Progress report for FNE24-087
Project Information
Our project intends to evaluate whether cut flowers in December can be a profitable crop for farmers in the Northeast. This project will:
- Determine whether nine specific cut flower species can be forced to bloom in December in the Northeast
- Determine ideal horticultural practices to achieve December blooms including planting dates, supplemental lighting schedules, and optimal temperatures for each crop
- Observe the performance of multiple varieties of each species by measuring qualities such as stem length, bloom count, and bud size, to determine which are best suited for December harvests
- Calculate profitability for each crop by tracking input costs, labor, and sales
- Determine interest of retail and wholesale flower buyers by measuring sales, tracking farmers market feedback, and conducting surveys
- Educate other cut flower farmers on maximizing December profitability by publishing articles and hosting a webinar
Nearly all cut flowers sold in the United States are imported from other countries (Gaul, E). Especially from December through March, few local flowers are available. Most cut flower farmers in the Northeast region have limited income from growing cut flowers during this winter season, which spans nearly half the year. However, consumer demand for fresh flowers is especially high in the winter months, when local gardens are not blooming and there are multiple holidays, including Christmas.
An additional problem is environmental. Flower consumers in the Northeast in December have limited access to local blooms and rely almost exclusively on imports at an extreme environmental cost. These flowers are mostly grown in South America and have huge cooling and transportation requirements, resulting in a devastating carbon footprint. Shifting cultivation to our local region, particularly during months when imports are high, would reduce this environmental harm.
Timing flowers for the Christmas season and other December holidays can be difficult for farmers. Even with access to heated greenhouse space such as the propagation greenhouse commonly found on many farms, farmers face unique challenges in growing December flowers in our region. To bloom in December, most plant varieties must be able to be planted during the hottest days of late summer, but then tolerate the cold dark days of winter. Further, farmers must navigate day-length requirements during the shortest days of the year. For some flower varieties, this may be dauntingly complex, requiring intricate supplemental lighting schedules in order to force flowers to bloom on schedule.
Despite the potential high payoff, trying to time cut flowers for Christmas and other December holidays is a gamble for farmers in the Northeast region. Unlike field-grown plants, greenhouse-grown flowers require supplemental heat and light, at considerable cost. While many farmers do not have in-ground heated greenhouse space, many have propagation greenhouses that go unused from late summer through early winter, after seed starting is over. Such greenhouses could be used to grow cut flowers for December, rather than sit empty through this time.
This project intends to test which cut flower varieties can be grown and marketed most successfully by local farmers for December.
We will evaluate 9 different cut flower species and their potential as profitable December cut flowers for farmers in the Northeast: Chrysanthemums, Asiatic Lilies, Double Oriental Lilies (Roselilies), Anemones, Ranunculus, Amaryllis, Matthiola (Stock), Snapdragons, and Dahlias. For each species, we will seek to identify key horticultural best practices for farmers to follow such as planting dates, optimal temperatures, and need for supplemental light. We will trial plants in both in-ground beds and containers, to provide options farmers may follow based on their existing infrastructure. By tracking input costs, labor, and sales, we will analyze the profitability of each crop to determine which flowers have the potential to bring the most income to farmers. We will study the marketability of these Decembers blooms to both the local retail and wholesale-to-florist markets. For retail consumers, we will track farmers market sales, customer feedback, and pricing. For wholesale florist customers, we will provide a survey gauging their interest in purchasing local flowers in December.
As a result of this project, farmers in our region will have accurate information about how to successfully grow flowers for December blooms, which varieties make the most sense to grow based on their farm’s infrastructure and market, and how their potential customers may respond. Armed with this information, farmers will be able to increase net farm income by extending their sales through the highly profitable holiday season. This will lead to enhancement of employment in farm communities by enabling steadier, more reliable, year-round employment to farm workers who commonly face unemployment during the winter months. In turn, farmers will be better able to retain their best talent year-to-year, saving money on training costs and improving the quality of life for the farming community as a whole.
The Northeast region is a major producer of cut flowers in the United States, with three of the top ten cut-flower-producing states in the country producing millions of dollars in annual revenue (New Jersey, New York, and Connecticut, according to the latest USDA Commercial Floriculture Survey). Increasing farm income by extending the season through December would have an incredible impact for the hundreds of cut flower farmers in our region.
Cooperators
- - Technical Advisor
- - Technical Advisor
Research
In the first season of the grant project, we have completed the first year of Phase 1 - Horticultural Best Practices.
Overall progress and results were impacted by several factors including the northeast port strike which delayed materials and unusual weather in our region (extreme hot/dry temps in the late summer, followed by record cool temps in the fall). As planned, we have trialed all nine flower species outlined in the grant across different planting dates and methods, however with varying results and success. We've been working with our suppliers regarding greenhouse temps, spacing, and troubleshooting issues.
