Flowers; School Farmer's Market Displays; More Flowers

Lots happening here as we are blasting through September.  

Our Gridley fabulous fair was so much fun. New generations discovering raising animals; growing food; and having flowers isn't just for grandmas any longer!!!

While at the fair, I saw a color of chickens I just HAVE to have.  Lavender Orpingtons.  I have always had Buff Orphingtons, a light blond colored chicken. They are so sweet, gentle, large chickens and lay large brown eggs.  The Lavender Orpingtons are just another color-a beautiful light purple, honestly!!!  I want some.

The lady at the fair was just selling roosters, but said in spring, she has a special breeder and she will raise some for me.  Can't wait.

We brought our display items and produce to the Cooley Middle School in Roseville on September 1st.  I had some corn stalks that were dried so I brought them, along with flowers, our watermelon, apples, kiwi, peaches, squashes, tomatoes, plums, pluots and more.  The PTC coordinator took the photos when the tables were finished and stated the teachers LOVED the idea of fresh produce-Farmer's Market theme for Teacher's Appreciation.

 These Teacher Wellness and Appreciation events are becoming a bigger part of our farm produce markets.  One school is telling another school and now we are doing about 6 in the spring (as school ends) and 6 in the fall (as school starts). Our Windmill Farm is fitting into a fun niche where we have fruit, vegetables, flowers and darling antique display items.  All a school has to do is schedule us, we put everything together for the certain number of teachers and staff at that school; show up at a designated time and the PTC board puts it out on their tables.  A couple of times, the PTC group didn't know what it was supposed to look like, so Frank and I helped set up.  Since the schools have predominately been in the Roseville and Auburn area, it does take us several hours of travel time.  But is still a lot of fun.

 And September came with several flower events.  A few were the last minute requests, which I don't mind actually.  If I don't have anything planned, it is always fun to just devote yourself to picking flowers and letting them be at their best and to make someones life a little bit brighter!

This arrangement was very beautiful, but I forgot to take a photo before it was delivered.  The lady was so happy, she sent me pictures of it sitting on her coffee table.

It had baby roses (which started to re-bloom recently), cockscomb, hydrangeas, straw flowers, Bells of Ireland, zinnias, Queen Anne's Lace; lambs ear, butterfly bush, dusty miller.  I do this to myself all the time, someone gives me either a price range; or vase size to work with; and I just can't stay within those confines.  This client just said give me a great bouquet.  I started out with a mason jar, then emptied that and went to a larger vase; filled that vase but still had more flowers I wanted to put in, so I went to my stock of vases and got the one with the widest neck.  That is what makes a flower farmer different than a traditional florist.  The flower arrangements are rarely the same; they represent what is blooming at that moment; didn't travel over thousands of miles to be put in the vase.  These traveled only a few hundred yards from the fields where they were grown to the client's vase.  AND they were picked within a few hours prior to being delivered.  OH, and I don't charge for delivery if my clients who live close.  A neighborly thing to do in my opinion.

Special classes coming up:

September 23rd-Making large Paper Flowers

October 7th-Chalkboard Writing/Art Class

December 2nd and December 3rd-Holiday Fresh Wreath Making Classes.  Sign up early as they fill up.