mountain fresh flowers
About the farmers
Flourish Flower Farm is owned and loved by Niki & William Irving. After years of working in outdoor education, Niki turned her dream of becoming a Farmer-Florist into reality (read the in-depth version of 'How I Became a Flower Farmer' here). As the daughter of a landscaper and tree farmer, Niki's love of plants is deeply-rooted. Niki loves growing, nurturing and creating beauty. William spent his childhood helping his grandfather tend a giant vegetable garden and he is the master of the farm maintenance tasks. William still has a full-time job off the farm, but he enjoys balancing his office job with farm life. Together, they balance a love of nature, hard work, creating beauty and spreading joy at the farm. They believe that flowers make the world a more beautiful, enjoyable place and are inspired by the way a fresh bouquet of flowers lights up someone's entire face.
Niki loves creating lush, seasonally-inspired arrangements for weddings and special events with their gorgeous farm fresh flowers. Niki’s best-selling first book Growing Flowers: Everything You Need to Know About Planting, Tending, Harvesting and Arranging Beautiful Blooms was published in Spring 2021 (it’s available in our online shop and anywhere that books are sold). Flourish Flower Farm is our labor of love!
the flower farm
We are the proud stewards of a 9 acre farm in Asheville, just 15 minutes from downtown. Nestled in the heart of old tobacco country, we love nurturing this beautiful slice of paradise in the Blue Ridge Mountains. With its lush pastures, babbling creek, gently wooded hillsides and incredible mountain views, this farm is our dream come true. We are extremely proud that our farm is completely solar powered, thanks in part to a grant from WNC EnergyCAP! We are dedicated to growing only specialty and heirloom varieties – producing high quality, organic, fragrant blooms is our priority. By focusing on intensive planting, soil fertility, plant health and succession planting, we grow an impressive amount of flowers on a small amount of cultivated land. We are passionate about flowers and believe they make the world a more beautiful place!
What ‘Flourish’ means to us
Flourish as a verb means “to grow or develop in a healthy or vigorous way, especially as the result of a particularly favorable environment.” When we were deciding on a name for our farm, we wanted something simple and meaningful to our business and our lives. Niki’s mom came up with the idea of Flourish, and we were hooked instantly. We started this business at a time of transition and deep personal longing for something more in our lives – we wanted to be flourishing as people and to be doing something heartfelt and important. Our goal is not only to provide a favorable environment for our plants to flourish, but also for our employees, customers, workshop guests, wedding clients and for everyone who is a part of Flourish Flower Farm to flourish, to grow in a healthy way.
why choose local?
Did you know that 80% of the cut flowers sold in the USA are imported from other counties? This means that your flowers have traveled thousands of miles to reach your table, often cut weeks before you even buy them, and are typically drenched in chemicals to help them survive the journey. Similar to the growth of the local food movement, conscious consumers are catching on and choosing local and American Grown flowers. We are proud to belong to Slow Flowers and the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers, where Niki serves on the board as the Southeastern Regional Director. We are also Certified Local through the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project.
Fresh + long lasting flowers
Our flowers are harvested fresh each morning and typically available to you the same day. By providing our flowers with fresh, clean water they should last over a week in the vase. They are pesticide-free and safe for all family members (2 and 4-legged) in your home. The offerings of Flourish Flower Farm change with each week, month and season. Our season begins with daffodils in the spring and ends with dahlias in the fall, with all sorts of loveliness in between. Our flowers are available for purchase through the farm stand on our property!
Meet the rest of the Flourish team
Stacey Thompson
Stacey is the Office Manager and a Floral Designer at Flourish. She also operates her own vegetable + fiber farm, Our Fiddlehead Farm, with her husband and their children. Stacey’s love of farming began with spending summers on her family farm in Iowa, and is centered around sharing the beauty of food and flowers as a vector of connection. She feels magic when she thinks about the flowers being grown at Flourish ~ Flowers are nourishment to our soul as food is to our body.
Meghan Coltrane
Meghan has been a farmer part time at Flourish for 3 years, helping with everything including planting, harvesting, pruning, arranging flowers, pulling weeds, assisting with workshops, making Farmstand bouquets and anything else needed on the farm. Meghan has loved the Appalachian mountains since she was a little girl and being outside in the heat of the summer surrounded by flowers and animals (both wildlife and Niki's sweet pets) brings her so much joy and inspiration.
Jamie Pack
Jamie is a 3rd year part time farmer at Flourish. She inherited her love of flowers from her maternal grandmother, and working in the flower fields is like a moving meditation for her. Tending to the flowers brings her joy, knowing they will go on to bring beauty and happiness to others.
