Bellows Falls Flower Shop News
For the Love of Flowers: Florists Prepare for Valentine's Day Rush - The Keene Sentinel
Sunday, February 11, 2018It should be a feel-good experience and that is what I strive for.”?The Village Blooms delivers throughout Walpole, and as far south as Keene, to the north to Charlestown and across the river into Bellows Falls. For more information, visit thevillageblooms.com... http://www.sentinelsource.com/elf/by_hand_by_hobby/for-the-love-of-flowers-florists-prepare-for-valentine-s/article_d5bcd352-0da5-11e8-ace7-bb36ff6ba4b8.html
How Vermont florists are preparing for Mother's Day during the coronavirus - Burlington Free Press
Friday, May 29, 2020Maleeha SyedBurlington Free PressPublished 7:45 PM EDT May 8, 2020You might not be able to stop and smell the flowers at your local shop, but Vermont florists are adapting to make Sunday special during the coronavirus outbreak. The annual celebration falls on May 10 this year, and while Vermont is loosening up on some fronts, there are still restrictions in place for COVID-19. Vermonters gifting Mother's Day flowers might find it difficult to pop into a store and sort through the different bouquets.So the flower shops are coming to you.Long-time flower shop owners adapt The owners of Chappell's Florist in South Burlington and Sally's Flower Shop in Winooski both shut down operations for weeks starting in March, in the early stages of the COVID-19 outbreak. Kristin Eaton bought Chappell's a few years ago but has managed it for nearly three decades. Mother's Day usually keeps the shop busy all week, but things look different under the Stay Home, Stay Safe order."The phones are a lot busier," she said.The volume of orders is down due to a smaller staff and lower capacity. Instead of more than... https://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/story/news/2020/05/08/what-mothers-day-looks-like-during-coronavirus-vermont-florists-covid-19/3097947001/
Flower growers see sales wither as planting season launches - CBC.ca
Monday, April 27, 2020Canadian production stems from Ontario. Neighbouring New York and Ohio have also forced garden centres to lock their doors, while Michigan and Vermont have banned retailers from selling non-essential products, including home gardening items. "If they don't open, the damage is going to be astronomical," said trade group head Andi Kuyvenhoven, noting garden centres' crucial role for bedding plants in particular. British Columbia — the second-biggest flower and plant producer — Alberta and Manitoba and have allowed garden centres to keep running, while Quebec deemed them essential along with nurseries as of April 15, though not in time for Easter. Kuyvenhoven, who with his wife co-owns a $2.5-million business selling potted Chrysanthemums and indoor calla lilies — largely to U.S. distributors — on a pair of farms west of Toronto, says clogged supply chains south of the border remain a problem. 'I haven't slept in five weeks' "U.S. customers for a time closed their distribution systems to floral and so the main grocery chains were not purchasing plants," he said, which was hard on growers of cut flowers such as roses and tulips. "If a truck can take 24 skids and four skids were flowers, the flowers came off the trucks and they put more food on the truck — which we completely understand. The only challenge is, when you're growing flowers as we do, they also have a shelf life," said Kuyvenhoven, who bought his business from his parents in 1990. "Now we're now facing liquidity issues...I haven't slept in five weeks." Flowers Canada Growers says exports to the U.S. make up about one-third of greenhouse flower and plant sales, which hit $1.6 billion in 2018, according to Statistics Canada. Nursery sales topped $500 million. While garden centres can continue to operate across much of the continent, growers wonder whether bouquets and flower pots will remain on the shopping list of consumers struggling to make rent amid soaring unemployment numbers and a looming recession. Kuyvenhoven is hoping that families confined to their homes for most of the day will choose to spend what they've saved from unpurchased vacations and lattes on plants for their vases and flower beds. "That's part of what's carried us through downturns in the past," he said. Growers associations are in talks with federal and provincial governments over potential financial relief, with Flowers Canada Growers asking for a "cash injection" as well as extended debt repayment plans secured in part by Ottawa, Kuyvenhoven said. So far, the federal government has extended a stay of default for eligible farmers until Oct. 31, giving flower and potted plant producers an extra six months to pay off federal loans that would have been due at the end of April. Ottawa has also granted exemptions on air travel restrictions to temporary foreign workers and invested $50 million to help farmers fly in labourers on charter trips. "New flights are being booked ever day," the agriculture department said in an email. Back at th... https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/flower-growers-hamilton-1.5546023
Downtown Florist in Massena celebrating 15 years in business with giveaway - North Country Now
Tuesday, October 22, 2019Patty Wells.She said she and her husband decided to clean up the corner of Andrews and Orvis streets a decade and a half ago when they purchased the 67 Andrews St. location.Wells attended Vermont Academy of Floral Design to learn the ropes of running the business.Wells says she “works well” with her lead designer and wedding coordinator Shelly LaBarge.Together they arrange flowers for all occasions including weddings, funeral, birthdays, anniversaries and of course, “just because” flowers.“We like making people smile — getting flowers, it just makes their day,” she said.Wells said they strive to offer flowers for any budget and “take pride in having the freshest flowers that are delivered five days a week.”To compliment floral arrangements, the shop sells chocolates, plants, solar crosses and angels and the newly popular silk saddle memorials.“They are becoming more popular because they don’t have to be replaced,” she said.The customer appreciation day takes place from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. There will be a drawing for a holiday centerpiece of the winner’s choosing.For more info, see their Facebook page at bit.ly/30Cv0JO.“This would not be possible without continued support from our community,” Wells said. “It’s been a pleasure serving.”... https://northcountrynow.com/business/downtown-florist-massena-celebrating-15-years-business-giveaway-0267576
Slideshow: The Vermont Flower Show 2019 - Seven Days
Tuesday, July 23, 2019Hundreds of spring bulbs — along with flowering trees and shrubs — sprouted at the Champlain Valley Exposition during the 19th Vermont Flower Show. From Friday, March 1, through Sunday, March 3, more than 10,000 visitors experienced the tantalizing colors and smells of early spring.The Vermont Nursery and Landscape Association/GreenWorks produces the show every two years, relying on sponsors, VNLA members and associates to fund the show — and contribute hundreds of hours of volunteer effort. It takes roughly 350 volunteers to set up, staff and take down the show.Imaginative displays evoked this year's theme: "Wonder — A Garden Adventure for All Ages." Vendors from across the region brought their wares. The full schedule of programming included demonstrations, seminars, and activities for gardeners, along with family-room performances by Magician Tom Verner, Mr. Chris and Friends, and No Strings Marionette Company. A plant sale at the conclusion of the show helps send the plants and shrubs to new homes. Learn more about the show at greenworksvermont.org. https://www.sevendaysvt.com/vermont/slideshow-the-vermont-flower-show-2019/Content?oid=26338241