Tater and I are gearing up for Mother’s Day! We are swimming in snapdragons and matthiola. The early variety sweet peas are starting to flower, and we even have some scoop scabiosa that will make their debut for the holiday.

 

This week, we got our shipment of plastic, drip tape and propagation mix for the year. I was a little late ordering, so I’m grateful to have in my possession all the tools we need for a successful season. It won’t be long until we start planting ... although the field is very wet. We got over 9 in. of rain in a six-week period—more than we had in the last six months of 2025! Thankfully, we are no longer in a drought ... but we just about need a canoe to get through some of our outdoor fields right now!

 

It’s been unseasonably warm in southeast Michigan. We had plenty of days with high temperatures in the upper 70s and 80s this month. And then… last Monday we had a hard freeze. Some of our peonies are more than 10 in. tall, so I am curious to see how the June crop looks. I anticipate the early varieties might not finish this season because of it.

 

So far, it’s been a rollercoaster season, but I am hoping that the pendulum will stop swinging in such extreme directions. Then again, if this was easy, everyone would be doing it. If you are experiencing challenges with your spring crops this year, you are in good company. Our late-season ranunculus will not finish due to the temperature swings, but the heat has helped our late-winter lisianthus plantings. So I try to take stock in both the wins and the losses.

 

We just got our next succession of lisianthus from our friends at Raker-Roberta's Young Plants. We are tearing out the beds that won’t finish and planting something new. Over the years I have learned that the best time to cut your losses is early! With time and experience these things become more apparent. I also think people who don’t have crop failures every once in a while aren’t pushing the envelope enough. It’s a bummer for ranunculus season to end just after Mother’s Day, but it pushes me to embrace the next crop in the pipeline. 

 

In this edition of Bloom Beat, we’re talking about Mother’s Day marketing, consumer spending and more. With all that being said, let's talk shop!

Mother’s Day 2026 has the potential to be a record spending year for consumers. According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), consumers are expected to spend $38 billion on mom this year. That's up from $34.1 billion last year, and beats the record set in 2023 of $35.7 billion. Mark Mathews, chief economist and executive director of NRF said, “Consumers are gifting from the heart, seeking unique gifts that create lasting memories for the mothers in their lives.”

 

Eighty four percent of U.S adults plan to celebrate Mother’s Day, and NRF estimates the average spend per person will be $284.25. In 2025 consumers spent $259.04 and in 2023 $274.02.

 

The best part? Flowers are the most popular gift! Seventy-five percent of consumers surveyed plan to purchase flowers. Other categories include: greeting cards (74%), special outings or dinners (63%), gift cards (55%) and clothing/accessories (51%).

 

According to NRF, jewelry sales are the highest wallet-share for consumer spending, at $7.5 billion, special outings ($6.4 billion) and flowers ($3.2 billion). I think this is especially critical because even though flowers aren’t the highest-grossing category, they are the most popular for consumers! There are a lot of people looking for flowers right now, so what better time to sell your wares than when the consumer is already primed to look for them! 

 

Even if you don’t have flowers on your farm at the moment, this can still be your Super Bowl! Especially since flowers have a wide range of price points—making them accessible to a lot of different customers. With the correct marketing and engagement with your customers you can still capture your customers attention—they are looking for unique and meaningful gifts. Your current and future flowers fill the bill! If you didn’t have a plan for Mother’s Day sales you can quickly craft a meaningful one now if you start marketing today.

 

Tater and I look forward to hearing about your successful holiday. Drop us a line HERE.

Looking for some last-minute ideas for your Mother’s Day marketing push?  Tater’s friends at American Floral Endowment created this handy Florists Playbook to help florists and flower farmers alike have a successful holiday.

 

Here are a few tips:
 

- Mother’s Day is a great opportunity to sell flower subscriptions. Even if you don’t have flowers right now, take this opportunity to market to your customer email list. 
 

- Consumers value convenience. Same-day and prescheduled delivery are a must. Efficient delivery options will attract more buyers. 
 

- Consumers are becoming more eco-conscious. Sustainable and local flowers are in vogue, so be sure to capitalize on this. 
 

- Cater to a wide range of price points. This can broaden your customer base while maximizing sales and profits. 
 

- Don’t underestimate the value of social media giveaways.  A “Mom and Me” photo contest, for instance, is one possibly way to boost engagement and expand your post reach. 

 

Be sure to bookmark this LINK and read it sooner rather than later. The playbook includes email templates and social media graphics. Now is the time to finalize your email marketing plan, and these templates can take the guesswork out of this.

 

You can find AFE’s full library of promotional graphics HERE. Bookmark this page for future holidays.

Hey, southern flower farmers, Clemson University has the resource for you! They just updated their Cut Flower Production Guide—a helpful resource for farmers, gardeners and hobbyists alike.

 

Zachary Snipes, Clemson Extension Horticulture Assistant Team Leader states, “There has been an explosion of new cut flower growers, but almost no modern Extension information to support them. So much has changed in 26 years. Growers truly needed a new resource.”

 

Topics in the guide include soil preparation, new and staple varieties that thrive in the south, post-harvest handling, disease management and more. Even if you farm in the north, the chapters on soil and plant fertility, pest management and plant establishment are applicable to any farm. The best part? It’s completely free at this LINK.

 

Thank you Clemons Extension and the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers (ASCFG) for creating this curated resource! 

American Floral Endowment’s Grow Pro Webinar Series is hosting Michigan State University’s Dr. Roberto Lopez for a talk on plant growth regulators (PGR).

 

 

PGRs are valuable tools for managing plant height, uniformity, and crop timing—but knowing when and how to use them is key. This webinar will focus on the practical PGR strategies that fit into everyday floriculture production. 

 

Granted, as cut flower growers, we need to be careful with the PGRs we use, because let’s face it—no one wants short stems! But PGRs are more than just growth retardants for controlling plant stature. There are other PGRs that can elongate stems, induce branching and more. I recommend tuning in, because Dr. Lopez is an invaluable resource. Tater and I look forward to listening in on this one!

 

Here is the LINK to register. You can also see the full lineup for the Grow Pro Webinar Series HERE.

The Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers has released an inspiring lineup of 2026 farm tours. The best way to learn about flower farming is from folks who are already living your dream! And they are also the people who can share insights on what does and doesn’t work when building a commercial farm. 

 

Petal Pickers (Piedmont, South Carolina), Roots Cut Flower Farm (Carlisle, Pennsylvania), and Charles Little & Company (Eugene, Oregon) are a few of the farms that are participating in the farm tours this year. They are all distinguished and knowledgeable in the trade. Be sure to mark your calendar and plan your trip. It’s something great to look forward to this season. A handful of the tours are already full so be sure to register early if you want to attend! 
 

For registration and full event details click HERE.