Diary of A Gardener Big Announcements

Last week I made a big announcement for my business. I now only ship plants within the state of Florida. This decision has been a year in the making and one that I had to come to in time. Shipping plants is not only time consuming (time is not something I have a lot of), but the profits are also exceptionally low for a one-woman operation. I do not have room to maintain copious quantities of plants and I do not have a facility to ship substantial amounts of plants. It is very risky shipping plants and as I have stated, I am small and that means I have NO room to accept returns. Plants shipped within FL usually arrive within one day, if not two leaving plants with less days to be stressed.

Locally, I am known more as an outdoor plant/landscape/garden expert. All plants I own and sell, except for African Violets live outside and, in my garden, live in the ground outside, all year long. I am an FNGLA Certified Horticulture Professional, Florida-Friendly Landscaping (TM) Program Certified Professional, GI-BMP Certified and a certified Landscape Designer. My knowledge is best known within the state of FL and FL residents are my customers. More specifically, residents within the Sarasota and Manatee counties. I really have no business selling plants outside of FL.

I want to become more involved with using FL native plants, which should not be grown outside of FL. There are many plants native to the southeast US that are also sold as FL natives. People do buy those from outside the state, but if you reside outside of the immediate area, you should find someone in your local region to purchase from. Your native pollinators will benefit greatly.

My focus is more on landscape design, garden/plant consulting, teaching residents about FL plants, correct landscape principles and selling FL natives, FL Friendly and cool (and not invasive) exotics. There are plenty of plant stores online who specialize in interesting plants and are experts in shipping.

For my local customers, I will still hold plants sales from October to May selling all your favorite plants both indoor and outdoor and everything in between. During the summer months I will have a limited inventory of mostly FL natives, hoyas and easy to maintain plants both online and in person.

If you live outside of the local Sarasota area and reside in Florida, I can still ship to you. The online inventory will be focused more on native plants, hoyas and plants that ship with less stress. If you are looking for something specific, feel free to message me. I can often locate hard to find plants, through my suppliers.

Thank you to everyone for your support and business. Owning a business means it changes over time. It means you have a niche that is carved out over time. I am sure Butterflies and Blossoms FL will have more reiterations as we grow. For now… keep planting and most importantly, keep growing.