REVIVAL OF THE AMERICAN FLOWER FARMER

WANT TO KNOW YOUR FLOWERS 

THEN

KNOW YOUR FARMER

The links below will show you who and what we flower farmers are and are not about.  If you spend 15 minutes watching the video from the ASCFG you'll come away with a breathe of fresh air about those wonders of nature that perfume our air, attract pollinators that give us fruits, vegetables and medicines, encourage our colleagues, comfort and delight our loved ones as well as passers-by.  When done with sustainable, water conserving and organic practices Flower Farming is a humbling and honorable way of life.  
We hope you'll agree and that you'll decide to support local flower farmers, wherever you or the recipient of your floral gift, are as your preferred suppliers of 
flowers -
 the food for your body, heart and soul.

We support or are members of all of these groups.  We've learned so much from each of these groups.  All of what we learn benefits us and in turn you, our supporters.
Keep this list handy for when you are not acquiring your flowers from us and want to let your conscience eve a part of what guides your floral purchases.
You may not see us listed because we are a bit shy but no less enthusiastic.

ASSOCIATION OF SPECIALTY CUT FLOWER GROWERS
http://ascfg.org/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1
click on on Local Flowers, Local Farmers

FARMER FLORIST COLLECTIVE

https://www.floretflowers.com/directory/

SLOW FLOWERS

http://slowflowers.com/content/about-us.html

ARIZONA GROWN
http://arizonagrown.org/why-buy.html


WOMEN WHO FARM
http://www.womenwhofarm.com


AMERICAN GROWN
http://www.americangrownflowers.org/about-us/

CALIFORNIA CUT FLOWER COMMISSION
http://www.ccfc.org/about-ccfc/

If you want to delve more into the history and future of cut flowers in the USA we invite you to join us Monday and Tuesday evenings November 6 & 7 
from
6-8:30 p.m.
at
Desert Botanical Gardens   

ARTISANAL FLOWERS

Regular Price: $131.00

Member Price: $105.00

Monday and Tuesday / Nov. 6 and 7 / 6 - 8:30 p.m.

Discover the background and future of our national cut floral industry with award-winning Slow Flowers Movement leader Debra Prinzing. Learn to grow trending botanicals from an Arizona flower farmer and design with local blooms. Floral artist Morgan Anderson, Ph.D. reviews the design process to assist in the step-by-step creation of your artisan botanical design to take and enjoy. All materials included. Limit 20.

Session Fall 2017: Mon, Nov 6, 2017 6:00PM - 8:30PM  

https://learn.dbg.org/mainstore.asp?cid=1265

DELICIOUS TIME TO PLANT

AND THE SECOND SPRING CONTINUES

October is the "It" Month for gardeners in Maricopa County.

Check out this calendar for dates of the all the great places to get plants of the desert, plants to eat, plants to sniff, plants to shade you and more!

DBG Fall Plant Sale

Friday - Sunday, October 19 - 22  

Friday Members Only 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. 

Saturday: 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. 

Sunday: 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. 

The largest collection of native and desert adapted plants for sale to the public.

  

Master Gardener Fall Festival & Plant Sale

Saturday, October 28: Fall Festival 

Sponsored by: Maricopa County Master Gardeners 

Location: Metro Tech High School 

Time: 8:15 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. 

This group is made up of mostly volunteers and they receive no funding. This is their major fund raiser.  Desert plant lovers will love the bargains galore.

Boyce Thompson Arboretum Plant Sale  

October 13 – 30: Fall Plant Sale 

Daily 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. 

Friday, October 13 is for members only 

Plan to make a day of it so you can tour around the grounds.  The higher elevation makes for some different vegetation.  Excellent new additions to their collection.

AZ Rare Fruit Growers fall Plant Sale

Saturday, November 4: Fall Plant Sale 

Sponsored by Arizona Rare Fruit Growers 

Location: Mesa Community College 

Time: 8:00 a.m. to noon 

Rare and not so rare.  All kinds of deliciousness!

        

DON'T JUST STAND THERE!  PLANT SOMETHING!

SECOND SPRING

This is what many call Autumn in the Sonoran Desert, our "Second Spring".  

Aaah!  

Isn't this why we struggle through Summer here to enjoy the next 7- 10 months of wonderful weather?!  

Get out the hammock and lawn games, Gladys!

It is a great time for planting the cool season veggies and herbs as well as growing glorious roses.  

In the Chief Rose Rangler's humble opinion roses are at their largest and 

most fragrant this time of year.  

So in anticipation of this Jill and Anne of Sweet Life and Tre Soli respectively, are offering 
hands on classes so you too can experience 

what a desert rose can truly be.  

We are also planning seasonal floral foraging, arranging and crafting classes for 

November and December. 

Those of you who have been to Jill & Anne's classes know that we keep them small so that there is time for  you to ask your questions and try out the techniques we teach.  

If you see a class you want to take but are unable to attend, please let us know.  

If we have enough others wanting it we will try to open an additional session.  

Have a lot of questions?  

Another option is to request Jill or Anne to do a private consult at your home with you and your roses.  

We look forward to teaching and assisting you to enjoy your gardens as much as we enjoy ours.  