For each species, variety, and planting date, we have been tracking yields of marketable stems per plant and per square foot, bloom count, bloom quality, bloom size, and stem length, as well as any issues such as bud abortion and dropping buds. We have noted many different observations and outcomes for each species, with different adjustments to our planting schedule and methods planned for the second season of the grant. Overall, we're glad that this is a multi-year grant as some of the varieties will definitely require more research.
-Chrysanthemums: As planned, Syngenta provided unrooted cuttings across two different planting dates. We had initial success rooting the cuttings, getting them planted on time, and setting up night interruption lighting. However, our initial plantings budded extremely prematurely, when the plants were approximately 3" tall. A discussion of why is in the Results section below. Syngenta provided advice and new cuttings, which are currently growing in the greenhouse. While these cuttings will not bloom in December, the new planting has allowed us to improve our techniques for growing mums off season and set us up for success in the second year of the project.
-Asiatic and Double Lilies: As planned, a variety of lily blooms were planted over the summer under guidance from Zabo. Due to bulb availability, slightly fewer than the ten different asiatic varieties originally planned were tested. Lighting was provided to extend the day length and lilies successfully bloomed for December. Based on the outcomes, we will be adjusting our planting dates and growing methods for the second year of the grant.
-Anemones and Ranunculus: As planned, corms were soaked and planted out in August both into crates and into the ground. Weekly observations have been recorded regarding plant health, yield, marketability, etc. We plan to test different varieties in the second season.
-Stock and Snapdragons: While the initial plan was to plant snapdragons from seed, due to the extreme summer heat we decided to buy in snapdragon plugs from a commercial supplier. Stock was started from seed. Due to the extreme heat in the summer, our initial planting of stock suffered and died. We started a later planting, which did not bloom by December by provided useful information about different stock varieties.
-Amaryllis: Due to the port strike, amaryllis bulb arrival was significantly delayed to late October. While this planting was too late to achieve December blooms, we have a later planting going to determine best practices, best varieties, etc. Amaryllis were planted upon arrival into bulb crates in the greenhouse, and are still growing now. We hope to better investigate timing in the second season of the grant.
-Dahlia: Due to delayed booking with Syngenta, dahlia cuttings were provided too late to achieve December blooms. However working with the supplier, we are running a later trial to determine best practices, best varieties, etc. Dahlias were rooted successfully upon arrival and are growing under night interruption lights now in the greenhouse.
During the first year of the grant, we also began Phase 2 - Marketability. While we did not have significant quantities of stems for December, what we did have was brought to our farmers markets. Sales and customer feedback was tracked.
A survey was sent to 100+ florists in the region, with approximately 50 responses received. We are keeping the survey open and continuing to collect feedback into early 2025.
We have not yet begun Phase 3 - Profitability, which we will be able to compute closer to the end of the project once we have more data.
As this was the first year of a multi-year project, all results are tentative and will require further observation and study. The following is a summary of our key highlights from the project so far.
-Chrysanthemums: As noted above, our two initial plantings of chrysanthemums budded and bloomed prematurely, at 3-4" tall. In discussion with Alicain at Syngenta, we have determined two primary causes. First, our fall temps were very cool - into the 40s and 50s. According to Syngenta, temps below 65 degrees make chrysanthemums vulnerable to premature budding. Next year, if there is cool outdoor temperatures again, we will keep the greenhouse hotter to ensure the mums stay vegetative. Second, the night interruption lights were turned off for approximately 24-48 hours due to a construction project at the farm. As the mums were already vulnerable to budding, this caused them to immediately begin to flower. Next year we will ensure that the mums are provided with supplemental light as soon as they arrive at the farm. To better prepare for the second year of growing, Syngenta provided additional mum cuttings in November. We have been growing them at a hotter temp with consistent night lighting, and they are successfully staying vegetative. At the time of this report, they are around 8-10" tall and continuing to grow.
-Lilies: Lilies were the most successful crop in the trial, with the largest quantity of blooms available in the month of December. Due to the hot summer and high number of sunny days, many of the varieties bloomed early - some as early as September. Planting dates will be adjusted for 2025. A detailed breakdown of optimal planting dates and variety recommendations will be provided in the final report. Our most successful varieties for December were Forza Red (9/12 planting bloomed December 1-5) and Bataleon (9/18 and 9/26 plantings resulted in early to mid December blooms). We did not have great success with Double Oriental roselilies for the trial. A 8/29 planting of Aisha resulted in blooms in mid-November, with browning on the blooms. We expect the plants needed more water than was provided especially in early September when temps were hot. An 8/12 planting of Monica resulted in blooms mid-December however they had significant browning and dried stems; more water will be provided in 2025. The roseliies had a significantly higher watering need than the asiatic lilies.
-Anemones: Anemones were second to lilies in success in the trial. August planting resulted in blooms by mid November. Plants were sturdy, with large blooms. For the trial we planted several varieties from the Mistral series as well as the new double Levante series. The Mistral had significantly larger stems with bigger blossoms and higher yields than the Levante series, which we do not recommend for December production. The anemones are still blooming and will likely continue to bloom through Valentine's Day, making them a profitable crop.
