Year of the Delphinium
The National Garden Bureau has declared 2016 the Year of the Delphinium. I absolutely adore these rich, blue, bell-shaped blooms and am thrilled that it has been chosen as the flower of 2016. Delphinium is the birth flower of JulyDelphinium, also known as larkspur, are stately spikes of eye-catching blossoms in astounding shades of blue. Because they are one of the few flowers that a...
An IFE Photo Story : Your Farmer's Market
We just returned from the International Floriculture Expo in Chicago (IFE!), an annual summertime event where the floral industry gathers together to discover new products, network, learn, and of course, celebrate all things floral.Every year we attend, we plan a new theme, a new setup, a new sense-filled, all-encompassing flower farm experience. This year, we honored our past (4 gen...
American Flowers Week
For the second year in a row, American Flowers Week is taking off! This week-long celebration of domestically grown flowers was created by Slowflowers.com's Debra Prinzing, a writer, speaker, and leading advocate for American flowers and the farmers who grow them. Why Dedicate a Week to American Flowers? American Flowers Week was organized to unite America's flower farmers with the ...
4th generation Flower Farmer
In 1984, Sun Valley brought its first tulips into the world. The program was small, the plant sheets were handwritten, and the team was just a few...
Original Sun Valley Crew and Plant Sheets
That was thirty-two years ago, but the real heart and soul of Sun Valley began over 140 year ago, in Holland, with the birth of Lane DeVries' great-grandfather, Teun DeVries. Teun was...
Z-Calla Photo Freak Out
Calla Lily Season (or, as we call them, Z-Callas) is in full effect! Both our Oxnard and Arcata Farms are bursting with color and looking great. I think I may have fallen in love with a hoop house.Z-callas ready to be pickedI did some walking around with the camera in order to capture the magical growth that is happening. Now, I share this eye candy with you. Enjoy!Some Z-Calla Vari...
Sun Valley's Terra Machine
As you know, we grow all our flowers in soil. This rich, organic matter--a special mix of our own compost, tree mulch, and some sand--is partly responsible for our strong tulips, big lilies, and beautiful irises.Soil grown tulipsBecause we are dedicated to planting all our crops in this nutrient-rich soil, you can bet this equals some serious heavy lifting. The first step of the proc...