Feeling hopeless? Try growing flowers. Here's how.

Aren't flowers just the perfect little pockets of joy? I have been following Claudia from In the Garden with Claudia on Instagram for over a year now, and I live for her cut flower garden stories! I’ve been feeling a little humbled by my own garden setbacks in South Florida recently. So when I finally got her on the podcast, I thought we were going to do a straight-up how-to on growing flowers. And we did, kind of. But this conversation turned into what flowers can actually do for you! Claudia has turned her space into a garden with thousands of blooms that make me excited for my next garden season. I hope this helps you find your own smile as big as the one Claudia put on my face! Let's jump in!   In this episode, we learn: [03:40] Meet Claudia, the queen of backyard cut flower joy! [04:56] How she turned her backyard into a cut flower garden [07:31] She was a pre-dental student!? (a career pivot) [09:49] What her first couple of seasons gardening looked like [14:08] Why Claudia chose a production-style layout over traditional garden design [15:29] Fuel your garden mornings with the caramel-tasting bioactives in Manukora Honey! [17:15] Building her dream garden on a budget! [19:53] Claudia’s experience from disliking to growing dahlias [22:38] How to seed start indoors (Claudia grows 4000+ seeds!) [26:09] My biggest pain point right now [28:21] What is Claudia’s cut flower planting strategy for dahlias? [31:03] How she spaces and organizes her dahlia beds [32:08] Our favorite Espoma Organic products! [34:27] How and when to fertilize dahlias throughout the growing season [35:46] How to set up irrigation for cut flowers [36:38] Daily maintenance routines for better airflow and pest defense [38:28] Why you should deadhead your flowers for more blooms [39:50] How to manage and share excess flowers? [42:18] Selling her first massive bouquets at the office! [44:41] How to structure a flower CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) [48:03] What are Claudia’s joyful practices in her garden? [50:59] How the ‘In the Garden with Claudia’ YouTube channel started [54:52] Claudia’s dream of scaling up to a Washington flower farm [56:58] Where to find Claudia’s social media and upcoming resources!   Mentioned in our conversation: Growing Joy 258: Budget Friendly Ways to Elevate Your Garden with Robbie of Visit Our Garden Growing Joy 253: 5 Tips for Growing in Hot Climates with Janey of Dig Plant Water Repeat Flower Farming Workshop Espoma Organic Bio-tone Starter Plus Espoma Organic Land & Sea Gourmet Compost Espoma Organic Mushroom Compost Blend Espoma Organic Indoor! Alaska Morbloom Fertilizer Dan's Dahlias | Oakville WA   For Claudia's tried and tested methods of growing cut flowers, check out the full show notes and blog here!   Follow Claudia:YouTubeInstagramFacebookTikTok   Thank you to our episode sponsor: Manukora <p