Some of the best flower farming stories start with a moment that changes everything. For Jenny Rae Swan, it was losing her mother at a young age and realizing that the only place she felt truly at peace was in a garden.

That grief, paired with a wild amount of courage, led her to quit a stable career in higher education, rent a small plot on a local blueberry farm, and start growing flowers with no land of her own and very little money. She told everyone she knew she was going to be a flower farmer. Most of them thought she was out of her mind.

Ten years later, Flower Well is an ever-evolving operation with multiple acres, a dedicated team of women, a thriving wholesale business, a wedding design studio, dahlia tuber sales, holiday wreath classes, and a garden-inspired design style that's earned her a reputation for movement, texture, and color. Jenny Rae is proof that you don't need to have it all figured out to start. You just need to start.

Key Takeaways

 * You don't need land, money, or a perfect plan to begin. Jenny Rae started on a rented plot with savings from selling antiques on Etsy.
 * Telling people your dream out loud builds accountability. Jenny Rae told everyone she was going to be a flower farmer before she had any idea how.
 * Farming and floristry feed different parts of the creative soul. Jenny Rae needs both to feel fulfilled.
 * Hiring help is scary but essential. Your team members will bring strengths you don't have.
 * The real cost of flower farming is far beyond what most people expect. Tractors, delivery vehicles, equipment, land preparation. It adds up fast.
 * Gardens are the greatest design teacher. Jenny Rae designs by thinking about how a garden moves, clusters, and breathes.
 * Joy is the through-line. On the hardest days, an evening walk through the flowers brings everything back.

If this episode encourages you, would you share it with a friend who needs to hear Jenny Rae's story? And if you haven't already, subscribe so you never miss a new episode of The Backyard Bouquet Podcast.

Guest Bio

Jenny Rae Swan is the owner and founder of Flower Well, a cut flower farm and floral design studio in the countryside of Rochester, New York. A first-generation farmer florist, Jenny Rae started Flower Well in 2015 on a rented plot at a neighboring blueberry farm. Her work is known for its garden-inspired design, focus on color and texture, heirloom varieties, and the way her arrangements move. She recently welcomed her second son and celebrated 10 years of growing flowers.

Connect with Jenny Rae at Flowerwell:

Website: https://www.flowerwellny.com [https://www.flowerwellny.com/]
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/flowerwellny

Sign up for our podcast newsletter: https://bit.ly/thefloweringfarmhousenewsletter



Ep. 87: Jenny Rae Swan: Ten Years of Flowers, Failures, and Finding Joy

If you've ever looked at a dahlia and wondered "what if I could create my own variety?" Kamille is the person you need to learn from.  

Her session is unlike anything else at the summit. She's taking us on the journey of a seedling from its first bloom to its official debut and showing how the art of hybridizing is so much more than science. 

It's about mentorship, community, and opening your garden to others.  What I love about Kamille's approach is that she believes the most beautiful varieties come from shared wisdom. Growing something new doesn't have to be a solo journey.  

Kamille is speaking on Day 2 AND joining our live Q&A panel that afternoon so you'll have the chance to ask her your questions directly. 

📅 Day 2 | March 4th | 1:00 PM PST 

📅  Q&A Panel | March 4th | 3:00 PM PST  

🎟️ Live Access: $99 | All Access: $199

Learn more and grab your ticket: https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajabi.com/profitabledahiliasummit

Connect with Kamille on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kamillesflowers/

Summit Speaker Series: Kamille Scellick, Kamille's Flowers

Charlotte is a 5th generation farmer and mindset coach and there's a reason she's one of our first speakers on Day 1 of The Profitable Dahlia Summit. Everything starts with mindset. You can learn every strategy in the world for selling dahlias, but if you don't believe you're worth charging for them, none of it matters.

Charlotte is going to get your head right so you can take full advantage of every single session that follows. She's tackling the "broke farmer trap," the pricing guilt, the scarcity thinking, all of it. And she's replacing it with the confidence you need to actually build a business that pays you.

