About the Flowers

I grew up being required to pull weeds in my mom's veggie and flower beds. I resented it. Sorry Mom. When I got my first apartment, I started growing in pots on the balcony. It was different, they were my plants to tend.

When my husband and I bought our first home, it didn't take long before I was hardscaping, ordering compost, and finding my favorite nurseries. That first real garden was a great learning experience. However, an unexpected cross country move meant I had to leave it behind after only a few short years. 

It took me a while to be ready for the work involved in building a garden at the new home. The bigger hurdle was learning how to grow in a new climate, vastly different than the last. When I finally decided to go for it, I just couldn't stop. I spent any free time I had over that spring, summer, and fall building my new garden from the ground up.

I also began researching and planning all that I would grow. I found a great seed company, Johnny's Selected Seeds;  their website was chock full of detailed product info and growing guides for both professionals and avid home gardeners.  I was primarily researching vegetable seeds, but they also sell cut flower seeds. I found myself veering into those sections of their website more and more. The interest snowballed, and quickly turned into Robin Hill Blooms.

I love the whole process of growing. I love researching varieties and the conditions they prefer. I love getting my spreadsheets and drawings out and planning what goes where and when. I love sowing the seeds, taking care of them, waiting for them to germinate, and then watching them grow. I will never tire of the miracle of what comes out of each tiny little seed, all the genetics it carries to make it into a unique plant.

Then the fun continues.  I get to transplant them outdoors and tend them like little babies. They grow big and green and lush, and before you know it the buds start to set. I love the flowers themselves, but the process and the lifetime of that plant is what I adore. The flower showcases the life's work of that little tiny seed, and it's just beautiful.

Photo Credit

Emily Smith