American Flower Week

Did you know that only 20% of cut flowers sold in the US are actually grown here in America?  Tomorrow marks the start of American Flowers week, a campaign to bring awareness to the origin of cut flowers used in the floral industry.  American Flowers week was created by Debra Prinzing of Slowflowers.com and author of "The 50 Mile Bouquet".  Debra has this to say, "It's important to raise awareness for and celebrate American grown flowers, as well as flower farmers who grow a diverse selection of botanicals for the cut flower trade.  At the same time, we salute floral designers whose ethos and intent inspire them to source domestically."  As a flower farmer this cause is near and dear to my heart.  I don't think the average consumer realizes where their flowers are coming from and the journey they took to get there.  The average grocery store bouquet has travelled 2,000 miles and been exposed to up to 127 chemicals during it's lifetime.   40,000 boxes of flowers arrive daily into Miami International Airport, mostly coming from South America.  The majority of those flowers are transported out of water and smashed into a box. South American doesn't have the same environmental and labor regulations that govern American farmers.   $7-8 billion dollars are spent on flowers a year here in the US, with a measly 7% going to our American flower farmers.   Let's support our American farms first, we can provide a fresher product that is more sustainable.   This 4th of July, celebrate Independence from Imports and buy local.  We are giving out American Flower Week Coloring sheets at our booth this week at the market so stop and get one and pick up a bouquet for your cookout!