5 Easy Tips for a Longer Lasting Bouquet

I want to make sure you get the most out of your flowers this summer!

Here are 5 easy tips to make your bouquet last as long as possible.

1. BUY LOCAL - When you buy our Summer Bouquet Subscription, you’ve checked this one off the list! Local flowers are often picked day of sale which means they are the freshest you can find anywhere.

2. RE-CUT STEMS - When you get your flowers home, snip the end of each stem with clean, sharp scissors then place in water. Re-cut stems every few days.

3. FRESH WATER - Place your bouquet in cool tap water. Keep vase nice and full, since flowers can really suck up the water. Replace water every 2-3 days, or daily if you can!

4. PLACEMENT - Place your flowers in a cool part of the house, out of direct sunlight and away from appliances that give off heat. Heat significantly decreases vase life. If you’re really hard-core about extending the vase life of your flowers, you can even place your flower arrangement in the fridge overnight. Take it out in the morning and enjoy!

5. REMOVE FADED BLOOMS - Not all flowers have the same vase life. Some are fleeting and ephemeral and may only last 3-4 days, others will last a solid 7-10 days! As your bouquet ages, remove tired-looking flowers but leave good looking ones in place. Re-arrange as needed!

4 Ways to Enjoy Your Bouquet Subscription

Thank you so much to all my awesome bouquet subscribers. I couldn’t do this without you!

As a farmer, I have a lot of expenses up front: seeds, soil amendments (organic of course), labor, seed starting supplies, marketing material, etc. A lot of money goes out the door before I have even one flower blooming in the garden. EEK!

Farmers around the nation have embraced this “community supported agriculture” or “CSA” model to give them a vital cash boost when they most need it - the early spring/summer. In return the farmer gives back produce or flowers ALL SUMMER LONG or as agreed upon.

It’s a big ask for customers - to come up with a bulk payment up front and I AM SO GRATEFUL TO YOU!!

So when your much anticipated bouquet subscription starts I wanted to give you a few fun ideas for how to enjoy your flowers :)

1) Display in a classic tall vase.

If you just want a no-fuss way to display our flowers, this is for you! Get your bouquet home, fill a vase with water, re-cut the stems and place in water. Enjoy :)

Cut stems and place in a tall vase.

2) Arrange in a low vase or urn.

This will be a fun, creative process for those wanting to play a little more with arranging.

If you’re doing some extra arranging, feel free to snip a few additional stems from your yard or garden. I love adding a bit of spruce (this also adds some nice structure for the other flowers in a low vessel) or a snip of aspen. If you have other perennial foliage or flowers in your garden, don’t be afraid to cut a few! Not everything does amazing in the vase, but you don’t know until you try.

I like to start with some sturdy foliage (why I love spruce), then add some flowers (be sure to cut as short as desired). Then just keep adding flower by flower, adding foliage here and there. Don’t look for perfect! Just look for done :)

3) Disassemble and place stems into individual bud vases. It’s as easy as that.

I love putting these all over the house: in the bathroom to freshen things up, on the kitchen windowsill (although keep out of direct sun), on your bedside table (if you really want to pamper yourself), etc.

Make sure to check daily for adequate water - flowers really drink big and tiny vases can go dry in no time.

Take apart your bouquet apart and place individual stems in bud vases.

4) Float larger blooms in a shallow bowl or jar.

Cut the stems short and float large and/or double bloomed flowers in water. Flowers that do well floating include peonies, dahlias, ranunculus, roses, and large double zinnias. This is by no means an exhaustive list! Experiment :)

Larger blooms float beautifully!

There you have it!

Now I want to hear from you! How do you love to display your flowers? Comment below OR send me an email at turnstonefarm@gmail.com! Include photos :) You can also tag me on facebook or instagram @turnstonefarm.

Are Flowers Essential?

All sorts of new phrases have entered our collective vocabularies in the past couple months: social distancing, hunkering down, essential business, etc.

As I write this non-essential business is back in business but I’ve been pondering this question lately: are flowers essential?! Hmm… guess it totally depends who you ask! But I’m here to convince you that YES, THEY ARE!

They deserve a place in your precious garden and a place on your table.

Here’s why:

You and I know we feel better when we have flowers to view in the garden. I’m always soothed when I look out my kitchen window and see flowers. In fact, I’m designing my gardens so I see MORE flowers out my window.

We also know there’s something almost magical about having flowers on our dining room table. But why?

Is it really beneficial to our health and well being? It seems like it is but I wanted to dive into the research to see what science has to say about all this.

In one study office workers were put in a room to view pink roses for 4 minutes each.

After the study workers that had viewed the flowers “resulted in significantly increased parasympathetic nervous activity”. And remember the parasympathetic nervous system is responsible for the “rest and digest” part of our nervous system. It helps us feel calm and relaxed, it is the opposite of our sympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for our “fight or flight” response.

So viewing flowers was demonstrated to significantly reduce the stress response. Even after only 4 minutes! And we all know decreasing stress increases our bodies natural abilities to fight disease and keep us healthy.

In addition, “ 'comfortable,’ 'relaxed’ and 'natural’ feelings were more common in subjects exposed to roses.”

Note, that the study used roses, but in fact, any flower could be substituted in here. Think Turnstone bouquet :)

In this study by researchers at Rutgers University in New Jersey, flowers were demonstrated to have “immediate impact on happiness”.

