She started with zero qualifications, a personal trainer husband, and six dahlia tubers from the hardware store. Now Katie and her husband Rob run Little Lyndoch Flower Farm in Australia's Barossa Valley, growing just three crops on under an acre, and building a business that actually brings them joy.

In this episode, Katie shares how they sold everything during COVID to fund the farm, why growing fewer crops made them more profitable, and what it really looks like to build something from the ground up with your partner.

What you'll hear in today's episode:

• Why Katie and Rob narrowed their entire farm down to just three crops, and how that one decision changed everything
• The story of Uncle Lucky's greenhouse and how six dahlias became 3,500
• How they figured out outsourcing when they couldn't keep wearing all the hats
• Katie's honest take on marketing, showing up authentically, and why the quick 3-second reel always outperforms the one that took 2 hours

• Little Lyndoch Flower Farm: littlelyndochflowerfarm.com.au
• Instagram: @littlelyndochflowerfarm

Katie is the co-founder of Little Lyndoch Flower Farm, a seasonal flower farm and creative studio in the Barossa Valley, South Australia. Alongside her husband Rob, Katie has built a business that includes wholesale cut flowers, dahlia tuber and ranunculus corm sales, floral design for weddings, and a 3-day retreat called Bloom. She's currently developing the Bloom Academy for online learning. With no formal training in floristry, farming, or business, Katie and Rob are completely self-taught and share their journey openly to inspire growers and creatives around the world.

If this episode resonates with you, would you share it with a flower friend? And if you haven't already, subscribe so you never miss a conversation.

Sign up for our podcast newsletter: https://bit.ly/thefloweringfarmhousenewsletter

Chelsea Willis is the kind of farmer who notices the frogs in the dahlias.

She's the owner of Sweet Delilah Farm on Sauvie Island, just 15 minutes outside Portland, Oregon. But her path to farming wasn't traditional. With a background in psychology and youth counseling, Chelsea originally wanted to find a way to get young people out on the land, because she saw how much easier it was for them to open up when their hands were busy and their feet were in the dirt.

Then a piece of land became available. And then another. The second one, a former lavender you-pick farm, she closed on in two and a half weeks. She'd never planned to buy property at that moment. But it felt right.

Today, Sweet Delilah Farm is a space where community gathers. Chelsea hosts dahlia workshops, floral design classes, plant dye days, and end-of-season u-picks. She's growing over 88 varieties of sweet peas for seed production, tending close to 250 roses, and dreaming about bringing yoga and meditation back to the farm. For Chelsea, farming isn't just about production. It's about presence, connection, and leaving space for whatever needs to come up, whether that's a pest issue in the field or a conversation that needs to happen.

If this episode stirs something in you, I'd love for you to share it with a fellow flower friend. And if you haven't already, subscribe so you never miss a new conversation.

• Sweet Delilah Farm: sweetdelilahfarm.com
• Instagram: @sweetdelilahflowerfarm
• Wild Craft Studio (Portland, plant dyeing classes)
• Sweet pea varieties mentioned: Piggy Sue, King's Coronation, Prince of Orange
• Rose varieties mentioned: Dainty Bess, Coco Loco, All Dressed Up, Fun in the Sun

Sign up for our podcast newsletter: https://bit.ly/thefloweringfarmhousenewsletter

In Episode 87 of The Backyard Bouquet Podcast, Jennifer sits down with Jenny Rae Swan, founder of Flowerwell, a cut flower farm and floral design studio in Rochester, New York.

As a first-generation farmer, Jenny Rae didn’t grow up in agriculture, but she followed her pull toward flowers and built Flowerwell from a small plot on a neighboring blueberry farm into a thriving flower farm and design business. In this conversation, she shares what it really looks like to start a flower farm without a roadmap and steadily scale it over time.

Jennifer and Jenny Rae discuss:

• Starting a flower farm without farming experience
• Scaling from a small growing space to multiple acres
• Hiring and building a farm team
• Balancing the roles of farmer and florist
• Navigating growth, risk, and long-term vision
• Lessons learned from nearly a decade in business

If you’re dreaming about starting a flower farm, actively growing one, or wondering what the next level looks like, this episode offers honest insight into the realities of building something sustainable in the floral industry.

Whether you're a backyard grower or working toward full-time flower farming, Jenny Rae’s story is a reminder that growth happens season by season, and that you don’t need to have it all figured out to begin.

Connect with Jenny Rae at Flowerwell:

Website: https://www.flowerwellny.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/flowerwellny

Sign up for our podcast newsletter: https://bit.ly/thefloweringfarmhousenewsletter

Join Us At The Profitable Dahlia Summit

The first-ever virtual summit focused exclusively on growing dahlias for profit is here!

Join us March 3–4, 2026 to learn from experienced dahlia growers who are selling bouquets, tubers, CSA shares, event tickets, and more — and doing it profitably.

You’ll walk away with real strategies to turn your passion into income, even if you're just getting started.

Save your spot here: https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajabi.com/profitabledahiliasummit/

If you've ever looked at a dahlia and wondered "what if I could create my own variety?" Kamille is the person you need to learn from.