Here are our class offerings as of now.

Summer Rose Revival  on Friday, October 6,  10-11 - $25
Roses looking a bit crispy Bunkie?  No fear roses are resilient   We’ll show you and walk you through how do a “rose reset” including light pruning, fertilizing, watering and how this differs from summer and winter needs.  And hips!  What about them?  How to get them if you want them.  And no we're not talking about another slice of chocolate cake, though we do like our chocolate!  

Fall General Potted Rose Selection, Planting & Care on Friday, Oct 13,  9-10 - $25  

Off to a good start: Garden Centers will have roses in five gallon pots for you to plant now.  Where and how to plant, sun exposure, soil & watering needs, fertilizer, compost, mulch, light pruning will all be covered.  How to select a healthy potted rose and signs that indicate it should thrive in your garden.  Average life span of roses will also be discussed. 

Fall General Rose Care Continued on Friday, October 20,  9-10 a.m. - $25

Thorns in your side:  Weeds &  Pests – bugs and rodents, disease - common rose afflictions in Maricopa County.  An ounce of prevention is worth ...well ...well worth whatever precautions you take.  A healthy garden is a garden in harmony.  Learn what instruments will make beautiful garden music. What to look for – signs of damage, or how can you tell when a rose is dead?  General prevention and treatments will also be discussed with an emphasis on prevention!

RSVP to reserve your place in any of the three classes by sending us an email with the title(s) of the class that you want to attend.  The address and directions will be sent to you when we confirm your reservation.  We keep the classes small so they do fill up quickly.  If you are unable to attend please notify us 48 hours in advance so that there is time for for us to offer your spot to someone else.  Payment for class is due when you arrive.

Fall is the best season for roses here in the Valley of the Sun so don’t give up, Bunkie.  

Don’t miss out on these opportunities to grow your best roses yet.

Cock-a-doodle-doo

Apples and roses for you!

And You 

And you too!

And tomorrow a few more peaches & nectarines

Check our Instagram@azgardenfresh

for more photos and text.

We've got to get back out there to pick for you.

Hope you stop by soon.

When Was The Last Time ...

…you loved you some Apple sauce?!

For some of us it was about one year ago.

We appreciate you fruit lovers who have been stopping by the honor market 

buying and enjoying our peaches and nectarines!  

They are about done but never fear

APPLES ARE HERE!

We are done picking for today.  You can find them in the coolers in the alcove by the front door.  

For those who stopped by yesterday during the cooler failure thank you for your patience 

and 

please let us know how we make it up to you.  

We spent hours of time and many dollars of money correcting the problem and all is chill so,

 so to speak.

The apples are the Anna and Golden Dorsett variety.

  Last year we had an apple disease that we had to treat by putting the apple trees into what we call "suspended animation" for the season.  It saved their lives.
Pollinators certainly did their jobs this year.
Consequently the trees are more prolific that ever even if a season behind fertilization!
The usual sweet tart flavor of our apples is not as off the charts sweetly addictive this year but they are still crisp, juicy and tart.  

Taste is in the mouth of the taster, none-the-less we suggest applesauce with lemon and cinnamon added as an excellent way to enjoy this years harvest.  Sugar free!

It is sooo easy.  Wash the apples well.  No need to peel the skins that hold so much of an apples nutrition.  And they cook down to where you don't even know the skins are there.  Use a corer/slicer tool and toss the the apple slices into a pot, squirt a bit of fresh lemon onto the slices to prevent oxidation, browning.  Sprinkle with high quality cinnamon, or grind your own from cinnamon bark sticks or just toss in some cinnamon bark sticks.

We like the Saigon & Ceylon Cinnamons.   Fresh high quality cinnamon is important for maximum favor.  Continue to core & slice, squirt lemon and sprinkle cinnamon until you have covered the bottom of the pot.  Then turn the stove on medium as you continue to prep the apples and add as many apples to the pot as you'd like.  Stir frequently to prevent apples from burning on the bottom of pan.

Once the apples are bubbling you can turn it down to low.  Cook apples down to the consistency you prefer.   We once used a slow cooker and kept it going for days until it was of spreadable consistency…

Apple Butter on biscuits!  Mmmmm mmm good.

Call us for address and directions to our urban farm

Consult Maricopa County Extension publications for canning and storing fresh produce.

 Time for us to take a break
but
we'll be out there at dawn tomorrow picking
and feeding
and pruning
so that
you can enjoy the fruits of our labor.
Mew

FRONT DOOR HONOR MARKET OPEN NOW

SUNRISE TO SUNSET

FRUIT & FLOWERS FOR YOU!

BYOBottles, Buckets, Bags & Bushels 

For the past two days 

five of us have been working hard gathering back in 

the Orchards and Gardens.  

And now you can enjoy the fruits of our labors.

Fruits 

$3/bag

Flowers  

$3/stem

Shop flowers from the photos on our blog

http://azgardenfresh.blogspot.com

 and 

Instagram@azgardenfresh

Give us a call or email if you want ROSES. 

We have every color.  Tell us your quantity, color and arrival time.

We will have them ready when you arrive.

