Never Say "Never"

In my former life (before FD), I loved to pick up a bouquet of fresh flowers from Simply Flowers (the little flower stand in Doll's Market) or from the beautiful selection at the entrance to Whole Foods. I never really thought about the carbon footprint of my flower purchase; I only considered how they would cheer up my kitchen table or bedside stand.

Many of the flowers that I was buying were probably grown in South America, imported into Miami, repackaged for delivery to wholesalers, put on sale at the grocery, where I'd load them into my car and drive them home. The environmental impact (and cost) of all that jet fuel and all that refrigerant is staggering.

Here is now how I get fresh flowers into our home. I open the door, walk outside, follow one of the paths that Ed has cut through our native grass/wildflower fields, and pick to my heart's content. Or, I head to the garden where I can choose from zinnias, sunflowers, okra blossoms or hydrangeas.

The fields are my favorite as every week they offer up something different. This week, I can chose from Queen Anne's lace, pokeberries, blackberries, coreopsis, black-eyed susans, coneflowers, the last of the sunflowers, bright purple ironweed, and a number of other beautiful wild flowers that I don't know the names for. Next week, the golden rod will start to bloom and will cast its glow until late October. Even in the coldest months, I can find empty milkweed pods, dried thistle, and cattails. Daffodils and grape hyacinths start to appear as early as February, followed closely by forsythia, lilacs, cherry and pear blossoms.

I'm not limited to flowers; I can stage pumpkins, squash, abandoned bird nests, mock oranges, fossils, or bird feathers. I can have a different arrangement every day, depending on what inspires me on my morning walk.

I can't say for sure that I'll never buy from a florist again, but I know that I'll think long and hard before I do -- and I'm pretty sure it won't satisfy me the way any one of my Farm Dover creations does.