LEXINGTON, Ky. – Residents and staff at Dominion Senior Living in Richmond, Ky., were pleasantly surprised last month with vases filled with vibrant zinnias and sunflowers. The flowers were donated by River Bend Blooms in Allen County and were distributed by Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner Jonathan Shell. July was Kentucky Grown Cut Flowers Month.

“Flowers can brighten up your day and it’s an even brighter day when you know these flowers are grown in Kentucky,” Shell said. “The beauty the flower industry adds to our great state also means you can bring that beauty inside your home, your business, or add it to your summer wedding.”

Although roughly 80 percent of cut flowers sold in the U.S. are imported, Kentucky offers ideal conditions for cultivating high-quality blooms. The state is now home to 220 commercial-cut flower farms, with the number steadily increasing.

Among them is River Bend Blooms, owned by Michelle and David Wheeler. Their farm is in Allen County, which borders Tennessee. With degrees in agriculture and backgrounds in agricultural sales, the Wheelers have developed their 227-acre farm into a thriving flower operation now in its sixth season.

“When I tell people that we are a specialty cut flower farm, they have a tendency to think of a cute garden,” Michelle said. “In reality, growing 9 acres of field grown flowers is much more akin to the management and work of growing a tobacco crop. People have rarely considered where and how the flowers they purchase were grown. I hope to raise attention to the fact that the U.S. imports more than $2.57 billion in cut flowers annually.”

Cut flowers and cut stems are well-suited to small-scale production and are a good way to diversify or expand an existing farm operation. They can be grown in open fields or in protected environments such as high tunnels or environmentally controlled greenhouses.

Non-flowering cut stems, such as seed heads, stalks and woody cuts, may also be grown for floral or decorative purposes. Specialty cut flowers can be sold fresh or dried, by the stem, in bunches, or in mixed bouquets or value-added products.

“Our farm is working hard to grow the highest quality, locally grown flowers for our customers in Kentucky and Tennessee,” Michelle said. “Your flowers don’t need to take airplane rides when you choose to buy them from Kentucky farms.”

Dr. Cindy Finneseth, executive director of the Kentucky Horticulture Council, is spearheading a research trial involving many perennial flowers. Perennials, she said, give growers a non-stop source for flowers. Her team’s work began last fall.

“Our research trial involves many perennial flowers,” Finneseth said. “We’re looking at 50 different species of perennials that are native to Kentucky to see what kind of cut-flower potential they have.

“The good thing about perennials is you’ll have that one-time investment, with many years that you can harvest. The fact that they are native to Kentucky you’ll have very low input and they won’t require as much water as annuals will. We’re researching whether certain perennials are disease and pest resistant, and whether they’re cold hardy.

“We’re doing research on cone flowers as we think they will be good as cut flowers. They come in various colors like purple, yellow and orange. We’re examining the characteristics of cone flowers, such as how they perform post-harvest, how do they hold up after cutting, how sturdy their stems are and things like that.

“Glazing star is another promising perennial as are indigo plants. They both come in a variety of colors. Mountain mint is another perennial in our trial. With these, there’s also commercial possibilities as landscape flowers.

“The first data point in our research was mortality and survivability. We planted these perennials last fall so we’re checking to see how they performed over the winter.”

Finneseth and her researchers also examined when each perennial flowered and which needed staking due to their size.

“Finally, from a yield standpoint we wanted to see how many flowers emerged per plant as well as how resistant to pests and diseases they were,” she added.

Finneseth’s analysis of perennials is still ongoing.

The growth of the cut flower industry in Kentucky and the U.S. has skyrocketed over the past 10 years. The 2022 USDA Census of Agriculture shows the number of Kentucky cut flower operations more than doubling since 2017 and the value of Kentucky grower sales rising to more than $2 million in 2022.

Cut-flower growers are accessing diverse markets, including direct markets, wholesale, auction sales, wedding and events.

“Small- to large-scale farms in Kentucky can produce cut flowers profitably,” Finneseth said.