September 20, 2020

Utah Home, Then and Now

 As we're getting ready to move to Oregon (by the way, we're moving to Oregon!), I thought it would be fun to do the same Before and After series that I did for our Pullman home. 

When we moved in, everything was brown, dead, and dry. There were very few flowers, and a lot more fruit trees. Our outbuildings have changed quite a bit. Are you ready? Here we go!


Front of House


THEN






NOW


Not a huge difference, except the lawn and the little maple tree are both alive and green.
For those with very sharp eyes, you may notice that the swamp cooler is also no longer on the roof--we switched to central air!





Front Flowerbeds




NOW


Admittedly, this bed is chock full of bindweed.
I should have taken a picture after the last time we weeded it!
It has a couple of rose bushes, a peony, some irises, and lots of spring bulbs.

I do enjoy this front corner bed. It's got all kinds of things in it these days: sedum, daylilies, asters, roses, peonies, irises, scabiosa. It makes me happy all summer long.

We also added these front flowerbeds all the way down the fence on either side.
I still feel like I was just getting started with those, but what's in there is pretty.

Front Shade Beds

THEN



NOW




A little more greenery in there. 
I meant to put matching hydrangeas on each side, but ended up only getting the left side planted with those. I also added lady's mantle, feverfew, heuchera, and hostas.

Back Yard

THEN

Garden spot, orchard, and the woodshed there on the right.


Woodshed, fire pit, garden shed



Looking back towards the house.

Far back corner


NOW



Garden with greenhouse

A much more sparse orchard, unfortunately.
Chicken Palace in the background.
Our fruit trees have died off like crazy!


Our new fire pit area, and the shed we put in.


Woodshed and garden tool storage add-ons to the shed.
The inside essentially became my husband's workshop.


Garden area, from the back deck.

Looking back at the house. New deck.



Toward the far corner.


Back Flowerbeds

THEN




NOW

This bed doesn't look all that different than before, but the surroundings are much nicer! :) 

We did finally get this corner flowerbed put in.

This is another flowerbed full of good stuff, and also full of bindweed.
It has been a losing fight on my end with the bindweed here.
This bed also holds 5 peonies, coreopsis, yarrow, daisies, a couple of sickly rosebushes, and several spring bulbs.


Oval Flowerbed

THEN


NOW

Well, this is not the glamour shot by any means!
Also, I had this bed completely weeded a month ago and now it's full of grass and bindweed again.
Sigh. 
So from 6 lonely rose bushes, it now has a pie cherry tree, several roses, a peony, lots of spring bulbs, 2 ninebark bushes, bachelor's buttons, asters, phlox, and coreopsis.

Here was this bed back in May:

A little better representation of the goodness!


I am proud of what we accomplished in the 3 years we've been here. 
Now we're headed off to a rental home, with a tiny little yard, and no landscaping duties at all.
I wonder what we're going to do with our time? 

September 10, 2020

Saying Goodbye is Hard to Do

 

This has been a big summer. Along with the rest of the world, COVID has changed my business and my personal life in big and small ways, across the board. However, before coronavirus ever reared its ugly head, my husband and I had been discussing the possibility of a move. He has been looking for a new job for some time now, and none of the options here in Utah were quite right.

So we decided to look further afield. We have always loved the Oregon Coast, so that’s where we began applying for jobs. After an interview trip in June, we decided to accept an offer in Astoria, Oregon. We are excited to move there! I think this will be a great move for our family.

However, I am sad about closing up my business here and all that I’ve built and grown over the past 2.5 years. In fact, I have put off writing this post for longer than I should have, probably. We are in the thick of packing up, and getting our house sold, and it really is time to say goodbye. I just hate to let this go!

I am thankful for all I have learned. It has been an intense season of learning for me, in all aspects of the business, from growing flowers for profit, to designing, to marketing and business-related things. I have loved every bit of it! It has brought me so much joy to share my love of flowers with you and your loved ones!

Thank you for all of your support. For your orders, yes, but also for your encouragement! Running a farm and a business are both endeavors with big ups and downs. I so appreciate all those who have helped me get up and dust myself off after the myriad of disappointments, and keep going. Also, for those who have cheered me on through the successes—thank you!

I don’t know what the future holds for my little flower farm and business, at this point. We have not found a home yet in Oregon, so we may be renting for awhile—which could make it hard to grow things. We are homeschooling our kiddos, and I already know that will take up a significant amount of my time moving forward. So, I don’t know any specifics yet.

What I do know is that I still love flowers! I will continue growing them and sharing them. There are many different farmer-florist business models out there. I’ve given some thought to changing directions with this business when I open back up again—possibly running it as a U-Pick, or a non-profit (deliver to seniors or hospitals, or….?) At the same time, I truly love the everyday flowers—seeing the spark of happiness on someone’s face when they open the door and realize that someone they love has remembered them and cares about what they’re experiencing—happy or sad. When the time is right to open back up, I will see what would be the best fit and go from there.

I am truly grateful to have had this experience. I will be leaving all my flowers behind, but I will bring with me all that I have learned—along with lots of seeds! :)

Let’s stay in touch!

I will keep my bluebirdflowerfarm Instagram account open and would love to see you over there!