The standard process for purchasing flowers goes like this:

1) Contact your local Wholesaler

2) Wholesaler sources your order from all around the Globe.

3) Pick up your order on the designated date.

How UDF Sources from Local Farmers:

Local sourcing is super fun, and incredibly rewarding! However, it does take a lot of planning. As of now, there is not a centralized organization to order locally grown flowers from and have them delivered.

I function as my own flower broker, wholesaler, and local flower supply chain.

• 1 month or MORE out from event date I contact local flower farmers to gather flower availability. I send them the first slide of the Mood Board, which includes color swatches and a photo for style reference.

•  Create Recipes based upon floral availability + Place Orders with selected flower farmers. I determine what items, if any, I need to source from a commercial wholesale.

• 2 Weeks Out: I Plan sourcing day(s) by scheduling pick up times with flower farmers. By doing this UDF is essentially working as its own wholesaler and supply chain for local product.

• 7-9 Days Out: I am confirming my orders and sending the estimated days + times for Pick Up. Here is when we get the flower update! Sometimes there are items I reserved a month prior that were taken over by bugs, eaten by rabbits, or the wind wrecked the crop. This is when I do not fret. I just pivot to find something similar. Although it is frustrating when something happens to the blooms, I hope the insects and bunnies had a nice meal out of them.

• 5-7 Days Out: I am off to travel my flower route! It can take me 2-3+ days to source all the flowers needed for your event. It all depends on the event size. As I am bringing in flowers each day, I am taking the the flowers through a florist process we call "hardening off". This is where I make sure to process and allow the stems to hydrate overnight in my cooler before designing with them. Some flowers just need a fresh cut and a bucket nap. Other flowers need to be completely submerged in water! All this to make sure blooms are hydrated, so that I have turgid stems to work with.

When I am out picking up blooms from each farm, I always plan time to walk the grounds. Often times I find unique blooms for the personal flowers. These are the golden nuggets I snag for each client! The growers know me and my style, so they always show me the coolest blooms they've got. I love being able to tell you that there's flowers in your design that NOBODY else has in the entire state. 

Check out a few AZ Flower Farmers!

Whipstone Farm https://whipstone.com/fresh-flowers/

John's Plant Adventures  https://www.johnsplantadventure.com/

The Potter's Bench https://www.thepottersbench.com/about-the-potters-bench/

Anne's Garden Fresh https://anneesgardenfresh.blogspot.com/

Ruby Jewel Flowers https://www.rubyjewelflowers.com/about