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It's time to stop and smell the wildflowers - Kenai Peninsula Online

It’s easy to find yourself among the wildflowers in Alaska.The approach of summer solstice brings peak wildflower season on the Kenai Peninsula. The roadways are already brightened by the deep purple of the lupine. It’s hard, though, to predict exactly when the bloom will reach its height.“The question will be when they peak this year,” Kenai Wildlife Refuge Park Ranger Leah Eskelin said. “I wouldn’t even be able to put my finger on it because it’s different throughout the peninsula.”Eskelin said she saw all the wild roses and Labrador tea flowers out by the Swanson River in full bloom Monday and she saw the same in the Skilak area this weekend.“Those flowers are all blooming and then, here, around town, nothing,” Eskelin said.But the wildflower wait will end soon, leading to a wide array of flowers that create a palette of color.Alaska’s state flower, the sky-blue forget-me-not, can be found in alpine meadows, or as written in the margin of the 1917 bill that approved the flower as the Alaska Territory’s official floral emblem — “a little flower blossoms forth on every hill and dale, the emblem of the Pioneers... http://peninsulaclarion.com/outdoors/local/2017-06-15/it-s-time-stop-and-smell-wildflowers

Seasonal advantage gives state peony market room to grow - Alaskajournal.com

Lower 48 or in Holland but we haven’t accomplished this yet with our young farms in Alaska,” Williams said.Mike Williams of Alaska Peony Distributors said the company serves farms from the Kenai Peninsula to northern parts of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough with small planes chartered to fly flowers in to the pack house at Lake Hood.Single-engine planes typically carry a few hundred stems but larger, twin-engine aircraft can transport up to 6,000, Williams said.It takes about an hour to get the cut stems from the farm to the Lake Hood facility, where they are sorted for quality, chilled and packaged for shipment to the Lower 48 via Federal Express or cargo services of scheduled air carriers like Alaska Airlines and Delta Airlines, Mike Williams said.Alaska Peony Distributors buys the cut stems from the farmers and ships out to Lower 48 and some international buyers, selling to wholesalers as well as hotels and direct to retail outlets like grocery chains and florists.Although the logistics network is complex and expensive, covering about 7,800 square miles, Meghan Williams said the area covers about a dozen micro-climates, which creates a variation in harvesting schedules (higher altitudes makes for a later harvest) and stretches out the shipping season from Alaska.An example of this is at Homer, Mike Williams said.“Some farms there are in a maritime climate but at an 800-foot to 1,500-foot elevation, which means they harvest later than the rest of us,” he said.Williams’ own EagleSong farm is nearing the last stage of its 2016 harvest, typical for most farms, but Homer peony farmers will be able to add supply for several weeks longer, he said. There are also peony farms in Interior Alaska that handle their own distribution.Meghan Williams said there are no firm estimates of how many commercial peony farms are now operating in the state but she believes there are about 65. Many are small “boutique” farms with just a few hundred roots and specializing in rare and unusual peony varieties, she said. However, a handful are larger, like EagleSong, with 12,000 roots now producing.Mike Williams said the market growth has great potential because of Alaska’s seasonal advantage in selling. The European market is huge, with flower distributors in Amsterdam moving 20 million peony stems in a matter of weeks in June. The market potential in Asia is unknown, but it is equally large, he said.Agriculture will always be a small, niche industry. Historically, Alaskans had to produce much of their own food and dairy products before the advent of fast container ships, an improved Alaska Highway and efficient air cargo service.Farming in Alaska continues, and sometimes even thrives, in small niche markets, said Arthur Keyes, the state agriculture director. The thriving weekend farmer’s markets in Anchorage and Fairbanks, where local growers sell fresh produce, testify to that.Keyes said resilient barley farmers near Delta, east of Fairbanks, who inherited problems of the state’s failed 1980s-era experiment in large state-sponsored barley farming, are developing new products, like a barley flour, and finding markets in the growing health food sector, though it is mainly within the state.Peony farming, a new industry, represents another niche, and perhaps ultimately a big one, he said. http://www.alaskajournal.com/2016-07-13/seasonal-advantage-gives-state-peony-market-room-grow

Riverside small businesses prepare to reopen for coronavirus stage 2 - Press-Enterprise

Phones are ringing off the hook and florists are scrambling to process orders as Mother’s Day draws close, a scene much like other holidays at Riverside Mission Florist — except for the masks, gloves, 6 feet of separation between workers and locked doors.Friday, May 8, will be the first day open for curbside pickup at florists, bookstores, sports shops and other businesses that can now reopen with restrictions as part of phase 2 of the state’s coronavirus response.That means many Riverside businesses that can easily implement safety measures to lower the risk of COVID-19 to patrons and employees — such as curbside pickup — were preparing for their first day of business since the pandemic began.Gene Berkman arranges books Thursday, May 7, 2020, at Renaissance Book Shop in Riverside as he prepares to reopen the business. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)Renaissance Book Shop in Riverside sells books, music and movies. It will reopen for curbside sales Friday, May 8, 2020. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Pr... https://www.pe.com/riverside-small-businesses-prepare-to-reopen-for-coronavirus-stage-2