Her session is unlike anything else at the summit. She's taking us on the journey of a seedling from its first bloom to its official debut and showing how the art of hybridizing is so much more than science.

It's about mentorship, community, and opening your garden to others. What I love about Kamille's approach is that she believes the most beautiful varieties come from shared wisdom. Growing something new doesn't have to be a solo journey.

Kamille is speaking on Day 2 AND joining our live Q&A panel that afternoon so you'll have the chance to ask her your questions directly.

📅 Day 2 | March 4th | 1:00 PM PST

📅 Q&A Panel | March 4th | 3:00 PM PST

🎟️ Live Access: $99 | All Access: $199

Learn more and grab your ticket: https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajabi.com/profitabledahiliasummit

Connect with Kamille on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kamillesflowers/

Charlotte is a 5th generation farmer and mindset coach and there's a reason she's one of our first speakers on Day 1 of The Profitable Dahlia Summit. Everything starts with mindset. You can learn every strategy in the world for selling dahlias, but if you don't believe you're worth charging for them, none of it matters.

Charlotte is going to get your head right so you can take full advantage of every single session that follows. She's tackling the "broke farmer trap," the pricing guilt, the scarcity thinking, all of it. And she's replacing it with the confidence you need to actually build a business that pays you.

If you've ever thought "I just feel bad charging people for flowers"... Charlotte has something to say about that.

Charlotte is speaking on Day 1 of the summit, March 3rd at 9:00 AM PST

Grab your summit ticket at the link in the show notes. Tickets start at $99.

https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajabi.com/profitabledahiliasummit

Connect with Charlotte Smith: https://www.instagram.com/charlotte.m.smith/

In this bonus episode, I'm sharing my Instagram Live conversation with Heather Cain of Petal Pink Flower Farm. We talked all about selling dahlias to florists and she shared so much that I know you're going to want to hear her full session at the summit.

Have you ever thought about selling your dahlias to florists but weren't sure where to start? What do they actually expect? How do you price for wholesale? How do you even approach them?

Heather is answering all of it at the Profitable Dahlia Summit. From what florists look for when they buy dahlias, to how to scale your operation, price your blooms, and pack them like a pro.

If you're looking for a consistent, reliable revenue stream for your dahlias, selling to florists could be the game changer. And Heather is the person to learn from.

Heather is speaking at the Profitable Dahlia Summit on March 3rd at 2:15 PM PST where she's going even deeper on this topic.

The Profitable Dahlia Summit is March 3-5 with 13+ speakers covering every path to profitable dahlias. Tickets start at $99.

Grab your ticket at the link in the show notes: https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajabi.com/theprofitabledahliaschedule

Connect with Heather of Petal Pink Flowers: https://www.instagram.com/petalpinkflowers/

In this bonus episode of The Backyard Bouquet Podcst, I'm sharing my Instagram Live conversation with Marryn Mathis of The Farmhouse Flower Farm. We talked about getting ready for her tuber sale season, how it feels like a total rollercoaster, and some of Marryn's favorite dahlias this year. Marryn is speaking at the Profitable Dahlia Summit on March 4th and she's teaching how to host a dahlia tuber sale that sells out in a single day.

Grab your summit ticket at the link in the show notes. Tickets start at $99.

https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajabi.com/profitabledahiliasummit

Connect with Marryn of The Farmhouse Flower Farm: https://www.instagram.com/thefarmhouseflowerfarm/

In this episode of The Backyard Bouquet Podcast, I’m joined by Melissa Stewart of Sweet Bloom Farm, a boutique dahlia farm in Battle Ground, Washington.

Melissa’s journey began the way so many of ours do, with a few mystery dahlias from a garden center and a spark she couldn’t ignore. What started as six blooming plants in her suburban backyard quickly grew into 20 varieties… then 50… then 100… and eventually into a two-acre farm growing 4,000 dahlias.

In this conversation, we talk about:

• Scaling from 600 to 4,000 plants in one season
• Why their second year on the farm was their hardest
• The soil test that saved their crop
• Farming no-till in rocky Pacific Northwest soil
• Selling dahlia tubers online and shipping nationwide
• Whether the dahlia market is oversaturated
• Why local flowers matter more than ever
• The community that flowers create beyond the blooms

Melissa shares openly about balancing a corporate job, raising two children, building a farm with her husband, and learning when to ask for help.

If you’ve ever wondered whether your backyard dahlias could become something more, this episode will inspire you.

Book: Weeds & What They Tell Us: https://amzn.to/3ZHkWQO

Connect with Melissa:

Website: www.sweetbloomfarm.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sweetbloomfarm

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sweetbloomfarm

Sign up for our podcast newsletter: https://bit.ly/thefloweringfarmhousenewsletter

Join Us At The Profitable Dahlia Summit

The first-ever virtual summit focused exclusively on growing dahlias for profit is here!

Join us March 3–4, 2026 to learn from experienced dahlia growers who are selling bouquets, tubers, CSA shares, event tickets, and more — and doing it profitably.

You’ll walk away with real strategies to turn your passion into income, even if you're just getting started.

Save your spot here: https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajabi.com/profitabledahiliasummit/