TFB

WHEN GOOD INTENTIONS, VAGUE LANGUAGE, AND REAL PRACTICES START TO DIVERGE

“Locally grown” has become a popular phrase in floristry. And on the surface, that feels like a good thing.

More couples are asking where their flowers come from. More florists are talking about seasonality. More designers are using the language of sustainability.

But popularity has also created confusion. Because not all locally grown work is actually built the same way.

For many florists, locally grown means adding a few seasonal stems into an otherwise imported design. Dahlias because they do not ship well. Cosmos when they are available. A local accent layered into a palette that was already decided, already styled, already chosen to fit a look rather than a moment.

That approach works for a lot of businesses. It is familiar. It is predictable. And it photographs beautifully.

But it is not the same thing.

WHAT LOCALLY GROWN ACTUALLY MEANS HERE

When we say locally grown, we mean one hundred percent locally grown.

Our designs are built entirely around what is growing in real time, in this region. Northern Virginia, Washington DC, and Maryland. We grow a large portion of our flowers ourselves and source the rest from nearby farms we know personally. Farms we visit. Farms we plan with. Farms whose growing seasons shape our own.

That means no imports filling gaps. No forcing flowers to behave outside their natural season. No building a palette months in advance and then chasing product to make it work.

Occasionally, that sourcing includes greenery from a Florida farm we trust deeply. That choice is intentional and transparent. The system stays the same. The philosophy does not change.

Locally grown is not just about geography. It is about how decisions are made from the very beginning.

WHY THIS DISTINCTION MATTERS

When flowers are grown and sourced this way, everything changes.

It changes which flowers naturally exist together. It changes scale and texture. It changes color relationships. It opens the door to stems that do not ship well and therefore rarely show up in imported work. The small, fleeting, unexpected pieces you never see when everything is standardized and boxed.

These are the details that only appear when the season is allowed to lead.

This is where design becomes more specific. More honest. More rooted in place.

It also changes the planning process. This way of working asks for more planning, more flexibility, and more trust. If that sounds uncomfortable, it probably is. And it is also where the good work lives.

THE PROBLEM WITH HOW “LOCALLY GROWN” IS BEING USED

Here is the hard truth.

Many clients believe they are choosing locally grown flowers when they are not. Not because they did not ask, but because the answer was softened.

When locally grown is treated as a styling detail instead of a sourcing system, it misleads people who genuinely care about their impact. It flattens the work of farmers. And it allows imported supply chains to continue operating exactly as they always have, just wrapped in better language.

This is not about shaming florists who work differently. There are many ways to run a business. But transparency matters.

Clients deserve to know the difference between a florist who occasionally uses local flowers and a grower designer whose entire process depends on them.

Those two things are not interchangeable. Pretending they are does real harm.

DESIGN IS NOT AN UPGRADE. IT IS THE WHOLE POINT.

Working with local, seasonal flowers is not a limitation. It is not rustic. It is not garden gathered. And it is not a trend.

It is a design philosophy rooted in agriculture, ecology, and time.

When flowers are allowed to exist in their proper season, design becomes more intentional, not less. Color becomes more nuanced. Texture becomes more alive. Arrangements stop looking like they could belong anywhere and start looking like they belong here.

That is the difference between a floral designer and a florist.

LOCALLY GROWN IS NOT A MOMENT. IT IS A COMMITMENT.

We are not interested in riding a trend. We are interested in doing the work the right way, even when it is harder. Even when it requires planning further ahead. Even when it asks clients to trust the process instead of controlling every detail.

Locally grown is not an aesthetic choice. It is a supply chain decision. A farming decision. A design decision. It is also a health decision. A human decision. And an earth conscious decision.

And when it is done honestly, it changes everything.

Not locally grown as a buzzword.

Locally grown as a practice.