A little Q & A on Organic/Sustainable Flowers:
Q. Are organic flowers more expensive?
A. No! Many large sustainable greenhouses have found ways of becoming more efficient, such as using parasitic insects do the work on the bad bugs- saving labor costs and costs of chemical pesticides. They are able to keep their operation costs down, making their flowers just as affordable as conventionally grown ones.
Q. Are organic flowers going to be bug infested?
A. There's always a chance with field grow flowers, but we carefully rinse our flowers prior to putting them on display.
Q. Don't organic flowers have a shorter vase life?
A. No! In fact, most of our flowers are shipped direct from the farms instead of going to auctions, then distributors, then the florist and consumer.
Also to note, all varieties of flowers vary in their lasting ability- A dahlia tends to last about 4-5 days in a vase opposed to a lily or rose that can last up to 2 weeks with proper care(handling instructions to soon follow).
Please let us know if there are any other questions or concerns you might have on organic flowers. We're here to help!
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Thursday, October 4, 2007
WELCOME!
Welcome to our blog! We're finally here to share the exciting news and challanges we have faced to become the Northwest's premier ORGANIC, full service florist. TerraBella Flowers is a spin off of the the legendary Phinney Ridge Florist, a flower shop known for it's unique European garden style arrangements- award winner of the Flower and Garden Show, and listed as one of the top florists by Seattle Bridal Magazine of 2006.
So why organic? I purchased Phinney Ridge Florist almost 2 yrs ago, when I decided to combine my love of floral design with my background in environmental science. Once upon a time I thought it would be a good idea to study hazardous waste management. I spent my summers in Mexico where I saw first hand the detrimental effects poor waste management was having on the local community. I began volunteering for the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, cold calling for donations to support the cause, and needless to say, it was a job that left little room for artistic expression.
Hoping to still fulfill my desire to do something good in the world, and combining it with my love of floral design (my Aunt owned a flower shop, inspiring me at a very young age) I decided to look deeper into the world of flower production and found out some very scary facts (I HIGHLY recommend reading Amy Stewarts, 'Flower Confidential' to learn more on this, and for a very interesting read).
My first go at being a shop owner was in 2001, when I successfully sold flowers out of my 1969 Airstream trailer on the corner of 65th and 3rd Ave in Stumbletown. It was short lived however, as the wind kept ripping my canopy off and my daughter needed a little TLC after a hip surgery. When I was ready to get back into designing, I decided having a permanent structure has some serious advantages here in the Northwest, and bought Phinney Ridge Florist.
So here I am, ready to challenge conventional floral growers, and to save a few toxic heartaches in the process.
Melissa
So why organic? I purchased Phinney Ridge Florist almost 2 yrs ago, when I decided to combine my love of floral design with my background in environmental science. Once upon a time I thought it would be a good idea to study hazardous waste management. I spent my summers in Mexico where I saw first hand the detrimental effects poor waste management was having on the local community. I began volunteering for the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, cold calling for donations to support the cause, and needless to say, it was a job that left little room for artistic expression.
Hoping to still fulfill my desire to do something good in the world, and combining it with my love of floral design (my Aunt owned a flower shop, inspiring me at a very young age) I decided to look deeper into the world of flower production and found out some very scary facts (I HIGHLY recommend reading Amy Stewarts, 'Flower Confidential' to learn more on this, and for a very interesting read).
My first go at being a shop owner was in 2001, when I successfully sold flowers out of my 1969 Airstream trailer on the corner of 65th and 3rd Ave in Stumbletown. It was short lived however, as the wind kept ripping my canopy off and my daughter needed a little TLC after a hip surgery. When I was ready to get back into designing, I decided having a permanent structure has some serious advantages here in the Northwest, and bought Phinney Ridge Florist.
So here I am, ready to challenge conventional floral growers, and to save a few toxic heartaches in the process.
Melissa
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