Field & Garden

My love of rudbeckias has turned into a bit of an obsession. They are, after all, a pretty easy family to fall in love with. Some of the reasons I love them:

• Easy to start (most are anyway)
• Need little tending other than full sun and a little water to get started after transplanting
• The abundance of stems to harvest will wear you out
• Long-lasting in the vase
• The variety of native bees you meet there is fascinating
• The occasional aphid outbreak is a treat for my beneficial insects just waiting to eat them
• The cleanup crew (goldfinches) swoop in and eat the seeds developing on old flowers
• If you play your cards right—they will reseed in the garden.

The cut stems are major contributors to my flower farming business and a key ingredient that makes my farm attractive to so many native bees. Bonus: they are winter hardy to zone 5 which means they can be fall planted for earlier blooms in zones 5,6,7,8,9 for taller stems, and more abundance. Early spring plantings can extend the season but won't deliver as tall stems or abundance in my experience. Frankly, I never knew there were so many varieties until I started farming. Most are excellent long-lasting cut flowers plus there are always extra blooms for the pollinators and hungry birds. I am growing several new to me this season: Sahara, Cherokee Sunset, Denver Daisy, and Cherry Brandy. Find all my favorite rudbeckia seeds here: Indian Summer. Prairie Sun, Goldilocks, and Double Daisy. Honorable mentions but not in the R. Hirta family: R. triloba and R. maxima I'm interested in the coloring which is so difficult to see true in images and if these will invite any new visitors to my garden. I love what this family offers as cut flowers and beneficial creatures. The fourth section in my book Vegetables Love Flowers is titled "Heros of the Garden" and features the image I love of a goldfinch sitting on my rudbeckia-- iconic! Enjoy! Hosted by Lisa Ziegler The Gardener's Workshop and Flower Farming School Online and the publisher of Farmer-Florist School Online and Florist School Online. Award-winning Author of Vegetables Love Flowers and Cool Flowers. Watch Lisa's Story and view her blog Field & Garden. Connect with Lisa on Facebook and Instagram!

Lots of folks reaching out because of fears they are experiencing about their Cool Flowers facing cold weather. I understand and suffer from the same thing from time to time. It's natural, but we need to do all we can to meet their needs to maximize success. I'm sharing the replay from a Clubhouse chat I hosted that includes encouragement and some steps to follow to stack the cards in favor of your cool-season hardy annuals. Mentions: The Cool-Season Flower Chronicles includes 5 videos and the doorway to other resources. The Secret Sauce Cool Flowers article ! Hosted by Lisa Ziegler The Gardener's Workshop and Flower Farming School Online and the publisher of Farmer-Florist School Online and Florist School Online. Award-winning Author of Vegetables Love Flowers and Cool Flowers. Watch Lisa's Story and view her blog Field & Garden. Connect with Lisa on Facebook and Instagram!

Overspending is a common struggle we face in life, being in business is no different. The point of going into business is to make a profit. Many businesses never make it because of habitual business overspending. It is challenging enough to only spend on what is really needed to succeed — throw in overspending and it's easy to see how so many fail. Many fall for spending unnecessarily before it's even known if it is needed yet. Start small and grow slowly, keep it simple, learn how to flower farm efficiently to turn a profit, and step away from the catalogs! Excited about our partnership with the Growing For Market Magazine. Use the coupon code: WORKSHOP to get 25% off any subscription. Hosted by Lisa Ziegler The Gardener's Workshop and Flower Farming School Online and the publisher of Farmer-Florist School Online and Florist School Online. Award-winning Author of Vegetables Love Flowers and Cool Flowers. Watch Lisa's Story and view her blog Field & Garden. Connect with Lisa on Facebook and Instagram!

Do you make more to-do lists than you can ever get to? I do. This year I decided to make a new list, what I have done, and friends, it made me feel a whole lot better! In this episode, I am sharing how I got to the place I am today. The piece that I believe is key to how I was able to succeed and more. For more on my gardening love story of marrying Steve read my book, Cool Flowers. Learn about going from a novice gardener to starting a flower farm in my book Vegetables Love Flowers. Hosted by Lisa Ziegler The Gardener's Workshop and Flower Farming School Online and the publisher of Farmer-Florist School Online and Florist School Online. Award-winning Author of Vegetables Love Flowers and Cool Flowers. Watch Lisa's Story and view her blog Field & Garden. Connect with Lisa on Facebook and Instagram!

