Dave Dowling is back for this episode. He’s a fan favorite and if you haven’t already listened to the Everything Tulips episode and Everything Ranunculus episode here, be sure to go back to grab those. Dave is well-known in the flower farmer sphere for his wealth of knowledge and decades of experience in farming and sales. I asked Dave back so he could help me hash out what flowers are viable crops for November sales. I’ve heard more and more growers talking about skipping summer production in f...
Mar 03, 2025•1 hr•Season 5Ep. 45
I’ve long followed the fascinating research of Dr. James White of Rutgers University in New Jersey. He is a plant pathologist with a PhD in mycology. His specialty is "symbiosis research", particularly the impact of endophytic microbes in plant development and behavior. The nerdiest among you will rejoice at a science-rich episode in which Dr. White helps us understand how bacteria and fungus enter a plant as endophytes to help plants defend against stress, diseases and pests as well as provide ...
Feb 04, 2025•1 hr 21 min•Season 5Ep. 44
In today's episode, we are replaying an interview that originally aired on The Flower Podcast , where host Scott Shepherd interviewed yours truly, Jennie Love , about regenerative flower farming. This seemed like a great conversation to include in the archives here on No-Till Flowers. Deep gratitude to Scott for sharing it with us! Be sure to follow The Flower Podcast for more great flora-focused conversations. And there are new fresh episodes coming soon! A few guests got hit with the flu and i...
Jan 22, 2025•1 hr 12 min•Season 5Ep. 43
In this episode, we’re digging into organic seed production. Seed saving and breeding are all the rage in the flower farming world at the moment, which is an exciting way to dive even deeper into the world of flowers and get even nerdier. And we all love getting nerdier, don’t we? :-) Today's guest, Will Hazard, is the zinnia breeding project lead at the University of California, Davis. Through the SCOPE program -- which stands for Sustainable Crop Production and Enhancement, Will and his team o...
Dec 23, 2024•1 hr 32 min•Season 5Ep. 42
Welcome to Season 5 of No-Till Flowers! It's good to be back!! We’re starting off with a fairly personal episode as I share what’s changed for me and my health in 2024. This past season was my 17th season farming and selling flowers. There has been a lot of wear and tear on my body, mind and spirit along the way. I would wager heavily that no small business owner understands what they are signing up for at the beginning. Or even many years into it. The first 10 or so years are just holding on fo...
Dec 13, 2024•1 hr 29 min•Season 5Ep. 41
We don’t typically dive into business topics on this podcast as I like to keep the focus on regenerative growing practices. But today we’re going to go off theme a bit for a special guest. Many of you already know Scott Shepherd, the host of The Flower Podcast . Scott has such a unique position in our industry. He studied horticulture under the likes of Dr. Allan Armitage . His day job in the three decades since has been working in sales at wholesale houses, first in Georgia and now in Tennessee...
Apr 03, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Season 4Ep. 40
There are some incredible nuggets of pure gold in this episode. You will definitely want to have a pen and paper handy! Joining me today is Dr. John Dole , cut flower researcher and professor at North Carolina State University. As you’ll hear in the episode, John has been immersed in flowers since he was just 8 years old, planting gladiolas at a neighbor’s farm in Michigan. Over the decades, he’s been a keystone leader for the floral industry, serving farmers and florists alike with his valuable...
Feb 16, 2024•1 hr 44 min•Season 4Ep. 39
Welcome to Part 2 of a recent interview host Jennie Love had with guest Bryant Mason of Soil Doctor Consulting. If you haven’t already listened to Episdoe 37 or Episode 29, stop this one now and go back to listen to those first. In this segment, Bryant helps listeners understand what plant tissue testing is and why it is so valuable for farmers to do. Bryant walks us through a tissue test for stock grown at Jennie's farm, explaining how to read the various nutrient values and make decisions for ...
Jan 23, 2024•39 min•Season 4Ep. 38
Guest Bryant Mason of Soil Doctor Consulting returns to the podcast for another lively conversation about organic nutrients with host Jennie Love. If you haven’t already listened to Episode 29 in Season 3, stop this one now and go back to listen to that one first. In Episode 29, we introduced Bryant to the flower farming community and we had a dynamic conversation about nutrient balancing in living soils. Bryant, a certified agronomist for organic growers and an orchardist living in Colorado, ha...
Jan 17, 2024•1 hr 18 min•Season 4Ep. 37
Today’s guest needs little introduction in the flower farming world. Lisa Mason Zeigler of the Gardener's Workshop is an author, teacher, industry leader, flower farmer, podcaster , and also a good friend of mine. With 25 years of growing under her belt, Lisa brings a wealth of knowledge and passion to everything she does. Lisa has a new book, The Cut Flower Handbook , coming out in a few weeks, which prompted this conversation. But we cover several topics in our chat, including: Changing hardin...
