| If you enjoy gardening, and want to turn your | | | | Most restaurants can't afford to put fresh cut |
| gardening hobby into extra income, think about | | | | flowers on tables every day, but find that dried |
| growing flowers for profit. Flowers are among the | | | | flowers brighten up the table just as well, and can |
| most profitable plants, producing one of the | | | | be replaced once a month. Dried flower growers |
| highest returns of any specialty crop. You can get | | | | will often re-do the bouquets at several |
| started with very little - just enough for seeds | | | | restaurants every month. Another popular dried |
| and supplies, and most new flower growers make | | | | flower, gypsophilia, or baby's breath, is widely |
| money in the first year. | | | | used as a filler in floral arrangements. Most retail |
| Many flower growers have found the Saturday | | | | florists prefer to buy from local growers |
| farmer's market to be the best place to get top | | | | whenever possible. |
| dollar for their flowers. One grower sells her cut | | | | Perhaps the best "niche" flower business is |
| flowers, like lilies, cosmos, statice, zinnias, | | | | subscription sales. One California flower grower |
| snapdragons and daisies, and finds the demand so | | | | has perfected it, and now just works one day a |
| great she sells out before noon. She thinks | | | | week on her unique niche. Every flower is |
| flowers are the perfect seasonal crop because | | | | pre-sold, and her unique business takes in around |
| they are easy to grow, produce quickly and | | | | a half-million dollars every year. She says there is |
| supply an income all season long. | | | | room for a similar floral subscription business in |
| Some flower growers like to specialize in cut | | | | almost every town, large or small. |
| flowers that have larger showy blossoms, such as | | | | She delivers fresh-cut flower bouquets to offices |
| hydrangeas and sunflowers, that can bring as | | | | and homes in her community on Mondays. Just |
| much as $5 for a single stem. It's not uncommon | | | | like a paper route, customers buy a subscription |
| for a grower to sell over a thousand stems in a | | | | by the month, paying from $15 to $150 each |
| single day at the farmer's market. As one grower | | | | week, depending on how many bouquets they |
| said,"For those who love being in the garden and | | | | order. One of her regular customers says, |
| watching their flowers grow, there is nothing quite | | | | "Flowers cheer the office up. They are colorful, |
| like this business." | | | | alive, and you don't have to dust them!" |
| Because flowers can be grown in a tiny backyard | | | | Woody ornamentals are another flower grower's |
| or on a larger acreage, it's an ideal part-time | | | | niche. "Woodies" are trees and shrubs that grow |
| business for those in need of a flexible schedule, | | | | back each year after cutting, and are popular with |
| such as stay-at-home moms, retirees or anyone | | | | florists, who use them to fill out bouquets. |
| who has another job. | | | | Woodies can be everyday plants, like forsythia |
| Dried flowers, also called "everlastings" because | | | | and lilac, or uncommon varieties like corkscrew |
| they last so long when dried, are a perfect flower | | | | willow. |
| crop for a backyard flower grower. If you are | | | | Since they are perennials, once you've planted |
| growing for profit, everlastings can be even | | | | them, they require little work other than cutting |
| better than cut flowers as you can make as | | | | the branches at harvest time. Woodies have |
| much as $8 per square foot. Most everlastings, | | | | become such profitable plants, some growers are |
| such as celosia, statice and straw flowers, are | | | | choosing to specialize in popular varieties, such as |
| very easy to grow and easy to air dry. Growers | | | | curly willow, red osier dogwood, golden ninebark |
| find the best markets for dried flowers are craft | | | | and holly. A bonus with woodies is the extended |
| shops, antique shops and selling dried flower | | | | season, which can extend cutting time from |
| arrangements to flower shops and restaurants. | | | | February through November. |
| An antique shop owner had dozens of cut glass | | | | Whether you live in Alabama or North Dakota, |
| vases that just would not sell. She added a small | | | | growing flowers can provide a good income to |
| bouquet of dried flowers to each vase, and sold | | | | anyone who loves to garden and can spare a few |
| them all for four times the price within a month! | | | | hours each week. |