If you've ever thought "I just feel bad charging people for flowers"... Charlotte has something to say about that.

Charlotte is speaking on Day 1  of the summit, March 3rd  at 9:00 AM PST

Grab your summit ticket at the link in the show notes. Tickets start at $99.

https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajabi.com/profitabledahiliasummit

Connect with Charlotte Smith: https://www.instagram.com/charlotte.m.smith/

Summit Speaker Series: Charlotte Smith, The Marketing & Mindset Coach for Farmers

In this bonus episode, I'm sharing my Instagram Live conversation with Heather Cain of Petal Pink Flower Farm. We talked all about selling dahlias to florists and she shared so much that I know you're going to want to hear her full session at the summit.

Have you ever thought about selling your dahlias to florists but weren't sure where to start? What do they actually expect? How do you price for wholesale? How do you even approach them?

Heather is answering all of it at the Profitable Dahlia Summit. From what florists look for when they buy dahlias, to how to scale your operation, price your blooms, and pack them like a pro.

If you're looking for a consistent, reliable revenue stream for your dahlias, selling to florists could be the game changer. And Heather is the person to learn from.

Heather is speaking at the Profitable Dahlia Summit on March 3rd at 2:15 PM PST where she's going even deeper on this topic.

The Profitable Dahlia Summit is March 3-5 with 13+ speakers covering every path to profitable dahlias. Tickets start at $99. 

Grab your ticket at the link in the show notes: https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajabi.com/theprofitabledahliaschedule

Connect with Heather of Petal Pink Flowers: https://www.instagram.com/petalpinkflowers/

Summit Speaker Series: Heather Cain on Selling Dahlias to Florists

In this bonus episode of The Backyard Bouquet Podcst, I'm sharing my Instagram Live conversation with Marryn Mathis of The Farmhouse Flower Farm. We talked about getting ready for her tuber sale season, how it feels like a total rollercoaster, and some of Marryn's favorite dahlias this year. Marryn is speaking at the Profitable Dahlia Summit on March 4th and she's teaching how to host a dahlia tuber sale that sells out in a single day. 

Grab your summit ticket at the link in the show notes. Tickets start at $99.

https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajabi.com/profitabledahiliasummit

Connect with Marryn of The Farmhouse Flower Farm: https://www.instagram.com/thefarmhouseflowerfarm/

Summit Speaker Series: Marryn Mathis on Selling Out Your Dahlia Tuber Sale

In this episode of The Backyard Bouquet Podcast, I’m joined by Melissa Stewart of Sweet Bloom Farm, a boutique dahlia farm in Battle Ground, Washington.

Melissa’s journey began the way so many of ours do, with a few mystery dahlias from a garden center and a spark she couldn’t ignore. What started as six blooming plants in her suburban backyard quickly grew into 20 varieties… then 50… then 100… and eventually into a two-acre farm growing 4,000 dahlias.

In this conversation, we talk about:

 * Scaling from 600 to 4,000 plants in one season
 * Why their second year on the farm was their hardest
 * The soil test that saved their crop
 * Farming no-till in rocky Pacific Northwest soil
 * Selling dahlia tubers online and shipping nationwide
 * Whether the dahlia market is oversaturated
 * Why local flowers matter more than ever
 * The community that flowers create beyond the blooms

Melissa shares openly about balancing a corporate job, raising two children, building a farm with her husband, and learning when to ask for help.

If you’ve ever wondered whether your backyard dahlias could become something more, this episode will inspire you.

Book: Weeds & What They Tell Us: https://amzn.to/3ZHkWQO

Connect with Melissa:

Website: www.sweetbloomfarm.com [http://www.sweetbloomfarm.com/]

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sweetbloomfarm

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sweetbloomfarm

Sign up for our podcast newsletter: https://bit.ly/thefloweringfarmhousenewsletter

Join Us At The Profitable Dahlia Summit

The first-ever virtual summit focused exclusively on growing dahlias for profit is here!

