From horses to cows to flowers of her own, Kate from Blühen Acres Flowers is sharing her story this week. Kate has a fun story about making something for herself and some great product ideas that go beyond the standard “market bouquets”. I’m sure you’ll enjoy her story as much as I did!
Interview with BlUHEN ACRES:
What circumstances lead you to start your farm?
My family and I were living in a small “town” on just three acres when our girls got into riding horses. My husband, the lifetime farmer, saw this as an opportunity to convert our garage (YES, our garage) into a two stall barn. We slowly started collecting horses and quickly realized we were going to need more space. One thing lead to another and we found ourselves a sweet 30 acre farm that needed a little TLC. After moving I realized that my husband had dove head first into getting cows again, my daughters had their horses, and I wanted something just for myself. And then came flowers.
How did your friends and family react?
I think up until we announced our plans to open a flower shop our families and friends thought of it maybe as a “cute hobby” not realizing all the plans and aspirations I had.
Who helped you/what challenges did you face in the beginning?
The biggest struggle in the beginning was confidence; in my growing ability, in putting myself out there, in my flowers, in my ability to start a business with zero prior experience. There’s a lot of people out there who will tell you farming can be a fruitless and thankless task and that can be really disheartening when you’re just starting out. Support from neighbors and a few close friends are really what helped me with all of the uncertainty. They’re such a crucial part of why this ever happened.
Who/what helped you?
Pushing past fear was what really propelled me forward. Realizing how many great things were on the other side of the discomfort and worry kept motivating me to do it more.
Was there ever a point where you wanted to give up?
There is a point in every season where I am like “I cannot do this. It’s too much.” Whether it’s because too many plants have died, I left my seeds out to get soaked (again), or when I’m certain no one is going to love my flowers, I always have a point where I want to quit but I never do. Even last year when my husband had to have unexpected triple bypass in the height of the season, I really wanted to quit then. But doing it when it’s crazy hard is proof you can do it when it’s not.
What has been the most fulfilling part of the process?
The entire process is gratifying in a lot of different ways. Growing anything is such a fulfilling experience on it’s own. For me though, proving to myself that I can build something from nothing and have it be well received has been life changing. I’ve never had something that was truly “mine” that I could be proud of, and even though it took me awhile to arrive here, I finally have this farm and it’s been overwhelmingly satisfying.
If you could go back and change one or two things that you did – what would those be?
Given the opportunity to go back and change anything I would definitely ask for more help. I really beat myself up (and still do) about all the things I couldn’t keep up with. When someone offers to help, they usually mean it! I probably would have gotten a lot more rest if I had taken up my friends and family on their offers.
What advice would you give 5-year younger you? (sorry! I cant think of a better way to word this, haha!)
To Kate 5 years ago I would say, “don’t be weighted down by what you think you *should* be doing, trust your gut, God, and the process. It will all work out if you map the course and stick to it.”
You can follow Blühen Acres Flowers on Instagram at @bluhenacresflowers