And be sure to let us know if you'd like some jasmine or sweet lemon verbena with your bouquet, 

no extra charge for those.

Our APPLES are crisp, tart and the sweet is beginning to build.

They are cold and juicy in an alcove cooler.

The WHITE NECTARINES in our bags are today and tomorrows...

some are ready to eat today, others are firmer to eat another day.  

We love fruit hot off of the tree but for you they are 

Are all cold, juicy and sweet in an alcove cooler.

Change, if you need it, is in the pop bottle cap holders on the front of the coolers

Instructions are hanging there in the alcove by the front door.

If you do not see what you want, 

RING OUR BELL.

If we're there we're happy to come up front to assist you.  

It can take 2-3 minutes for us to come up front so patience please.

If we do not answer CALL 480-483-0060

There's plenty more of everything back there 

so let us know if you are baking a lot of pies for 4th of July

or 

making applesauce 

or 

having an event and it own't be complete without our rose girls.

We can gather more so let us know.

The Gardens at TRE SOLI FARM 

is located in a residential neighborhood 

in Scottsdale.

Call us for address and directions to our urban farm

PLEASE DRIVE SLOWLY

We have many walkers, runners, children, bicyclers, 

dogs, cats, horses, roosters, goats, and even burrows 

who call our neighborhood home.

Do not put any of them at risk because you are in a hurry 

and

cannot wait to slurp your juicy fruit and face plant in our roses.  

Fruit and flowers are never an emergency.

BYOB, B, B, B CONTINUES

BRING YOUR OWN BOTTLES, BAGS, BUCKETS and BUSHELS

Full and Fragrant

A heartfelt thank you to everyone who endured the heat and visited us at Singh Meadows yesterday.

We met some delightful new friends and welcomed some return rose admirers.  And amazing those of you who traveled from the Valley of the Sun hinterlands.  

We hope you come again soon and were not disappointed.

An extra thank you to those who happily brought their Bottles for Blooms!

We still have Blooms and we bet you have bottles.  So bring it on.

Singh Meadows has so much watermelon and corn that there was not room for us today.  We know what abundant harvest means because we hardly have room here for our own bounty.  We hope to return there soon.  When in doubt just send us an email and we'll let you know.

Lavender and Fragrant

Because of the heat FRONT DOOR HONOR MARKET will be by preorder until we can purchase a glass front refrigerator or two.  Anyone with a lead on available fridges please let us know.  

We're hoping to find one or two that are "gently used" in order to minimize our costs and potential repairs.
EMAIL azgardenfresh@gmail.com
We generally check email 2-3 times per day and try to reply within 24 hours.

CALL 480-483-0060
We are often busy in the garden and can't get the gloves off fast enough to answer the phones so please leave a message.  We are eager to return your call.

We are posting some photos here so you can have an idea WHAT'S IN SEASON.  We cannot guarantee the exact ones you want until you pre order.  "First Come, First Served."  You can identify them by what number and color it is that you see that you want.  Sometimes it looks as though we only have one bloom.  That is because it was too awkward to get a better photo of the rest.  If we only have one we're not likely to post and tease you with it.

Why the bottles you asked, and glad that you did?

With the 100*+ heat we want your flowers to arrive as lovely as when they left the farm.  Water is a big component of that.  Taking your blooms in your bottles gives them plenty of water for the ride to their destination.  

It is a form of recycling.  Some bottles make for beautiful vessels.  

It decreases our costs when we are not using paper, rubber bands, ribbon and jute.  It decreases your costs when we don't have to charge you for these components.  You needn't spend extravagant amounts of money to have a grand bouquet.

We are delighted to use all of these compostable wrappings whenever you request, for example when you are taking the flowers directly to a lucky recipient.

We recommend ordering one day ahead and/or picking up in the cool of the morning.  Why?  

Because cut flowers prefer 45*-65* weather with more humidity than we have at 12%.  

When we cut your order we bring your blooms inside, plunge their heads into the cool filtered water to release "animalitas" that may be hitchhiking and the plunge takes the heat down.  

Then we give the flowers a big drink of water and finally let them rest in our "cooling room" in the dark until they go home with you.  It is amazing how that plumps them up!  We can pick the morning you pick up.  Give them the same treatment we do when you get home and their life will be extended.

Today we are harvesting the last of the peaches, some nectarines and starting 

APPLES! 

YES!  Apples in the Desert!  Did you know that they are in the same family as roses?  These are low chill, desert adapted apples, better than what you can purchase in the stores and earlier than the high elevation apples that will come on in a few months.  

Don't let anyone tell you apples from the desert are any not good.  We suspect they've never eaten ours.

 If you find you have brought home more apples that you can chop into salad, bake, roast, grill etc.  We recommend Apple sauce and apple butter.  Easy Peasy.  Our washed Apples cored with lemon and cinnamon added, with a pot to cook it in, is all it takes.  Recipes all over the web. We let ours cool then bag them in zip lock type bags.  The it is into the freezer they go.  When we remove them from the freezer we thaw in the fridge.  When we remove some apple sauce from the bags roll the bag to squeeze all of the air out before sealing the bag.  This prevents that watery breakdown from occurring.