I know better. 10 years in the military, and 20+ years working for the Federal Government…I know better. I know that no matter how much you plan, you can never completely plan for the unplanned. Dang it, I know this! So why was I in tears at 8:00 in the morning standing in the middle of a 4000 square foot flower bed with the entire plan in my hand, feeling like it was all going to come crashing down around me because of what I failed to plan for? Because that is what I do. I cry. When in doubt, cry it out.
And then I wiped my face with my dirty hands, made a decision and moved on. Was it the right decision? Heck if I know. We will find out, but I could not let my impulse and inexperience derail the entire operation.
The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.
Robert Burns, 1786
I have had a desire for a cut flower garden in the back of my mind for quite some time. Over the past couple of years, I have been dabbling here and there on YouTube checking out various flower farmers and gardeners thinking that I would like to try this out one of these days. Flowers (to me) are one of those things that really makes someone smile, like puppies, baby chicks and baby goats. No one slams the door in the face of the flower delivery person, right? I imagined myself with a beautiful table at farmers markets or having a cute little flower stand perched at the end of our road, or even one at our local country store where a lot of bikers come in and out during the summer months. But I kept putting it off, keeping the idea in my back pocket for when we had time to start something new.
Welp! That time came after a nice long chat with our tax lady this year. We needed to make adjustments and start bringing in some real income from all of the hard work and expense that we have been putting into this homestead. I thought about it on the drive home and slept on it that night, (and had a good cry, of course) and the very next day, I decided that cut flowers will be the next endeavor. It was impulsive and unplanned but necessary. And quite honestly, I have been wanting to do it and now was as good of a time as any. So, Rickie and I, along with the help of his dad who was visiting at the time, got to work building three raised planter beds for our side yard. Rickie also found a pretty fantastic place with enough space to create twenty rows of 40-foot-long flower beds. The only other thing missing was seeds. I had no idea what to buy, so I did some digging, took notes and bought $100 worth of flower seeds. I was feeling pretty good at this point.
Then as I waited for the seeds to arrive, I buckled down and did a bunch more research. Here is where the doubt started creeping in…when I discovered that the biggest problem with this off-the-cuff idea was that we are in the middle of April. Seeds should have been started way back in February and March. But I soldiered on. Much of what I read was both encouraging and discouraging at the same time but I was going to find a way to make this all work. Just get the seeds in the dirt and let the grand experiment begin. Just do it.
So, the day came. May 7th. The day where there is no longer frost in the future (that’s what all of the seed packets say, direct sow when there is no longer a danger of frost). The ground is ready for the seeds, all nicely tilled and fluffy, and the hours of planning and mapping out what was going be planted and where had finally come to Do-It-Day. And then…Rickie got involved. I show him the map that took me hours to create, and the succession planting plan that I beat my head over the table to understand, and he says, “you can’t do that.” Of course, I simply ask “why not?” He begins to explain that if there are gaps in the rows where there are no seeds, he will not be able to work the dirt to soften it up when it comes time to plant the next succession of seeds. He told me that I will have to plant the entire row of seeds today, and use a different row to plant your next succession. I felt the frog in my throat, and the steam in my ears and the tears welled up in my eyes. Why? Because every single row is accounted for. Every type of seed, every number of seed, every date of seed succession, all accounted for. And he is telling me I simply have to redo it. That’s all, just redo it. Let me tell you, that planting map looked like a burning pile of weeds to me in that moment. It took me about 10 minutes to process the feelings of monumental failure and turned them into a boot strap situation. I will move on with this map and this plan and I will deal with each situation as they arise. We are moving forward. As they say in the Army…FORWARD, MARCH!!
I wilted like an early spring annual in August
It’s not long before the next realization smacks me right across the face. I don’t have enough seeds. I had no idea that several of these seed packets only have like 25 seeds in them. That is not going to fill up an entire 40-foot flower bed…not even close. So now I really had to make some serious adjustments to the plan or buy a whole lot more seeds. I did not cry this time, but instead, I wilted like an early spring annual in August and finally decided to adjust the plan, and fully came to grips with the fact that this cut-flower garden is really just a testing ground for me. This is something that I need to learn and grow from, not something to be fully relied upon at this early budding stage of my flower education. Bite the bullet, cut the succession plan, get all of the seeds in the ground and learn. So that’s what I did. In the end, I had a plan for 20 rows of flowers, but I only have seven rows planted. And I am fine with that.
Did I make the right decisions? Some yes, some no. Time will tell which is which. But I do know that it was the right decision to actually MAKE A DECISION. I know that when I just do it, good things happen. I know that the cut flower endeavor is the right decision. It is going to take a few growing seasons to see any real tangible value out of the flowers, but this year will at least produce enough beautiful flower bouquets to try my hand on the weekends at the corner store or at a minimum just sell some at the little flower stand we will make at the end of the road. And I will for sure have enough to give a way to friends and neighbors. I am going to get a lot out of this. I already have. Simply because we are Making It On The Homestead.