As spring comes into bloom, we’re all excited to fill our gardens and homes with fresh scents, vibrant colors and tasty foods.
But with harvest season still a few months away, you may be wondering how to get a jump-start on putting together eye-catching creations for your excited customers.
We’ve put together 3 easy how-to’s so that you can get a head start on bringing in new business and pleasing your followers with exciting new offerings.
1. Everbearing strawberries in pots or hanging baskets
Everbearing strawberries offer fresh fruits throughout the growing season, from spring through early fall. A set of strawberry plants already planted and ready-to-grow makes the perfect bonus buy for a visiting customer.
Photo courtesy: Gardenista
After you’ve gathered all your materials, including organic strawberry plant starts from our farm, potting strawberries is a quick and simple process.
- Everbearing strawberry plants are small and have shallow root structure. They like sun, drainage and food (like a weekly seaweed solution) to grow.
- Look for these qualities in choosing a container:
- Good drainage
- Allows fruits to hang or otherwise be kept off of the soil
- Light-weight and other features helpful to your operating needs
- Everbearers also grow well in hanging baskets lined with coir
- Pot in a loamy soil
- Consider planting strawberries along with flowers like Borage, Caraway or Lupin.
Voila! Potted strawberries are a great early spring offering that will also last throughout the summer, in case you don’t sell them all right away.
2. Goodbye Mosquito Mix: Potted plants to deter pesky mosquitos
As with potted strawberries, assortments of aromatic plants are long-lasting bonus buys. Customers visiting your shop, farm or market stand can picture a potted arrangement in their home instantly.
Here are a few plant starts we’re growing this season that deter mosquitos, smell fantastic and add pops of color to any space:
- Basil – Spicy Globe and Mrs. Burns Lemon
- Catmint
- Citronella
- Lemongrass
- Lemon Balm
- Lemon Thyme
- Lemon Verbena
- Lavender – Lavandin varieties
- Marigolds
- Peppermint
- Rosemary
Get creative with your pots, and create plant and container combinations that reflect the voice and style of your business.
3. Dried lavender products
One of the many great things about dried lavender is its shelf-life. High-quality dried lavender buds will hold their scent for years. At Sage Creations Organic Farm, we carefully dry and store our lavender in conditions that promote long-lasting aromas, vibrant color retention and high overall quality.
Dried lavender products can make a wonderful addition to your inventory. People love to browse! Especially people who are already spending time visiting retail shops, restaurants, farmer’s markets and the like.
It’s likely that the more variety available for your customers to browse through, the more they’ll browse and the more they’ll love.
Some of our favorite dried lavender products include lavender dryer bags, sachets, culinary lavender and Herbes de Provence, among many others that we offer at our farm stand. As always, you can buy our dried lavender products in bulk, or order wholesale quantities of dried lavender buds to make your own creations.
Our growing season comes and goes, and we’re so busy throughout all of it! By maximizing your offerings with efficiency and lots of variety, you can make the most of the busy and bountiful season to come.