Join us March 3–4, 2026 to learn from experienced dahlia growers who are selling bouquets, tubers, CSA shares, event tickets, and more — and doing it profitably.

You’ll walk away with real strategies to turn your passion into income, even if you're just getting started.

Save your spot here: https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajabi.com/profitabledahiliasummit/  [https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajabi.com/profitabledahiliasummit/]

Episode 86: From Backyard Dahlias to 4,000 Plants: Building Sweet Bloom Farm with Melissa Stewart

In this episode of The Backyard Bouquet Podcast, we’re heading south to Australia to visit Florelie, a small-scale but highly productive specialty cut flower farm near Ballarat, Victoria.

Jennifer is joined by flower farmer and dahlia breeder Lorelie Merton, who shares how a gifted bunch of homegrown peonies sparked a journey that led her from speech pathology to full-time flower farming. Today, Florelie grows flowers on just 2.5 acres of a 20-acre property, with 20,000 dahlias, a robust dahlia breeding program, and a thriving tuber business serving Australian gardeners and florists.

In this conversation, Lorelie opens up about breeding dahlias specifically for cut flower performance, scaling thoughtfully, rotating crops to protect soil health, and building a true family farm alongside her husband Ethan and their three children. She also shares behind-the-scenes insight into dahlia breeding timelines, seedling selection, tuber sales, and why dahlias are such a unique crop for agritourism and education.

Whether you’re a backyard gardener, aspiring flower farmer, or deeply obsessed with dahlias, this episode is packed with practical insight and honest perspective.

In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

 * How Florelie grew from a hobby into a full-time flower farm
 * Why dahlias became the farm’s primary crop
 * What it takes to manage and evaluate thousands of dahlia seedlings
 * How Lorelie breeds dahlias specifically for cut flower use
 * How crop rotation and paddock rest protect long-term soil health
 * The role Lorelie’s husband Ethan plays as farm manager and agronomist
 * How Florelie offers workshops, tuber sales, and afternoon tea events in the dahlia fields

***Just a quick note about today's episode: We had a bit of connection lag while recording from across the world, so there are just a few spots where we ended up talking at the same time as we couldn't hear one another. It’s minor, but I wanted to mention it in case you notice in this episode. The conversation is still great and I know you're going to love hearing from Lorelie!

Connect with Lorelie & Florelie

 * Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/florelieseasonalflowers/
 * Website: https://florelie.com.au [https://florelie.com.au/]

Sign up for our podcast newsletter: https://bit.ly/thefloweringfarmhousenewsletter

Join Us At The Profitable Dahlia Summit

The first-ever virtual summit focused exclusively on growing dahlias for profit is here!

Join us March 3–4, 2026 to learn from experienced dahlia growers who are selling bouquets, tubers, CSA shares, event tickets, and more — and doing it profitably.

You’ll walk away with real strategies to turn your passion into income, even if you're just getting started.

Save your spot here: https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajabi.com/profitabledahiliasummit/  [https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajabi.com/profitabledahiliasummit/]

Ep. 85: Growing & Breeding Dahlias at Scale: Inside Florelie Flower Farm in Australia

What’s possible when you start with just a small bit of earth—and a love of flowers rooted in childhood stories?

In today’s episode, I’m joined by Fawn Rueckert, founder of Sego Lily Flower Farm, a thriving suburban flower farm growing on just one-third of an acre in Utah’s Salt Lake Valley.

Fawn’s journey into flower farming began long before her first seed tray—from listening to The Secret Garden as a child to learning from generations of women who gardened before her. What started as a backyard cutting garden evolved into a farmers market business, a regional cut flower plug program serving over 100 growers, hands-on education for backyard gardeners, and leadership as a founding member and president of the Utah Cut Flower Farm Association.

