A tour of the flower farm in May

Flower farmer and florist Georgie Newbery of Common Farm Flowers between Bruton and Wincanton in Somerset takes you on a tour of the flower farm on a beautiful May morning. Along with birdsong and wildflowers and a feast for the ladybirds there's a lot budding up, not least her plans for a tumbled down ruined barn which has been at the centre of the field for the past thirty five years, and which she has determined to make the physical centre of the flower farm, a hub for flowers, the studio and her teaching space. Common Farm Flowers has developed organically over the years, and is inefficient in layout: lidding the barn and turning it into a useful space will make all the difference to this small rural business.
www.commonfarmflowers.com/pag...
You can buy me a coffee here www.buymeacoffee.com/COMMONFARM
You can hear me on BBC Radio 4 Woman's Hour here (about 39 minutes in) www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m00...
Follow me on instagram where I'm @commonfarmflowers
And on Twitter you can find me here / theflowerfarmer

[@dawn7523]

Assuredly as the sun rises…flowers in the house are a true gift from God, thank you for being his ambassador 🌷💐🌷

[@theflowerfarmer]

you're welcome x

[@gardengirl7446]

LOVELY tour! I adore your garden AND your sense of humor! ❤

[@theflowerfarmer]

Thankyou x

[@chasjm21]

I've read your Flower Farmers Year book & was impressed. For someone without a formal horticultural training you have understood the discipline of growing plants far better than most, particularly most of those on tv.

[@theflowerfarmer]

Lol - there's nothing like experience to teach a person how to do a thing x

[@mudoh2131]

My first visit to you and your flower farm - thoroughly enjoyed it. Thank you.

[@theflowerfarmer]

Welcome! x

[@madonnaschmid7707]

Beautiful tour of your garden!! The building definitely needs to be functional for you.How super exciting!!

[@theflowerfarmer]

I think so too! x

[@lesliemckee6852]

you make my day!! Charlottesville loves you!

[@theflowerfarmer]

hello Charlottesville! xxx

[@carolballett8605]

Thank you for your farm tour, so lovely to see it again (did a course with you a while ago). Think your new dream school area will be amazing. It's always inspiring (and helpful!) to see what is happening and thanks for your honesty too, as I lost the plot (or time!) last autumn and my sweet peas and autumn sowing of annuals also suffered. I'm now playing catch up and feel so behind. But hey we just have to move on and keep going! Great to see that we can all have moments of losing the plot! But a wander round your space and me around mine is why we do it as you say it's just so peaceful and nature is with us whatever happens! Keep posting - we love it!

[@theflowerfarmer]

thank you x

[@Thefamilyfarm1957]

Thank you so much for your time and showing us your lovely garden and I love all of your ideals thoughts individuality kindness you’re just great and you make me feel good so thank you

[@theflowerfarmer]

You are so welcome! x

[@MyFocusVaries]

A garden tour was a lovely way to pass part of my day as I prepare to head out to a garden centre with my husband and son (which will be crowded with other mother's day shoppers). Thank you. I'm quite sure that low door leads to Narnia for the right person at the right time.

[@theflowerfarmer]

I love a low door in a wall x

[@deborahclatworthy3885]

I applaud your honesty. We can’t have it all and almost everything worth doing is hard work. Absolutely stocking morning. X PS - loving that crabapple archway.

[@theflowerfarmer]

So true! x

[@thewalledgardenflowerfarm]

Just sitting down for my Sunday coffee and this video pinged at me, wonderful timing! Loving this!

[@theflowerfarmer]

enjoy! x

[@catherineatkinson1729]

Another beautiful and dreamy video. A Zen moment for my Mother’s Day observance here in the US. Thank you. 🌷

[@theflowerfarmer]

Pleasure x

[@amyjones2490]

I love your honesty. Thanks for sharing your beautiful farm. It’s something I aspire to.

[@theflowerfarmer]

Good luck x

[@janewillis140]

I Love your flower farm garden ❤️ Thank you for sharing and being so lovely and such fun. 65 year old grandma who is still learning and out in my garden when ever l can growing and enjoying nature X

[@theflowerfarmer]

have a lovely day x

[@NJGardengirl1961]

It's always a lovely day to watch a tour of your garden, Georgie! It's Mother's Day here in the US ⚘️

[@theflowerfarmer]

Wonderful! Happy Mother's Day x

[@kathrynmettelka7216]

Glad you made the business work. There will be thousands of flowers to come that I can't wait to see. Best wishes for the requested planning permission.

