Slow Flowers

There is a growing global movement called "slow flowers" that is changing the way florists and flower lovers do business.

The concept of "slow flowers" echoes the slow food movement, emphasizing using flowers in design that are grown close to home. Slow flowers as a movement has been championed by garden writer Debra Prinzing, who said in a recent interview with Architectural Digest " “People have been questioning the origins of their food and making informed food choices for decades, and flowers are a part of agriculture, too, so we should be conscious of the way in which we consume them.”

Florists and consumers that are part of this movement now have an online home at Slowflowers.com, an online directory and hub created by Debra to further connect those interested in knowing where the flowers they purchase are grown and that their purchase is supporting local farmers. Formerly only for US florists and farmers, Slowflowers.com has now expanded to include Canadian shops and farms too and I'm delighted to announce that Periwinkle is now a supporting member.

Being part of Slow flowers means that we have committed to choosing locally grown product as much as we can, and to supporting southern Ontario flower farmers.

What does this commitment mean to you? Well, to be honest, not much is going to change on your side, because I've been choosing to purchase Ontario grown as much as I can since I opened up shop. When you send someone flowers from me, chances are most of the blooms in there are from Ontario farmers, especially during spring to fall.

What it does mean though is that now there is an online resource where you can find florists elsewhere in the US and Canada that share my philosophy and choose to support farms local to them, providing money and jobs to their local economy.

You can search the slowflowers.com directory online here, and if you are interested in learning more about how flowers are farmed or a behind the scenes peek at flower shops and floral design at all, I highly recommend Debra's podcast, which you can find here.