OK, I am seriously freaking out. This weather is driving me crazy, if it would just warm up a few degrees at night I could start moving things outside which would free up room under my grow lights for some more seedlings. And since I am about three weeks behind in my seeding schedule, I could really use some warmer night time temps here. I know that last year was an anomaly and I wasn’t expecting that again but I was really counting on at least having average temps. But then I suppose that’s why the call them average, you have to take the highs with the lows. I have snapdragons that are getting too tall and I just pinched them back. I guess that’s not such a bad thing I will have more flowers but they will be shorter. I do really love my tall snapdragons but I have learned that being a farmer is a lot about being happy with what you are given and adapting to circumstances beyond your control. Ugh. Really? I don’t like that there are things beyond my control. I really need a greenhouse in a bad way. At least I have this studio move to keep me busy, keep me from stewing in anxiety all day long.
Month: March 2013
movin’ on up
What’s that you say? A move? Yes! I am moving my flower studio out of my non-air-conditioned, unheated, and poorly lit garage and into a lovely corner of a friends retail shop. That’s right, no more back ally flower deals for my clients. For real! People used to come to my garage door in the ally to buy flowers. Not very professional but it’s what I could afford. This move also means no more anonymous coffee shop meetings with brides. Since weddings have quickly become the largest part of my yearly sales, I decided that I really had to step up my game.
This is really exciting and exactly what I need to keep my mind off of so many other things that are distracting me right now. With this move we will reclaim our spare room and our garage. I think that Nich is more excited about this that I am. He says we should be able to use our garage for more standard garage related activities. The move will be complete by the end of the month and then I just sit back and wait for the flowers to bloom…. And plan a party, there will definitely be a party.
paradise found?
The farm hunt has taken up so much of my time and energy over the last three years and we are getting down to descion time. Do it now or wait for fall. And when I say do it now I mean like next week. This decision has absolutely consumed me this winter. It is not just a home purchase, if it were I would have done it by now. It is also my business and potentially where we will earn our living for the rest of our lives. So it is a huge decision and it is weighing on me. Up until this year we have not really had the funds to afford it, I had been looking and I thought that if we found the right thing we would make it work in some way. Well now we have the funds and I am having a hard time finding the right thing. Compromises have to be made due to the fact that our funds are limited and our situation is unique. How far are we willing to commute? How many tillable acres do we really need? How many would we really like? Is that landfill across the street going to cause a lot of problems? How close to the lake is too close? Adjacent to a trailer park? And can I really live in some of these houses? This has been the biggest issue. Nearly everything we see needs works, usually a lot. Some of them should just be torn down, seriously they look like the setting of a serial killer movie. I have answered all of these questions so many times and with each new possibility the answers change. And so we have decided, again, for the fourth time, that it is most cost effective and comfortable for us to buy vacant land and build a small house. Seems easy enough, right? Well all of the lots I had my eye on have sold and it is back to the drawing board. It has become difficult to keep out the negativity, I know it is not useful but it has a way of creeping in. I will be spending the next week looking through listings, calculating drive times and calling around to all of the various municipalities about zoning, permitted uses, etc. I hope to make an offer to someone by the end of the week. And I hope they accept it.
becoming a flower farmer 