Fall Colors!

Heliopsis and marigolds dried and ready for some gorgeous fall arrangements!

A Morning Walk...

My morning walk around the flower farm. The sights and scents beautifully accompanied by a chorus of song from the birds. So quiet, so peaceful and so many blessings to count!

Zinnias!

These zinnias were growing in our gardens yesterday. Today they have been perfectly preserved and are ready to use in our arrangements,wreaths and swags! In addition to our freeze-dry machine, we use a sand-vac machine to dry our flowers. The sand-vac machine dries flowers by burying the blooms in silica gel, placing them under a vacuum and applying heat. A cycle in the freeze-dry machine can take 10 days to 2 weeks to complete. A cycle in the sand-vac machine takes 24 to 48 hours. The sand-vac machine works beautifully to preserve flowers that do not dry easily in the freeze-dry machine. We keep all of our equipment very busy at this time of year!

Hydrangea Harvesting

A beautiful morning for Hydrangea harvesting!

Feeling Refreshed!

If anyone needs me this afternoon I will be here. Underneath this pivot...pulling a few weeds in the vegetable garden...feeling refreshed!

Our First Tomato!

Our first tomato and it's a Cherokee Purple! Ken's favorite! Harvest tomatoes when they are beginning to show color. This is the time when the fruits have received all of the nutrients they need from the plant and they will ripen perfectly indoors. This method also protects the tomatoes from grasshoppers who are attracted to the ripening fruit.

Grow It And They Will Come!

Grow it and they will come! We love all the little creatures who call our gardens their home!

Busy As A Bee

This Bumblebee nest fell from a birdhouse that was toppled in the storm a few weeks ago. It's easy to see where the term 'busy as a bee' came from. They are constantly flying in and out of the hive intent on doing their jobs. Occasionally two will meet at the entrance fluttering their wings in some sort of Bumblebee communication. This morning the queen was on the outside of the hive doing some housekeeping...moving all the bits of fiber and leaves into a perfect mound. It's been fun to get a glimpse into the life of these beautiful pollinators.

Harvesting...

Headed out early to harvest Northern Sea Oats and herbs...

with the help of my assistant. It's going to be another hot day!

Monday Morning Sunrise...

Monday morning sunrise on the flower farm with much appreciated moisture being delivered by a country sprinkler!

Plumeria!

I get the best souvenirs when my friends come home from vacation! Thanks Gramma J and Auntie Chris for the Plumeria cuttings from Hawaii! We're going to have lots of fragrant blooms this year!

Lacto-Fermenting 101

Remember to get registered for Saturday's 'Lacto-Fermenting 101' class! Learn to make an assortment of fermented foods and beverages! Samples of fermented foods to taste and everyone attending will be making their own jar of veggies to take home and ferment! Detailed instruction sheet included. Guest speaker Jennie Dunavin Fremont Hy Vee Registered Dietician. July 15 from 1 to 3 pm. Class fee $10.00. Limited seating. Advanced registration required. Contact Sue Fase at tlccountryfloral@yahoo.com, send us  a message or call (402) 654-2058.

Succulent Sale!

It's Second Saturday! We're open today from 9 to 5! We're celebrating by having a huge one day only succulent sale! Stop by and choose your favorites...only $2.99 (reg. $3.59)! Lots of new treasures! Hope to see you!

Strategic Planning!

After much strategic planning the remaining part of this giant Ash tree damaged in the storm is now on the ground. No people, animals or plants were harmed in the process. Whew! You will hear the sound of a chainsaw when you visit us tomorrow. Feeling grateful!

Second Saturday!

It's Second Saturday on the flower farm! We'll be open tomorrow from 9 to 5! To celebrate we have a huge sale on our succulents...only $2.99 (reg. $3.59)! Stop by to see how the gardens are growing and check out the new treasures! Freshly baked Tomato Basil and Ciabatta bread, too! Hope to see you!

Growing Cucumbers In Containers

Have you ever tried growing Cucumbers in a container? A few years ago Squash Bugs and Cucumber Beetles were obliterating our harvest in the veggie garden. We love fermented and refrigerator pickles and came up with an alternative method to insure our harvest of tasty green Cukes!  'Jackson Classic' is a pickling-type cucumber and is perfect for growing in a container! Place 3 to 4 plants or seeds in a large container with a topiary. As the vines grow they can be tied to the topiary making the fruits easy to harvest. Keeping the vines off the ground seems to deter the pests. We plant two of these containers among our blooms on the flower farm and will successfully harvest over 70 cucumbers to enjoy. This is also a great way to grow cucumbers in a small space and it's a fun project for the kiddos! It's early enough in the season to give this method a try! 

You may notice a few tattered leaves on this plant. It was upended in our storm two weeks ago. The cosmetic damage is definitely not affecting our harvest!

Day Lilies!

There are some gorgeous Day Lilies blooming here on the flower farm!

Don't forget! It's time for our July Second Saturday! We'll be open this Saturday, July 8 from 9 to 5! To celebrate we're having a sale on our huge collection of succulents. One day only! Choose your favorites for only $2.99...regularly $3.59! Hope to see you!

Have A Safe and Happy 4th!

This is the closest thing to a sparkler that we're going to have on the flower farm but we're sure enjoying the beautiful firework displays from our vantage point! Have a safe and Happy 4th!

Turnip Time!

Some of our Hakurei turnips are ready to harvest from the garden! These turnips are delicious eaten raw, roasted, steamed...and of course...fermented! We found some beautiful broccoli, cauliflower and carrots while visiting the farmer's market. Perfect for adding a bit of color! A half teaspoon of mustard seed, dill seed and minced garlic will add tons of flavor to each quart jar. A kale leaf from the garden is covering the veggies. Two kale stems are criss-crossed and forced under the shoulders of the jars to insure that everything stays submerged below the brine. The brine ratio is 1 tablespoon finely ground pink Himalayan sea salt dissolved into 2 cups of water (3 to 3 1/2 % ratio). 

I spent a total of $7.00 at the farmers market and yielded 13 quarts of fermented veggies. The last time I checked the price of a name brand fermented kraut it was around $10.00. At that price my 13 quarts of fermented food would have cost $166.40. Fermenting your food at home is economical, easy and an investment into your nutrition and health. If you need some extra veggies to ferment...remember to visit your farmers market! By doing so you are supporting your local farmers who choose to raise their products in a healthy and sustainable manner! 

One more little tip for our veggie gardening friends! We use this adorable antique wire egg basket for harvesting our root vegetables. Makes it so easy to rinse the dirt from our harvest before bringing it inside!

Our next class is scheduled for July 15! Hope you can attend!

Happy Fermenting!

Freeze-Drying!

Roses, Dianthus and Yarrow ready for the freeze-dry machine!

Night Time Blooms!

Our Night Blooming Cereus cactuses are loaded with buds! 

They bloom at night so you have to get out there early in the morning to catch these gorgeous flowers!