Port Washington Florist: Coronavirus Decimated Floral Industry - Port Washington, NY Patch

PORT WASHINGTON, NY — Aretta Otis-Cohen, owner of Port Washington Florist on Main Street, has been in business over 50 years. She's operated through 9/11, the Great Recession and every other crisis in that time. She said she's never seen anything like the new coronavirus, which has decimated the floral industry in recent weeks, from major distributors and growers down to small shops. "It absolutely nearly killed the floral industry," a tearful Otis-Cohen told Patch in a phone interview this week. When the crisis began unfolding in New York, countless truckloads of tulips, hydrangeas, roses and more were thrown out by large wholesalers and even airports, she said. "I'm talking about millions of stems of flowers," Otis-Cohen said. She added: "It brought tears to my eyes. That's how many flowers were thrown out from all over the country." To sign up for free, local breaking news alerts in Port Washington, click here. Before the coronavirus forced Gov. Andrew Cuomo to issue a statewide stay-at-home order for all nonessential workers, Port Washington Fl... https://patch.com/new-york/portwashington/port-washington-florist-coronavirus-decimated-floral-industry

Local Florists Show Gratitude for Healthcare Workers With Colorful Display - NBC 6 South Florida

Healthcare workers at Jackson Memorial Hospital stopped tosmell the roses while coming into work on Monday, as local florists honored themen and women who have been on the frontline of the pandemic.The floral artists say the colorful displays are meant tobring some positivity during turbulent times.“Flowers are with us throughout our entire lives,” DeborahDe La Flor with Florida’s State Florist Association said. “From the verybeginning, until the time of our passing, through all kinds of trials andtribulations, and triumphs.” Corridors at Jackson Memorial were filled with flowers, offeringa mental break for many workers.“We’ve come together as florists and created this beautifulinstallation that will make all those who enter feel better just by seeingflowers and the glory of them,” De La Flor said. ... https://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/local-florists-show-gratitude-for-healthcare-workers-with-colorful-display/2261512/

Local florist gets accredited by national institution - Valley morning Star

Abel Gonzalez Mencio LA FERIA — Local florist Abel Gonzalez Mencio continues to collect accolades.In a virtual induction celebration July 5 through Facebook Live, Mencio was honored along with 61 other accredited members of the American Institute of Floral Designers.All 2020 inductees will also be invited to walk the stage to receive their membership pins during the 2021 Symposium in Washington, D.C.“The process to do this is to apply for a membership and it is recognized worldwide,” Mencio said.“About a 180 people tested and 61 graduated. Out of the 61, only eight were from Texas and 14 from other countries. It is something a lot of people strive for…. It is very prestigious,” he said.“To me that was a big honor,” he said.The program was created in 1965 and is the floral industry’s leading nonprofit organization dedicated to establishing high standards for professional floral design, according to a press release.Members of the 55-year-old association are distinguished by the use of the “AIFD” mark as an addendum to their... https://www.valleymorningstar.com/2020/07/23/local-florist-gets-accredited-national-institution/

10 Northern Michigan Florists - MyNorth.com

February and whether yours is a newly budding relationship or a blossoming one, let your significant other know they’re special to you with a Valentine’s Day bouquet from a Northern Michigan florist.These 10 Northern Michigan florists (from Traverse City to Ludington!) are great to keep in mind for Valentine’s Day, but they also create arrangements year-round for weddings, funerals, anniversaries, parties and more!Beads and Blooms Florist78 N. Jebavy Dr. Ludington, MI 49431, 231.845.6537 or 231.425.4133A local florist that delivers on a personal level, “all flower arrangements are artistically arranged in a vase and hand-delivered to the recipient.” Flower’s From Sky’s the Limit413 Michigan St. Petoskey, MI 49770, 231.347.7770Pick out the perfect pair of posies (or whatever suits your fancy) online and choose from a wide variety of arrangements that can be delivered in Petoskey or nationwide. Flower Station341 W. Front St., Traverse City, MI 49684, 231.946.1742, toll free:Located a short walk from the heart of downtown Traverse City, the Flower Station is a family owned store that offers a selection of imported and locally grown fresh flowers.Hagstrom’s Flowers910 South Mitchell... https://mynorth.com/2015/01/10-northern-michigan-florists/

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