[@theflowerfarmer]

Thankyou x

[@annieontheroad]

I totally agree that the scale of your farm business is irrelevant... or should be. Seems like there's a similar attitude of "bigger is better" in all categories of agriculture. I grow mushrooms here in the US and I have a very small operation, and there's a guy in our field (Earth Angel Mushrooms) that outright says you have to get big and grow commodity mushrooms to the wholesale food network in order to "make it as a legitimate mushroom farm". Hogwash. If you have a modest living and live frugally why grow a farm business that big? It's just more headaches that no one really needs. I think your flower farm is absolutely beautiful at the scale you have it. Such diversity is beautiful!

[@theflowerfarmer]

Thankyou and I totally agree x

[@thegreenwoodelf8014]

Aaa.. mazing space and content Georgie ✊🏼 thank you for sharing your knowledge and enthusiasm ... and those skies ... transcript reads like a flower growers almanac... Ima subcriba 😁🫶🏻💚

[@theflowerfarmer]

Thank you kindly x

[@teresalong3010]

Love watching you. You have a calm way about you. I like watching what you grow since you are in close to same growing zone as myself in Seattle Washington area. Thank you for taking the time to show the novice that we can do it!

[@theflowerfarmer]

Good luck!

[@samiecain1244]

What a lovely way to start the day , walking with you around your wonderful farm ! Have a lovely rest of the day

[@theflowerfarmer]

Thank you! You too! x

[@magiccochin]

This was a lovely tour Georgie, have a good day x

[@theflowerfarmer]

pleasure, and you x

[@traceymullen]

What an inspiring flower farm. It's so amazingly natural. 'Let's grow girls' introduced me to you and I find your practical attitude towards growing refreshing. Thank you.

[@theflowerfarmer]

Wonderful! x

[@margarethairsine8648]

Thank you for the lovely tour of your beautiful gardens and property xo

[@theflowerfarmer]

You’re welcome x

[@kathleenhazy6126]

What a wonderful treat for a beautiful Sunday morning, to walk around your extraordinary patch of earth. My patch is a bit different with various palm trees and tropicals here in Orlando, FL. You definitely own a piece of Heaven there. Cheers and thanks for the tour.

[@theflowerfarmer]

Pleasure - yes very different from the palm trees x

[@debrabray8855]

Lovely! That building is a great idea for the business.

[@theflowerfarmer]

I think so too! x

[@sandraengstrand2784]

*Crabapple trellis* 💕💝 How wonderful to get a *new* studio space!!

[@theflowerfarmer]

Crossed fingers x

[@ButterflyBox89]

Sounds like she was a bit rude and snotty to you on woman’s hour, how rude! I’ve been really inspired watching your videos Georgie and am about to embark on small scale flower growing myself so will be buying you a coffee at the very least to say thank you. 🥰

[@theflowerfarmer]

Ooh Thankyou - and good luck!

[@honoregale856]

Another beautiful tour. So glad you said you weren’t going to bother direct sowing next year. At least hearing this from a professional makes me feel a lot better. I find my direct sowing very hit and miss. Sowing in the green house, although more time consuming, at least you know where you are! Exciting plans afoot it seems. Fingers crossed you get planning permission. Flower growing, either professionally or for personal pleasure seems to have crept up on us over the last few years. Perhaps it was Sarah Raven that inspired us. Anyway, I am glad you were inspired and we can all enjoy your charming garden tours along with your wit! Have a good week.

[@theflowerfarmer]

thank you - and you x

[@janehilbery6596]

I wish I had known about you years ago when I was younger. I have all the facilities to grow a business. But I loathe selling, now in my 70s , so feel it is a bit late. I just grow lots for fun, charity and give away to friends etc.

[@susanbarker9737]

A wonderful beginning to my day. Ready to get out there & plant my pots of young plants in the ground now. Your enthusiasm is infectious. Antia Rani on Friday Women's Hour would have been much less adversarial than Emma. I listen on Fridays because I don't like the Newsnight style of interviews.

