Episode Details

https://youtu.be/iDXNEEP74dg?si=95xtQpkBIExFdBQd You may be familiar with today’s guest, Jennifer Gulizia of The Flowering Farmhouse and The Backyard Bouquet Podcast. Like many of us, Jennifer’s story began in her own garden, as her flower-growing fascination naturally melded with her professional photography career. In 2019, she and her husband, T.J., built a modern farmhouse on a 1/3-acre lot, in Oregon’s Hood River. While it was not enough space for a true flower farm, Jennifer planted almost 200 dahlias and eventually leased more land from her neighbors to expand. Join me on a visit to The Flowering Farmhouse to learn about the newest chapter of Jennifer’s story. Seven seasons in and Jennifer and T.J. have sold their modern farmhouse and purchased a 20-acre parcel outside Hood River to undertake its restoration and regeneration. At the same time, Jennifer has partnered with a documentary filmmaker and they are developing an ambitious project to document the story in a film with the working title of “Where We Bloom.” There’s a lot to learn from this educator and fellow Slow Flowers advocate! Jennifer Gulizia of The Flowering Farmhouse Jennifer Gulizia hosted me as a guest on The Backyard Bouquet Podcast this past May, which how we got to know one another and how I began to understand her personal journey to flowers. So a few months later, while returning home to Seattle from a weekend in Oregon, I made a detour to visit Jennifer and meet her in person. She had invited me to record an interview about the Slow Flowers Movement for her ambitious documentary film project about the restoration of The Flowering Farmhouse farm. Of course, I wanted to turn the tables on Jennifer and interview her for the Slow Flowers Podcast. Mind you, there’s little infrastructure on this land, as Jennifer, T.J., and their young daughter Olivia, are starting over and do not live on the property. We filmed on a hot, windy summer day, so you’ll hear a bit of nature in the background during my tour and our sit-down interview. I’m happy to share this two-part interview, which includes a walking tour of one flower-filled acre, just planted in 2025, and a conversation recorded under one of the few large trees on the property. Together, we discuss Jennifer’s vision and imagine the possibilities it represents. Dahlia fields at The Flowering Farmhouse As Jennifer writes in a blog post: In September 2024, “our family became stewards of a fallow, forgotten 20-acre field in Hood River, Oregon. This land did not look like much, but it felt like possibility. After losing the leased land we had farmed since 2019 at the end of 2023, we found ourselves starting over from scratch. Becoming caretakers of this new property was an act of hope, resilience, and trust in what could someday bloom here.” Dahlia Tubers with Jennifer Gulizia Jennifer Gulizia is both a flower farmer and dahlia hybridizer. She is host of The Backyard Bouquet Podcast and leads The Dahlia Patch, an online learning community for flower lovers. Through her teaching and storytelling, Jennifer helps gardeners rediscover the joy of growing with intention... where beauty, meaning, and resilience take root. The vision for The Flowering Farmhouse Find and follow Jennifer at these social places:Website: https://thefloweringfarmhouse.com IG: https://www.instagram.com/thefloweringfarmhouse/  FB: https://www.facebook.com/thefloweringfarmhouse/  Podcast: https://thefloweringfarmhouse.com/the-backyard-bouquet-podcast/  Documentary: https://thefloweringfarmhouse.com/2024/10/28/regenerative-flower-farm-documentary/  Jennifer, T.J., and Olivia "Where We Bloom" is the working title for Jennifer’s documentary. Its Mission is to show how local flowers restore land, strengthen communities, and reconnect people with the beauty of the natural world. This film follows Jennifer and her family as they rebuild a regenerative flower farm and will invite viewers to believe in the impact of growing blooms close to home. If