In this conversation, we talk about growing cut flowers in small spaces, knowing when to pivot as your business evolves, and why community matters so deeply in flower farming. We also dig into lisianthus—a flower many growers struggle to start from seed—including what it really needs to germinate, why it’s so slow, and when it makes sense to grow from seed versus buying plugs.

Whether you’re growing on an eighth of an acre, dreaming of your first farmers market, or just trying to grow better lisianthus this season, this episode will leave you inspired to try what’s possible—right where you are.

Links

 * Sego Lily Flower Farm
   Website: https://www.segolilyflowerfarm.com
   [https://www.segolilyflowerfarm.com/]Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/segolilyflowerfarm/
 * Snuck Flowers at Snuck Farm
   Website: https://snuckfarm.com/pages/snuck-flowers
   
   
 * The Backyard Cut Flower Garden Course
   https://snuckfarm.com/products/backyard-cut-flower-garden-course-in-collaboration-with-sego-lily-flower-farm-spring-2026
 * Utah Cut Flower Farm Association
   Website: https://www.utahflowerfarms.com [https://www.utahflowerfarms.com/]

Sign up for our podcast newsletter: https://bit.ly/thefloweringfarmhousenewsletter

Join Us At The Profitable Dahlia Summit

The first-ever virtual summit focused exclusively on growing dahlias for profit is here!

Join us March 3–4, 2026 to learn from experienced dahlia growers who are selling bouquets, tubers, CSA shares, event tickets, and more — and doing it profitably.

You’ll walk away with real strategies to turn your passion into income, even if you're just getting started.

Save your spot here: https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajabi.com/profitabledahiliasummit/  [https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajabi.com/profitabledahiliasummit/]

Ep. 84: Growing Cut Flowers in Small Spaces: Community, Education & Local Blooms with Fawn Rueckert

What if your garden could feed your family, support pollinators, and bring more joy into your everyday life — all at the same time?

In this episode of The Backyard Bouquet Podcast, Jennifer sits down with Tasha Medve, creator of The Purposeful You and author of the bestselling book The Purposeful Gardener.

Tasha shares how her journey into purposeful gardening began during early motherhood, when making conscious, sustainable choices for her family became a priority. What started as a small garden and a desire to live more intentionally grew into a thriving backyard oasis — and eventually, a global community of gardeners seeking beauty, abundance, and connection.

In this conversation, we explore:

 * How to design a garden that works for real families and busy lives
 * Why growing food and flowers together creates healthier, more resilient gardens
 * Raised beds, vertical growing, pumpkin arches, and her famous Wall of Peas
 * Companion planting strategies that reduce pests naturally
 * Incorporating native plants and pollinators for long-term garden health
 * Gardening as a source of healing, meaning, and joy — even through seasons of grief

Whether you’re growing in two raised beds or dreaming of a larger backyard transformation, this episode will encourage you to start where you are, trust the process, and create a garden that truly feels like home.

Connect with Tasha Medve & The Purposeful You

 * Blog/Website: https://www.thepurposefulyou.com/
 * Instagram: @thepurposefulyou [https://www.instagram.com/thepurposefulyou/]
 * Facebook: The Purposeful You [https://www.facebook.com/thepurposefulyou]
 * Join the Waitlist for Tasha’s Garden Club: https://forms.gle/u7L73xvQxw4VXmqj6

Show notes: https://thefloweringfarmhouse.com/2026/01/21/the-purposeful-gardener/ 

Mentioned In Today’s Episode: The Dark Side to Floristry Article:

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/jan/11/theres-a-dark-side-to-floristry-are-pesticides-making-workers-seriously-ill-or-worse

Sign up for our podcast newsletter: https://bit.ly/thefloweringfarmhousenewsletter

***Join Us At The Profitable Dahlia Summit***

The first-ever virtual summit focused exclusively on growing dahlias for profit is here!

Join us March 3–4, 2026 to learn from experienced dahlia growers who are selling bouquets, tubers, CSA shares, event tickets, and more — and doing it profitably.