In addition, “study participants reported feeling less depressed, anxious and agitated after receiving flowers”.

Flowers were also shown to connect people. “The presence of flowers led to increased contact with family and friends.

So what to do?

I know most of us have plenty of time outdoors to bask in nature’s beauty. But if you’re heading back into the office anytime soon (or toiling away in the spare bedroom), take along some flowers. Gift to your friend, boss, spouse, or yourself! Fill your indoor space with flowers :)

If you’re still hunkering down at home, make a place in your garden for flowers - and remember, these are for you! You need to be able to see them regularly out your window - while washing dishes, folding laundry, lounging on the couch, etc. And make sure you regularly cut them and bring them inside for the dining room table :)

If you don’t have enough to cut: 1) make a note to plan a bigger flower garden next year and 2) buy fresh flowers from the farm! We’ve got you covered.

Bouquet subscriptions are for sale until July 3rd. So reserve yours here if you haven’t.

Here’s to health! Here’s to peace!

And yes, flowers are essential.

Flowers are scientifically proven to reduce stress and make us feel better!

3 Ways to Get Flowers this Summer!

With all the uncertainty surrounding the world these days I wanted to come up with some sure-fire ways to get my “flowers to the people” this spring and summer!

I don’t know if farmers markets will be open this year and if they are I’m not counting on flowers being “essential” enough to be part of them.

Read on to find out details about how to get your Turnstone Flowers this summer!

1) HOME DELIVERY

Home deliveries will start in late May (and will be the only way to purchase my amazing and unique tulips bunches! CAN I JUST SAY HOW EXCITED I AM ABOUT THESE TULIPS!!??).

You will be able to order a medium or large, lush market bouquet or a seasonal bloom arrangement through my on-line shop. These will be delivered to your home or the home of someone you love within the Anchorage bowl for no additional charge.

Each Monday I’ll input my inventory then will send a notification email (so get on my email list if you’re not already!). Each Wednesday I’ll close my shop so I can put together my orders. Each Thursday I’ll deliver!

I have prices set but know that these may change as the blooming season draws closer.

Due to the nature of our current global and community situation I will be very picky about how I deliver. Here’s the scoop:

Deliveries can be to homes or businesses but I cannot enter a building to deliver. I will also follow strict social distancing and will not deliver to you in person. I won’t even knock on your door! I will leave your bouquet in a jar or bucket (that you leave for me) outside your front door.

Make sure you (or the bouquet recipient) leaves a jar with water, or bucket with water, in a shady spot near the front entrance. I will text the recipient right after I drop the bouquet. If a jar is not available, I will leave the bouquet sitting near front door. Please grab it as soon as possible :)

2) BOUQUET SUBSCRIPTIONS

Thanks to everyone who has already purchased a 2020 Bouquet subscription!!! I’m so grateful to all my past and present subscribers.

This year I am offering 3 different options for bouquet subscriptions: 1) an “every week” option that will give you bouquets once per week for 10 weeks, 2) an “every other week” option that will give you a bouquet every other week and 3) a “once per month” option that will give you one bouquet during the months of July, August and September.

HEAD OVER HERE to see pricing for 2020 subscriptions and to sign up! I hope this makes it more affordable and convenient for everyone who wants to participate.

As of now, you have 5 different options for pick-up. I added 2 new pick up sites! Please know that I may be re-organizing pick-up options as the COVID situation progresses. I WILL LET EVRYONE KNOW BY MID-JUNE! Thanks for being flexible :)

3) ADD ON TO FIRE ISLAND OR ARCTIC HARVEST DELIVERIES

I’m super happy that this year, in lieu of my farmers market, I am partnering with 2 businesses to have my bouquets as an add-on product to their on-line shop. Although I will miss the market and I will miss seeing your face, I am so thankful to have another option to get “flowers to the people”!

Fire Island Rustic Bakeshop is doing home delivery and curbside pick up. READ MORE HERE

Arctic Harvest Delivery is also adding my flowers to their on-line ordering program. READ MORE HERE

My flowers will be available to add on to your Fire Island or Arctic Harvest order starting in June (as long as this snow melts quickly!).

And finally a note about my harvest process in regards to sanitation.

This year, more than ever I have sanitation as one of my top priorities. This is not something flower farmers have had to really think too much about in the past, but alas here we are.

1) Harvest - flowers risk very little contamination risk in the field. There is ample growing space and only myself and maybe one other helper is ever out there tending. There’s rain, sun and wind to dilute and keep tings cleanly!

All harvest is done with gloves and a mask. Flowers are bundled and put into sanitized buckets and are then left to condition overnight.

2) Arranging - Flowers are arranged on day 2, after they have had a chance to condition in a cool spot.

All arranging is done on a sanitized table while I am wearing gloves and a mask. They are then wrapped in a paper sleeve and put back in clean sanitized buckets for delivery.

3) Delivery - I deliver all bouquets out of my personal vehicle. All high touch areas are sanitized before loading.

When off-loading your bouquet, I wear gloves and a mask to deliver your bouquet to your doorstep. I won’t ring your door bell, won’t knock on your door, and won’t even touch your jar or bucket that you leave out. Once you receive your flowers you can recycle the paper sleeve and arrange your bouquet to your liking.

ENJOY IT and let it MAKE YOU HAPPY!