Jan 07, 2024•1 hr 17 min•Season 4Ep. 36
Today’s guest needs little introduction in the small farm no-till world. Jesse Frost of Rough Draft Farm in central Kentucky has helped so many of us learn about soil health and diversified small scale production through the No-Till Growers YouTube channel , the No-Till Growers podcast , and his book The Living Soil Handbook . If you’ve struggled with heavy clay, boggy or compacted soils at your farm or in your garden, this is the episode for you! Frequently I get asked about my recommendations ...
Dec 29, 2023•1 hr 21 min•Season 4Ep. 35
We're back with Season 4 of the No-Till Flowers Podcast! In this solo episode, host Jennie Love talks about regenerative spraying and how to boost the health of your crops with foliar feeding. Learn about the phyllosphere and what easy homemade inputs you can use to reduce pests and diseases with weekly foliar sprays. Mentioned in this episode: Join the Regenerative Flower Farmers Network if you'd like to continue the conversation on this topic. Jennies on-demand short courses for fellow farmers...
Dec 04, 2023•28 min•Season 4Ep. 34
Curious about cover crops for a flower farm? Host Jennie Love walks listeners through a clear and concise overview of cover crops suitable for a small regenerative farm and why cover crops are such a valuable tool in the summer time for weed management. Included is a list of favorite cover crops for a small flower farm. Mentioned in the episode: Cover Crop Solutions Chart from Peaceful Valley Deer Creek Seeds Kings Agriseeds Peaceful Valley The Regenerative Flower Farmers Network (find a transcr...
Jul 12, 2023•36 min•Season 3Ep. 33
Here's Part 2 of my chat with Margaret Parks of Evergreen Growers Supply, an Oregon-based supplier of beneficial insects and microorganisms. If you haven't already, be sure to listen to Part 1 to get an introduction to using beneficial insects in your grow operation. Some important links to go along with this conversation: Evergreen Growers Supply dmvbeneficials.com Cucumber Beetle Trap Japanese Beetle Trap JOIN ME for a FIELD DAY AT MY FARM in Philadelphia THIS SEASON. Register for the April 14...
Mar 24, 2023•1 hr 8 min•Season 3Ep. 32
I’m joined in this episode by Margaret Parks of Evergreen Growers Supply, an Oregon-based supplier of beneficial insects and microorganisms. We begin by discussing the big picture pieces of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) as they relate to small scale flower farming. Then we dive into spider mite control with three fantastic beneficial insects. We also touch on banker and trap crops as well as the importance and fundamentals of scouting. Some important links to go along with this conversation: ...
Mar 13, 2023•46 min•Season 3Ep. 31
Host Jennie Love walks listeners through a clear and concise discussion of what natural farming is and how to begin making natural inputs like JADAM Microbial Solution (JMS). If you've been intimidated by the host of natural inputs talked about in Korean Natural Farming (KNF) and JADAM, this is a great introduction that will demystify the process and get you started. Mentioned in the episode: Registration for the CREW virtual seminar to help you find and manage a great crew for the coming season...
Feb 21, 2023•18 min•Season 3Ep. 30
Guest Bryant Mason of Soil Doctor Consulting in Colorado joins host Jennie Love in a lively conversation about nutrient balancing and soil testing, including key nutrients for better flower production and stem quality. Follow Bryant on Instagram @soil_doctor . Bryant has developed an easy online tool to help you directly to interpret your soil tests and choose natural amendments accordingly. Click here to learn more. Covered in this episode are: The Different Forms of Nitrogen Calcium Phosphorou...
Feb 14, 2023•1 hr 32 min•Season 3Ep. 29
It’s seed starting time! I’d venture to say this is what we growers are live for! Watching seedlings grow in the depths of winter is the best mood lifter. Those of you in the Southern Hemisphere are likely gearing up for your late summer sowings for cool annuals too. So it seemed like a great time to do a deeper dive into seed sowing with my old friend and seed starting pro, Lisa Mason Zeigler from the Gardener’s Workshop. Lisa literally wrote the book, called Cool Flowers , on starting seeds fo...
Jan 31, 2023•1 hr 27 min•Season 3Ep. 28
Guest Laura Beth Resnick of Butterbee Farm in Maryland joins host Jennie Love again to discuss building and rebuilding a successful farm business over the past decade. Covered in this episode are: - Finding land to farm - Pros and cons of renting versus buying farm land - Funding sources for land and infrastructure - Making infrastructure decisions - Bringing goats to a flower farm - Finding peach of mind and courage in the face of big change and wintertime Mentioned in this episode are: The Reg...
Jan 22, 2023•1 hr 21 min•Season 3Ep. 27
Host Jennie Love walks listeners through a clear and detailed description of how she has prepared no-till beds at her farm over the seasons. She goes into particular detail about the "deep mulch system" that many smaller diversified farms use for no-till bed preparation. Jennie also discusses her own journey to getting started with no-till farming back in 2018. Water and weed concerns related to no-till beds are also disucssed in this episode. Mentioned in this show: Registration for the 2023 No...