[@theflowerfarmer]

must give you such pleasure x

[@theflowerfarmer]

Susan I will admit I rarely get a chance to listen to Woman's Hour - my radio of choice is Petroc Trelawny on radio 3 and if I miss the breakfast show I catch up later in the day - but at Woman's Hour o'clock I'm usually deep in the flower farm one way or another - it was fun to do and whatever happened it's certainly raised the profile of locally grown flowers which is worth any adversarial style I think x thanks for your comment though - love that people take the time x

[@merylwilliams2268]

Love your trellis ❤️

[@theflowerfarmer]

it's surprisingly effective x

[@deborahclatworthy3885]

That building is a fabulous asset. I do hope you get permission to make it your HQ. I do believe it is best if you can work from home but not have work in your home. X

[@theflowerfarmer]

That's the plan! As the children get older and with Granny living here there is more and more traffic and the family traffic and business traffic are getting in each others' way x

[@deborahjohnston267]

It all looks beautiful Georgie - as would the building -with a sedum lid maybe… 🙌🏼

[@theflowerfarmer]

Hopefully we’ll get permission for double Roman tiles - bars like them x

[@theflowerfarmer]

Bats!

[@grainnerobins4969]

Georgie, really enjoyed that. I love your honesty. Not the plant - your attitude. When is your next course? Although, im here in Ireland, i will travel over. Grainne

[@theflowerfarmer]

Very soon! If you can get here for Tuesday we have a three day intensive - if not then look at the website there are lots of workshops listed - see you soon I hope x

[@grainnerobins4969]

@@theflowerfarmer agh that's a little too soon. As ive Andre Rieu Fri Belfast, so travelling up Thursday . Ill have a look at your website.. A shoft break in Somerset sounds just what the foctor ordered. Have you suggested accomodation in your locality?

[@lonechristiansen7371]

Thankyou for your lovely tour of your farm. I love all te information on different varieties, but I do struggle to catch their names, as i am not too familiar with the the plants. I am in Denmark and I am trying to establish a micro flowerfarm myself. If at all possible, would you make a written list of the names of the plants you mention, in your videos ? i would be very grateful . Lone

[@theflowerfarmer]

So nice of you - today I think I mentioned sweet rocket, roses, sweet peas, poppies, nigella, honesty, lavatera, Larkspur, dahlias, wild bluebells, Scilla, buttercups, wildflowers generally, campion, peonies, roses, alliums, tulips, physocarpus... trying to think... x

[@lonechristiansen7371]

@@theflowerfarmer thank you very much for your reply,

[@merylwilliams2268]

🙏👍

[@rollandjoeseph]

What's a "low door in the wall"? The garden looks great, so peaceful and relaxing this time of day in the year

[@theflowerfarmer]

Good question! it's a euphemism for the tempting step in a story that sets a character on a new path - I have a low door in the wall behind me in the building I hope to turn into my new studio and so I borrowed the saying x

[@rollandjoeseph]

@@theflowerfarmer that's great, very enticing,🙂 thanks for explaining !

[@theflowerfarmer]

@@rollandjoeseph pleasure x

[@rebeccaeccles-ji3uo]

Dear Georgie, please can you tell me where you buy the huge roll of jute netting from? Love the videos! Thanks so much, Rebecca

[@theflowerfarmer]

www.gardening-naturally.com/jute-netting-various-sizes x

[@rebeccaeccles-ji3uo]

@@theflowerfarmer bless you thank you so much!

[@theflowerfarmer]

@@rebeccaeccles-ji3uo any time x

[@merylwilliams2268]

Your clip is not loading this end Georgie!

[@theflowerfarmer]

Should in a minute - try reloading x

[@janiethomson616]

Dear Georgie. I sense a little tiredness in your general demeanour in this clip. It is so disappointing when genuine people with a certain enthusiasm for a subject get ambushed through lack of clarity on what a conversation is going to be about, particularly if it's in the public domain and indeed it does bring on a certain sense of defensiveness and even outrage. These things have a way of growing arms and legs but as you said in your most eloquent statement on Instagram.... enough now. Move on and continue doing what you do and love. I think you may appreciate an old Ayrshire saying I remember from my youth..... "this weeks news is next weeks chip shop paper". I, for one, have just spent the past few weeks, actually months, prepping for my nephew's wedding flowers and I would not be anywhere near brave enough to do it without your virtual guidance. The wedding was on Saturday and the flowers were lush! I love, and appreciate, your channel, your generous giving of information and your love of all things wild. keep on keeping on and have a coffee on me!! xx

[@theflowerfarmer]

Thank you! Yes, the whole episode did rather suck the oxygen out of everything else, which is good I suppose for flower growers, but was quite a distraction from ordinary life. Nice to get back to normal - though excited about Chelse Flower Show in a few weeks - I haven't been for years!