-Ranunculus: August-planted ranunculus successfully bloomed by mid-November and continued blooming through December (and beyond). However, ranunculus suffered in the heat of the summer and fall. Plants were small and stressed, blooming prematurely. They also got significant powdery mildew, which thrived in the warmer greenhouse of the fall. One of the best results of our first year of the grant project was determining a successful, curative treatment for powdery mildew. We have found that a weekly, two-day organic spray regimen has significantly reduced the powdery mildew on the plants. On Day 1, plants are sprayed with a tank mix of M-Pede and Suffoil-X; on Day 2 (24 hours later), they are sprayed with a tank mix of Cease, Actinovate, Millstop, and Calcium. In year two, we will utilize this spraying program from early on in the trial and expect we will have better results. For this season, we planted Cloni Pon Pon Igloo ranunculus and a variety from the Elegance series. The Elegance series is performing better with higher yields. Ranunculus planted in crates suffered worse from the heat stress and powdery mildew than those in the ground.
-Stock: Early stock plantings suffered from the summer heat, and we think purchasing plugs may be a better option. In the second year, we will provide more shade and water to the stock during plug stage. To evaluate varieties, we seeded additional stock 7/29 and transplanted out in mid September. Four white stock varieties were tested - Xmas Whte, Katz Hi Double White, Canetto White, StoX White, and Spark White II. Canetto White was our favorite variety with tall strong stems and early double flowers. Spark White II was also promising as it had a spray form that took up more space in bouquets. StoX White was the worst variety in the trial, which surprised us as it is a favorite for spring production on our farm. The StoX double plants had yellow, sickly looking leaves; interestingly the singles in the trial had dark green leaves. We think this variety may not be optimal for winter production but will test it again in 2025.
-Snapdragons: Snapdragons from plugs were transplanted 8/27, with blooms beginning late November. Snapdragon blooms were very unevenly timed; one variety would bloom over the course of weeks and even months, making harvest and marketing difficult as we never had large quantities. All snaps were very tall with high quality blooms, but one variety (Cool White) suffered from disease which we are working with our extension office to identify. Chantilly Velvet, Double White, and Cool Crimson were the favorite varieties in the trial. We think adding supplemental lighting next year could provide more even bloom time and we may experiment with this in 2025.
-Amaryllis and Dahlia do not have meaningful results yet due to the timing of these plantings.
Marketing and profitability anaylsis is still underway. For our retail farmers markets, approximately 90-95% of fresh cut flowers sold out in December. December brought slower farmers markets than usual as the weather was particularly cold; most of our farmers market days were barely above freezing. Selling fresh cut flowers in December outdoors proved challenging, and some flowers were damaged due to freezing temps. Lilies, ranunculus, and anemones were the most popular retail flowers we offered. Mixed bouquets featuring lilies, assorted fresh cuts, and evergreens were extremely popular.
Our florist survey is still accepting answers, but with approximately 50 respondants so far, some key themes are clear. Almost all respondants who regularly source local flowers said that it is difficult to source them in December. The vast majority of respondants said they would buy more local flowers in December if they were available. The most popular varieties for florists so far are ranunculus, anemones, snapdragons, and stock. Lilies were not as popular as other varieties for florists, although they have sold well at our retail outlets. We will continue to collect responses to the survey and provide more detailed results in our final report.
While final results are still TBD awaiting the next season of the grant project, overall we have demonstrated that some flowers can be grown very well in December in the region, especially lilies, snapdragons, stock, and anemones. We have also established that there is a strong market demand for flowers during this season, and that profitability is possible for farmers. In the next season of the grant we look forward to fine tuning planting dates and varieties (especially for mums, dahlias, and amaryllis), having a larger quantity of December cuts to analyze, and doing detailed profit analysis for all varieties.
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Education & Outreach Activities and Participation Summary
Participation Summary:
As this was the first season of a multi-year grant, education and outreach has not yet been completed.
Learning Outcomes
As this was the first season of a multi-year grant, key learning outcomes have not yet been completed. The farmer running the project (myself, Rebecca Kutzer-Rice) has learned significant skills in winter growing, variety selection, marketing during winter months, and lighting schedules for winter crops.
Project Outcomes
As this was the first season of a multi-year grant, project outcomes are not yet available. However, the overall first season was highly successful in documenting some major lessons learned for December cut flower production, including timing and ideal varieties. We are optimistic that the next season of the project will help to verify and flesh out these discoveries in order to share them with other farmers and improve outcomes for winter cut flowers in the region.
We are relieved this is a multi-year project, as the first season presented significant challenges including supplier delays, supply chain issues, record-setting weather patterns, and farmer mistakes. We are excited to repeat the plantings for a second season to verify our initial findings and improve outcomes. We're confident that after a second season, we will be able to share detailed recommendations for farmers throughout the region (and beyond) wanting to grow cut flowers for the local market in December - including ideal varieties, planting and lighting schedules, pest management best practices, and marketing/profitability insights.