Jan 08, 2023•25 min•Season 3Ep. 26
Welcome to Season 3 of the No-Till Flowers podcast! Emma Horswill from Earthenry Farm in Tasmania joins host, Jennie Love , for a lovely chat that hits on several important regenerative farming practices. The primary focus of this episode is irrigation, particularly an approach to it called "pulse watering". Other topics include cover cropping, fertigation, quickly imporving poor compacted soil using regenerative methods, creating a flower farm that's very asethetically pleasing for a you-pick o...
Dec 27, 2022•1 hr 43 min•Season 3Ep. 25
Do you view your farm as a production space? A landscape that should generate x number of stems in x square feet for x amount of dollars each season? Many farmers do. In this episode, host Jennie Love encourages listeners to look at their farms as whole ecosystems that serves millions of lives, not just your own goals. Jennie is joined by author, Dr. Doug Tallamy , a professor in the University of Delaware’s Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology. For years, Dr. Tallamy has studied how in...
Nov 18, 2022•1 hr 12 min•Season 2Ep. 24
In this episode, host Jennie Love is joined by farmer Matt Arthur of BLH Farm to dive into bokashi and worm farming at a scale that can actually provide a large volume of high-quality compost and castings for a small farm. If you've struggled with making compost on your farm or finding well-aged, herbicide-free compost locally, bokashi could be the solution you've been searching for! An anerobic fermentation process, bokashi does not require a carbon source and takes a fraction of the time to pr...
Oct 04, 2022•1 hr 32 min•Season 2Ep. 23
Welcome to the first in a short summer series of episodes dedicated to farmer well-being. This is my 14th season flower farming and running a small business centered around such a stunning and stressful product. Every season brings its own set of challenges, most entirely out of my control. This year I broke a bone and strained a tendon in my left foot in late February that has impacted my physical and mental health immensely. I entered the intensity of spring planting season feeling hugely inef...
Jul 26, 2022•1 hr 8 min•Season 2Ep. 22
In this episode, host Jennie Love is joined by Dr. Tom Dykstra , an entomologist with over 25 years of experience in academic and field research. Predominantly, he has studied insect olfaction (how insects smell) from the standpoint of bioelectromagnetics and has proven a new theory based on the fusion of biophysics and neurophysiology. Dr. Dykstra has long been involved in the field of agriculture and pest control. He brings a unique perspective to the table that flies in the face of convention...
Jun 17, 2022•1 hr 29 min•Season 2Ep. 21
Host Jennie Love is joined again Dave Dowling of Ball Colorlink. Dave was on Season 1 of the podcast to discuss tulips in detail. Check out that episode if you haven't already. This time we're talking for an hour about ranunculus cultivation. Because, you know, that's probably what you're doing right now! We cover a lot of ground in this episode, from considerations when ordering corms to pre-sprouting, variety selection, growing in crates(!!), harvesting, storing, and considerations for profita...
Apr 07, 2022•55 min•Season 2Ep. 20
Host Jennie Love sits down with Dr. Catherine Brewer of New Mexico State University . Dr. Brewer (Catie) is a chemical and materials engineer who has devoted a good portion of her professional scientific career to studying biochar, particularly as it relates to processing agricultural waste to create a valuable farm input. Biochar is a "fine-grained charcoal high in organic carbon and largely resistant to decomposition...produced from pyrolysis (burning) of plant and waste feedstocks" (Source IB...
Mar 18, 2022•1 hr 44 min•Season 2Ep. 19
Joining host Jennie Love on today's show is Denise Richter from Pistil & Stamen in New Orleans. On her small urban flower farm, Denise has had to get very clever over the years with intercropping to maximize the number of harvestable stems. In this conversation, we dive deep into intercropping as well as urban farming, managing super wet soils, and being a farmer florist. Intercropping is the practice of planting two or more crops at the same time or in quick succession in the same bed space...
Feb 22, 2022•1 hr 43 min•Season 2Ep. 18
Host Jennie Love sits down with former aerospace engineer turned author, Nigel Palmer , to discuss his outstanding book The Regenerative Grower's Guide to Garden Amendments . Nigel has done a superb job of putting the science behind homebrewed natural inputs like those touted in Korean Natural Farming and JADAM practices. Nigel tells us how we can conduct our own citizen science to be better regenerative farmers. The process for testing your own liquid mineral amendments can be found here on Nig...
Feb 21, 2022•1 hr 28 min•Season 2Ep. 17
No-Till Flowers is a podcast all about regenerative practices to help flower farms be more resilient and our community to thrive. Flower farms can do so much more than just grow flowers! Through our work on our farms, we can build habitat for other creatures of all sizes, balancing soils, water cycles and ecosystems. If we e give back more than we take. Come along with me as I ask lots of questions of podcast guests to help piece the puzzle together. Weather you're brand new to flower farming or...
Feb 20, 2022•2 min
