Going GREENER

in a host of colours including vivid pink ‘Odessa’ and rich yellow ‘Gold’. They like a lot of light and cool soil, so in October everything’s just right.

DO YOURS LAST LONGER?

As they don’t have to be shipped, customers get them within a few days of being picked. They then bloom for about two weeks.

ANY OTHER ECO CREDS?

British-grown flowers, like alstroemeria, use ten times less carbon than imported equivalents such as Kenyan gypsophila or roses*. This is partly because they don’t have to travel very far, but it’s also because of how farms like mine grow them.

WHAT’S YOUR SECRET?

Instead of using pesticides, I use ‘bio-controls’ – such as sowing aubergine plants – in the greenhouses. A predator called encarsia lives on them and helps control whitefly that would damage our flowers. Alstroemerias are also water-efficient – they only need watering once a month in winter and once every ten days in summer. Plus, they grow best at 13°C, so our greenhouses don’t require much heating. Finally, there’s little waste on my farm. I offer discounted ‘posy grade’ bunches that fail supermarket standards – the floral equivalent of wonky veg.

WHERE CAN WE GET THEM?

We sell our flowers in Morrisons supermarkets, as well as through Beachtown Blooms (beachtownblooms.com), who offer letterbox deliveries. You can also pick up packaging-free bunches direct from the farm.

HOW CAN WE SPOT BRITISH BLOOMS?

It can be hard! I’d love clearer labels on bouquets to show they’re from Britain. In 2014, I launched the British Flowers Rock campaign to encourage this and I now give talks as well as post on social media to convince supermarkets and florists. Meanwhile, I’d recommend asking your nearest florist if they sell any local flowers. You could also check out Flowers From the Farm, a cooperative with more than 500 members, which will tell you your nearest grower. Buy flowers in season, too. At this time of year, dahlias, paperwhites and alstroemeria, of course, are a good bet.