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October Newsletter

 
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In the garden
01
The changes of fall have continued this month, and the end of the blooms is creeping closer as we near our first frost. I have harvested the second to last bed of sunflowers, the hibiscus has been dug up, and the eucalyptus has been cut nearly to the ground (pictured above). I will sell fresh eucalyptus another week and then hang the rest to dry. This is my first attempt at over-wintering eucalyptus, so I chose to go ahead and cut it all back to not risk frost harm. As a warm season plant, it can only survive winter in zones 7-9 with some extra TLC. I will deeply mulch and double row cover the bed for the entire winter, and hopefully have earlier and more robust growth next summer!
 
In contrast to the flowers, the cool season veggies are coming into their own! Sugar snap peas, radishes, lettuces and kale are growing quickly and loving the cooler temperatures. I will be offering Daikon radishes and kale for purchase through the Huntsville Food and Farm Hub this weekend. Click the link below for these and all your local goods!
The Gift of Flowers
02
I don't think I'll ever stop being amazed at the joy of giving flowers. Every time someone receives a bouquet especially in times of grief, stress or loneliness, I am reminded that God cares for people through people. It makes the tending and nurturing of every stem meaningful in a way that is unexplainable while doing it. It only can be understood after watching the smile on someone's face, hearing words of gratitude, or seeing a tear in an eye. The gift isn't about the flowers. It's about the people. Recently a kind friend gave me a bouquet of her home-grown zinnias, and I was struck by how special it made me feel. The simplicity of it was the meaningfulness. Let's keep doing the simple things. You never know how meaningful it might be.
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I STILL NEED YOUR HELP!
03
     I decided to include this friendly reminder now that the leaves are beginning to fall: I am collecting all the leaves I can get! Using leaves as mulch is one way I try to garden sustainably and regeneratively. Leaves suppress weeds, protect the soil, retain moisture, and eventually break down into nutrient rich organic matter that feeds the microbes in the soil. It's like God planned it that way :)
If any of you have bagged leaves this fall PLEASE let me know and I will come and pick them up from you. Email me, message me on socials, or text me! You can clean up your yard and support your local flower farm at the same time!
Cool Flower Spotlight
04
One cool flower I can't imagine my spring season without is Dianthus Barbatus, adorably known as Sweet William. This vibrant and long lasting flower, beautiful in green bud and full bloom, was a staple in my mixed bouquets last spring. With dense clusters of brightly colored, fringed petals, it is reminiscent of an English cottage garden. It typically grows as a biennial, growing foliage only in year one and blooming in year 2. I learned that tidbit a little too late, and in my first season I had an entire tray of seedlings ready before realizing I would have no blooms! I planted them by the chicken coop instead, and sure enough, a year later our chickens had their own beautiful cottage garden. It must be true that “mistakes are the portals of discovery." -J.Joyce
 
  The variety I grow is called the Amazon series,
I now grow the Amazon series - a hybrid cultivar that blooms the first year it is started from seed. It has great stem length and is naturally branching. The colors pictured above are neon cherry, neon pink and neon rose magic.
 
God's Word in the Garden
05
The most important thing I am tending in my garden, especially this time of the year, is not the flowers, it is the soil. I should call myself a soil farmer instead of a flower farmer just to remind me of what is most important. Without healthy soil there are no healthy flowers. Yet I am still tempted to focus more on what is on the surface of the soil - the full blooms, leafy foliage and vibrant petals - when what matters most is the tending and feeding of the soil beneath it all.
In the gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, Jesus tells the parable of the sower. It could just as easily have been called the parable of the soil. He tells of a sower who cast seeds onto pathway soil, exposed and vulnerable, then rocky soil, then weedy soil and finally good soil. Only the last soil produced an abundant crop. It is so easy for us to tend to the visible parts of our lives first. We polish our image and try to appear to have it all together while hiding the mess and the problems underneath the surface.
 
 
 
What if we tended to the soil that nurtures our hearts as much as we tended to our image?
The soil of our heart would resist the schemes of the devil, and keep God's word from being snatched away.
The soil of our heart would make way for God's seeds to take root.
The soil of our heart would not become choked by life's worries, riches and pleasures.
This is where true abundance takes root.
 
“But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.”
Luke 8:15
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As I have thought more deeply about what is below the surface of the garden this month, I am reminded of how much is below the surface of this little venture.
I could not do any of this without the love and support of so many. 
Whether it is Carter encouraging me, Joe tilling the garden, my family pulling weeds or any of you buying bouquets, this is a team effort.
Thank you to all of you, who are in some way a part of this team.
As always, I would love to hear from you; please reach out anytime. I am so grateful for your support and thankful we can enjoy a life made more beautiful by flowers. 

With love—
Allison

 
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Garth Road
Huntsville, AL 35802, United States