subscribers. This meant being extremely sensitive with the harvest schedule and tulip storage all while caring for a newborn. TOUGH. They say it takes a village and it certainly does! My husband and sister helped with harvesting and storing blooms and local farmers at Happy Day Farmhaus and Fernabelle Acres helped to fill the gaps in my own tulip supply. I am forever grateful!

What does this mean for the years ahead? As I dive into motherhood and adjust to the extreme weather conditions that have come and gone over the past two years, I anticipate significantly cutting back on early spring offerings. Climate crisis has resulted in poor bulb harvests overseas in Holland. In return, bulb prices have nearly doubled. That paired with high import fees, extreme weather, and a demanding harvest just aren’t worth it at this point in time.

That doesn’t mean blooms will stop though! I plan to put all of my focus into the hearty summer season with an emphasis on June-August blooms. My favorites actually! The flower rows will still bloom with bearded irises, sweet peas, pansies, amaranth, cosmos, lisianthus, zinnias, dahlias, grasses, and more. The flower field may just be sans tulips for the near future.

Here’s to what’s to come ✿

Cheers,

Madison