I didn't love it when I was told I had to clear my mind and rest, BUT it did prove to be essential for my business's success. Honestly, I thought it was a waste of time, but the advice was dead right. Enjoy this replay of a Clubhouse chat sharing that I've learned that taking a few deliberate steps to benefit my business in the dead of winter---helps to get me through the heat of summer. Enjoy! Hosted by Lisa Ziegler The Gardener's Workshop and Flower Farming School Online and the publisher of Farmer-Florist School Online and Florist School Online. Award-winning Author of Vegetables Love Flowers and Cool Flowers. Watch Lisa's Story and view her blog Field & Garden. Connect with Lisa on Facebook and Instagram!

FOMO: Fear Of Missing Out. It can happen to anyone and I hear from lots of folks struggling with it. Sometimes we just feel like we've missed the right timing or aren't getting the results we see others getting that can lead to: FOMO, fear of missing out. Resist it y'all! Learn more about Cool Flowers, get the book and the related resources. Hosted by Lisa Ziegler The Gardener's Workshop and Flower Farming School Online and the publisher of Farmer-Florist School Online and Florist School Online. Award-winning Author of Vegetables Love Flowers and Cool Flowers. Watch Lisa's Story and view her blog Field & Garden. Connect with Lisa on Facebook and Instagram!

I can feel the pain in the messages I receive about the worries folks have about their Cool Flowers facing the cold. Should I cover? What about snow? And then there are the calls asking us to rush their row cover orders cause cold is coming! I get it because I've been there and still revisit those fears occasionally. In this episode, I am sharing what is this cool-season gardening concept and even a few tidbits to help ease fears. It all comes down to planting timing, knowing your winter hardiness zone, and the winter hardiness zone of the plant you are planting. To learn more about growing cool-season flowers: Check out my book Cool Flowers and the free video series The Cool-Season Flower Chronicles and related free resources. Connect with my good friend and cool-season vegetable garden expert: Niki Jabbour Instagram Facebook. Hosted by Lisa Ziegler The Gardener's Workshop and Flower Farming School Online and the publisher of Farmer-Florist School Online and Florist School Online. Award-winning Author of Vegetables Love Flowers and Cool Flowers. Watch Lisa's Story and view her blog Field & Garden. Connect with Lisa on Facebook and Instagram!

Designers and florists if you are looking for a good "business" reason to take your staff on a field trip that will inspire their design work and creativity (not to mention yours) plus boost morale: flower farm tours are the ticket. In this episode, Ellen Frost of Local Color Flowers shares why she closed her shop for a day and took her team on an ASCFG member tour. A great idea to kick off this time of high demand, low import supply that is going to continue for sure into 2022. This is good team builder stuff! Connect with Ellen: Local Color Flowers Instagram Florist-Farmer Connection private Facebook Group Florist Buying Local: Instagram Facebook Ellen's course: Florist School Online: Growing Your Business With Local Flower Sourcing Hosted by Lisa Ziegler The Gardener's Workshop and Flower Farming School Online and the publisher of Farmer-Florist School Online and Florist School Online. Award-winning Author of Vegetables Love Flowers and Cool Flowers. Watch Lisa's Story and view her blog Field & Garden. Connect with Lisa on Facebook and Instagram!

In this episode, I am sharing the What, When, Why, and How I use lightweight floating row covers. I know that I totally underestimated the power of lightweight covers and the many uses they lend themselves to including preventing wind and pest damage. Floating row covers Hoops Weight bags Kit with all above My favorite gloves that help push hoops into the ground Facebook Live video demonstrating installing the cover. The demo starts at minute 27:00. My book: Vegetables Love Flowers – Lisa Ziegler The Gardener's Workshop and Flower Farming School Online and the publisher of Farmer-Florist School Online and Florist School Online. Award-winning Author of Vegetables Love Flowers and Cool Flowers. Watch Lisa's Story and view her blog Field & Garden. Connect with Lisa on Facebook and Instagram!

In this episode, I'm sharing a chat about how I use leaves, other mulches, and compost in my garden. I believe the use of mulches and the benefits of leaf litter are grossly overlooked in the gardening and farming worlds. Join me on Wednesdays at 1 pm on Clubhouse to join the live conversation. Download the phone app, join Clubhouse and join my Flower Farming Club. – Lisa Ziegler The Gardener's Workshop and Flower Farming School Online and the publisher of Farmer-Florist School Online and Florist School Online. Award-winning Author of Vegetables Love Flowers and Cool Flowers. Watch Lisa's Story and view her blog Field & Garden. Connect with Lisa on Facebook and Instagram!