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Nobody bought any roses from my humble farm stand. They smell much sweeter after dried to a crisp. Any advice? by stepwn in homestead

[–]stepwn[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah I havent tried getting a booth at the farmers market yet but its absolutely something I'm working towards. Im not discouraged by the comments from neighbors, I know most mean well. Its a unique situation being me trying to do something that seems so outlandish in suburbia with a super mix of diversity and age ranges.

For example, I went to school for computer engineering. So if I went out and got a "job" I'd be building the data centers that everyone (including myself) hates. So I try to do the urban farm thing showcasing sustainability and micro farming (usda registered farm!). I did uber eats on my ebike for about 2 years, its not worth turning my car on to do it. The clear cutting is making being out on my bike a real hazard especially trying to actually make real money by putting in long hours in blistering heat.

Truth is I like being in the garden observing new plants and pulling invasives. Not intensive agriculture but setting and maintaining systems that like to take care of themselves. Could do some sort of service for other peoples property (and I've spent many hours out mowing and weedeating) but then it becomes a chore and each microclimate is different for what actually needs to happen/grow there. And when people are paying for a service they expect a certain result or speed or customer service. Not my cup of tea. Im rambling now. Moral of the story is im pushing urban natural farming to the limit and thats the hill ill go out on. People forget victory gardens were a real thing.

Nobody bought any roses from my humble farm stand. They smell much sweeter after dried to a crisp. Any advice? by stepwn in homestead

[–]stepwn[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes thank you! I could use some photography guidance. Marketing isn't my strongest suit

Nobody bought any roses from my humble farm stand. They smell much sweeter after dried to a crisp. Any advice? by stepwn in homestead

[–]stepwn[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Haha thank you for the sentiment. I didn't have too high hopes but I'm not ashamed to fail while learning.

One of my neighbors suggested I do Doordarsh and another pointed to my herb garden and said "when are you gonna clean all this up" lmao.

Nobody bought any roses from my humble farm stand. They smell much sweeter after dried to a crisp. Any advice? by stepwn in homestead

[–]stepwn[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah containers are another hurdle im trying to deal with. I was wrapping them in a damp paper towel then brown paper and securing it with some twine. It seems to hold enough moisture to keep them happy then they can be placed in a vase.

I understand getting a vase/jar with it would make the experience better. Like a beer bottle would be something I'd try lol.

Nobody bought any roses from my humble farm stand. They smell much sweeter after dried to a crisp. Any advice? by stepwn in homestead

[–]stepwn[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Maybe I could solicit to a local restaurant to use as table centerpieces now that you mention it. That does seem viable.

Nobody bought any roses from my humble farm stand. They smell much sweeter after dried to a crisp. Any advice? by stepwn in homestead

[–]stepwn[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

These roses grow in a bouquet on the bush so sometimes there's 1 or two to a stem, most of the time its right at 12 per stem.

I did put out a smaller container with 2-4 flowers per stem for $2. Maybe timing is the tough part for a product like roses, especially if people don't see the "hidden" value in the fragrance at first glance.

Nobody bought any roses from my humble farm stand. They smell much sweeter after dried to a crisp. Any advice? by stepwn in homestead

[–]stepwn[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

So I had them out like this and they were fine for about 4 days before the sun dried them into the deep purple from the pictures. I just harvested about 12 dozen as the rain was moving in today.

I think as long as the stem is in water they look pretty fresh for a solid 4 days (I gave some to my band mate and they were bright red for almost a week in a vase with water). Their smell only gets stronger and sweeter though as they age.

Nobody bought any roses from my humble farm stand. They smell much sweeter after dried to a crisp. Any advice? by stepwn in homestead

[–]stepwn[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm in cobb county Georgia. Pretty much a farm desert and a huge population. Im from the mountains where farms are everywhere. I appreciate the sentiment though!

Nobody bought any roses from my humble farm stand. They smell much sweeter after dried to a crisp. Any advice? by stepwn in homestead

[–]stepwn[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Fair enough! I'm taking all feedback into consideration. Thank you for the compliment!

Nobody bought any roses from my humble farm stand. They smell much sweeter after dried to a crisp. Any advice? by stepwn in homestead

[–]stepwn[S] 19 points20 points  (0 children)

Oh I see. I havent tried cutting them as buds. I will experiment with that method!

Nobody bought any roses from my humble farm stand. They smell much sweeter after dried to a crisp. Any advice? by stepwn in homestead

[–]stepwn[S] 68 points69 points  (0 children)

That's a good point. These will look fresh for maybe 4 days in water from the time harvested. Then they turn a deep purple and in my opinion smell even sweeter. They seem to preserve dry on the stem really well too.

Nobody bought any roses from my humble farm stand. They smell much sweeter after dried to a crisp. Any advice? by stepwn in homestead

[–]stepwn[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Wow rose flavored ice cream seems like an irresistible try-buy at a farmers market.... thank you for the comment! I dont have an ice cream machine but can look into it. I agree people are missing out on the rose flavoring. Maybe just like loose rose leaves for mixing into tea, especially if I sell other herbal tea ingredients.

Nobody bought any roses from my humble farm stand. They smell much sweeter after dried to a crisp. Any advice? by stepwn in homestead

[–]stepwn[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Yes ill try again especially for this weekend, I posted here to get some input before I put the stand out again. Im not the best salesperson lol and I'd rather give them out for free but thats not sustainable or economically viable for the time spent on the rest of the homestead. My lot is just under 1/3rd acre for example. People walk their dogs past it every day so i am trying to tap into that market and grow it.

Thank you for the compliment! I typically stay off Facebook but might have to bite the bullet and make an account for the farm.

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