A few years ago, Debra Prinzing — speaker, podcast host, outdoor living expert, and founder of Slow Flowers — and her business partner, Robin Avni, pitched an idea to an editor at Abrams Books. The editor passed, but quickly came back with another offer.

They didn’t have to think twice about it. Prinzing had extensive knowledge on the topics — looking at the lives and work of flower farmers around the United States and Canada — plus a personal passion for spreading the word about domestically grown flowers. She and Avni, who had met years earlier at a press event (Avni was art director at Seattle Times for nearly six years), were both on board.

Titled The Flower Farmers: Inspiration & Advice from Expert Growers, the volume hit shelves May 6 and features 29 growers, eight of whom are based in the Pacific Northwest.

“We knew we could do a beautiful job,” Prinzing says. “We’re not trying to teach people how to be flower farmers. We see our audience as people who want to grow beautiful flowers in their garden and do it like the pros.”

The author of 12 books, Prinzing has broad publishing experience and decades of expertise on all things garden-related, from intro-level gardening tips to the ins and outs of the American flower-growing industry. As the founder of Slow Flowers, Prinzing also hosts and produces the Slow Flowers podcast (which first aired nine years ago and has an impressive 715 episodes) and heads up the award-winning quarterly magazine, Slow Flowers Journal.

The Slow Flowers movement is akin to the Slow Food Movement, sharing the same principles of utilizing locally grown specimens that are organic or sustainably grown. It focuses on what is “in season.” Prinzing launched the movement, which includes a directory of more than 700 growers, to create awareness around the potential negative impacts of purchasing imported flowers grown thousands of miles away and flown to the United States for sale. These impacts range from environmental degradation and worker exploitation to floral genetic engineering. Instead of picking up a $10 bouquet from the grocery store, Prinzing urges people to venture to the local farmers market, floral shop, or you-pick stand.

Each chapter in The Flower Farmers consists of a multi-page, photo-heavy spread telling the story of how each individual or family got into the industry and includes botanical notes and planting tips for their favorite blooms.

Jarn Co. Flowers in Monroe is one of the farms featured in The Flower Farmers.

“All flower farmers are artists in how they plant their crops and organize the varieties,” Prinzing says. “The universal thread through every story is the path that they have taken to get to where they are. A few are second or third generation flower farmers, but most are new to it. There are Wall Street drop-outs or artists that originally had a different medium such as pottery.”

Others started working with flowers as a side gig that ended up evolving into a full-time career.

Then, there are those who use flower farming as a source of healing. “Some are seeking wellness,” Prinzing says, “like recovery from addiction or cancer, or grief.”

One such individual is Misty Vanderweele from All Dahlia’d Up Flower Farm based in Palmer, Alaska. (As Prinzing writes, “Yes, you can grow gorgeous cut flowers in Alaska.”) Vanderweele lost her son, Luke, who battled Duchenne muscular dystrophy, when he was just 21 years old. To help cope with her grief, she took clippings from the offspring of a potted dahlia seedling that Luke had brought home in kindergarten, along with other flowers from her garden, and sold them at a local farmer’s market.

The homespun business eventually grew into a multi-field venture. The original purple dahlia patch grew from 54 plants to its current 2,300 — a lovely remembrance to a young life lost too soon.

Misty Vanderweele at her Alaska flower farm.

Photo courtesy of All Dahlia'd Up Flower Farm

According to Prinzing, professional flower farmers aren’t the only ones taking to the dirt — the Covid-19 pandemic spurred a lot of people to try their hand at planting some seeds. “It’s safe to say that 18 million new people picked up a trowel and entered gardening during the pandemic,” Prinzing says. “Maybe they started with vegetables, but then they experimented with ornamentals. We saw a huge return to nature on so many levels.”

For those who are garden-curious, Prinzing says that now is the perfect time to break ground. “You can start your annuals right now,” she says. These include sweet peas, Gerber daisies, nasturtium, poppies, sunflowers, and so many more. “Being a longtime gardener in the Seattle area, the official start of planting season is around Mother’s Day. You can plant dahlia tubers now and you’ll have bouquets all through summer.”

If you’re looking for a quicker payoff, say an immediate cutting garden, you can go to local plant sales. Prinzing, in fact, recently organized one at the Seattle Wholesale Growers Market, a farmer-owned co-op located in Georgetown that offers the largest selection of locally grown flowers in the area. Ultimately, she encourages everyone to take a turn at growing something regardless of where you live, as it doesn’t require a full yard. Window planters, potted flora, and community gardens such as Seattle’s P-Patch program are all are great options, because, as Prinzing says, “there is a healing benefit to putting your hands in the soil.”

Debra Prinzing and Robin Avni at the Seattle Wholesale Growers Market.

Photo courtesy of Seattle Wholesale Growers Market

The Northwest Horticultural Society is holding a book event with Prinzing and Avni from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. May 21 at the Bellevue Botanical Garden. Details and tickets here.