You’ll walk away with real strategies to turn your passion into income, even if you're just getting started.

Save your spot here: https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajabi.com/profitabledahiliasummit/  [https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajabi.com/profitabledahiliasummit/]

Ep.83: The Purposeful Gardener: Growing Food, Flowers, and Joy With Tasha Medve

Welcome to Season 3 of The Backyard Bouquet Podcast — and to the first episode of 2026.

To kick off the new year, I’m doing something a little different. In this episode, I’m sharing the full replay of a live planning workshop I hosted this past weekend called How to Plan Your Most Profitable Dahlia Season Yet.

Growers joined live from all over the world — Australia, Canada, Germany, France, New Zealand, the UK, and across the U.S. — and the response made it clear this was too valuable to let disappear once the workshop ended.

If you’re growing dahlias or running a flower farm and want 2026 to feel more focused, profitable, and aligned, this episode will help you step out of overwhelm and into clarity.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode

In this live workshop replay, we walk step-by-step through how to:

 * Reflect on your 2025 growing season — what worked, what didn’t, and what you learned
 * Clarify what you want 2026 to look and feel like, both personally and financially
 * Build a realistic, actionable plan instead of guessing or reacting mid-season
 * Map your year season by season so you’re not scrambling later
 * Choose the right revenue streams for your farm and stay laser-focused

While this training was created specifically for dahlia growers, the planning framework applies to all flower farmers who want to grow with intention and profit in mind.

Mentioned in This Episode

 * The Profitable Dahlia Summit (March 3–4, 2026)
   A 2-day virtual summit focused on real business strategies for dahlia growers — pricing, selling, marketing, tuber sales, farm events, and more.

Grab your ticket here: https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajabi.com/profitabledahiliasummit/

There is a free 2026 planning workbook that goes along with this episode. You can download it here and follow along at your own pace: https://thefloweringfarmhouse.myflodesk.com/2026workbook

Your Next Step

If you make it through this entire workshop, I encourage you to choose one action to take next — even a small one.

Whether that’s:

 * Tracking your numbers
 * Clarifying your revenue goals
 * Committing to selling instead of giving your flowers away

Momentum comes from action.

I’d love to hear what your next step is — you can message me on Instagram or leave a review and share what stood out for you.

Let’s Make 2026 Count

2026 has been declared the International Year of the Female Farmer, and I truly believe this can be your most profitable and aligned growing season yet — if you plan for it.

Grab the workbook, pour yourself a cup of coffee or tea, and let’s start planning.

Welcome to Season 3 of The Backyard Bouquet Podcast.

Ep. 82: How to Plan Your Most Profitable Growing Season Yet (Live 2026 Dahlia Planning Workshop Replay)

A podcast for flower farmers, gardeners, and cut flower growers who are growing more than just flowers.

Hosted by Jennifer Gulizia of The Flowering Farmhouse, The Backyard Bouquet shares inspiring conversations and expert tips from the fields and gardens of cut flower farmers and home growers.

Whether you're planting your first backyard bed or running a thriving flower farm, each episode offers practical growing advice, heartfelt stories, and the encouragement to cultivate beauty, joy, and connection—both in your garden and in your life.

From backyard plots to blooming fields, this podcast celebrates the people behind the petals and the lessons we learn when we grow with intention. Discover how locally grown flowers can enrich your days, root you in the present, and remind you that every flower—and every season—has a purpose.

Join us on this flourishing journey—where growing flowers is just the beginning.

For Show Notes And More Podcast Details: https://thefloweringfarmhouse.com/the-backyard-bouquet-podcast/

Sign up for our newsletter: https://thefloweringfarmhouse.myflodesk.com/backyardbouquetpodcast

The Flowering Farmhouse: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thefloweringfarmhouse/] | Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/thefloweringfarmhouse]   [https://www.pinterest.com/thefloweringfarmhouse/]| Website [https://thefloweringfarmhouse.com/]

Jennifer Gulizia

Shows