All for the Love of Local Flowers: May Flower Farm Happenings

Tulip Subscription Bouquets.

I’ve been hearing the month of May referred to as “Maycember,” and I couldn’t agree more. Not only is it a busy time in the garden, but having two kids in school adds another layer of chaos. The last month of school is packed—mostly with fun things—but it’s still a lot! Shout out to all the teachers and school staff: you are so appreciated in my book.

Tulip Season

From early to mid-May, tulips are in full bloom here at Kate and June Blooms. Our tulip subscription ran for three weeks, wrapping up just after Mother’s Day. This was the first year I was able to open the flower stand for Mother’s Day tulips, and I’m so grateful to everyone who stopped by for a bouquet. As I sit down to finally write this, the tulip season has officially ended, and the flower fridge has returned to its usual role as our drink-and-food overflow fridge.

Those three weeks of tulips are a whirlwind. We harvested and processed over a thousand tulips, which kept me on my toes. My almost-eight-year-old was a huge help this year, and I’m incredibly grateful for her excitement and willingness to jump in—especially with processing and washing the blooms.

Onto Summer Blooms

Now that tulip season is over, our attention turns to summer flowers. All those seeds I started in March and April have grown into strong little seedlings, ready to move into the garden. But we don’t plant them directly from their cozy indoor setup into the great outdoors. That would be too stressful for them—they're not used to the wind or temperature swings. Instead, we gently acclimate them through a process called “hardening off,” which usually takes 5–7 days. Honestly, this is my least favorite part of flower farming. It’s time-consuming and, frankly, a pain in the butt.

If you’ve been to our flower stand, you know we live in a tri-level home. I grow all our seedlings on the lowest level, which means carrying each tray—one by one—up the stairs to the back patio. It’s a workout. I complain about it every year, but I always tell myself: “All for the love of local flowers.”

Flower Planting Prep

While I’m busy with seedlings, my husband usually takes on prepping the soil. That involves tilling and amending the beds according to our soil test results. Once the soil is ready, we lay out landscape fabric with holes for planting and aisles for walking. The fabric helps reduce weed pressure—a must since I grow, maintain, and harvest everything myself. One day, I’d love to move away from using it, but I’m not quite there yet.

Once the fabric is laid out and stapled down, it’s time to plant! This is hands-down my favorite part. It’s such a hopeful moment, knowing that these tiny seedlings will grow into stunning blooms in just a month or two. I always aim to get my first big planting of summer flowers in the ground by Memorial Day. Earlier is even better, but that’s the goal. And planting never really ends—for example, I sow sunflowers every 1–2 weeks to keep a continuous supply going through summer. I also do another round of planting in June for our fall flowers.

The Love of Growing Flowers

Planting Flower Seedlings.

I truly love the “farming” part of growing flowers. If I had to choose between designing with flowers or growing them, I’d choose growing every time. There’s something deeply meaningful about planting, nurturing, and harvesting blooms that will end up in someone’s wedding bouquet, a baby shower arrangement, or brightening a kitchen table.

Once that first big planting is in, June tends to be slower. It’s all about maintaining, watering, and keeping everything alive and healthy. The hard work always pays off when the first flush of blooms arrives. Our summer flower subscription kicks off in late July and runs for five weeks. After that, we take a short break before starting our fall subscription in September.

If you’d like to experience our locally grown flowers, check out one of our flower subscriptions. Subscriptions are the best way to reserve our most beautiful blooms for yourself or a loved one. Not ready to commit? No problem—follow us on social media to stay in the loop about flower stand hours and weekly offerings.