August 2021 Newsletter

Greetings from STILL WATERS FARM AND GARDENS!  

The Summer season is moving along quickly as we enter the month of August. The Sunflowers are soaking in the abundant sunshine and the Dahlia blooms are beginning to burst forth. The heat loving plants of summer have thrived this past month as the Honeybees were busy collecting pollen and nectar. One of our July highlights on the farm is the annual Honey Harvest. We are thankful for this year’s plentiful harvest of honey from our Honeybees. We hope you enjoy reading more about this harvest as well as our current seasonal offerings in this edition of our monthly newsletter.

~STILL WATERS FARM AND GARDENS

Annual Honey Harvest 🍯

This past year we had the blessing of capturing 3 swarms of Honeybees 🐝 to add to our existing hives. These additional hives helped in producing our largest honey harvest since we started keeping Honeybees 5 years ago. Harvesting the honey frames from a hive filled with thousands of honeybees is not a task for the faint of heart. It takes a calm presence, a good smoker and extra hands are always helpful. What also makes it difficult is the heat of summer as you need to be covered head to toe in protective clothing. Fortunately, the harvesting went well with no stings or beekeepers passing out from the heat. After the frames are harvested from the hives (and a brief cool down), we move inside to extract the honey. This involves removing wax capping from the honey frames, spinning the frames through an extractor and filtering the honey. This year we successfully harvested over 10 gallons of honey. If you are interested in trying some, we offer our honey for sale in either a pint or quart size.

Update on Dahlias

The Dahlia patch is getting ready for an onset of blooms. As mentioned in a previous update, we planted out 16 rows of Dahlias this year. These late summer flowers offer some of the most spectacular blooms and colors. They come in a variety of sizes and shapes, from the little pom-pom style to the large dinner plate style. They also come is a wide array of colors. Our Dahlia patch features a color palette in shades of red, orange, pink, burgundy, purple, yellow and white. The flowers begin to bloom vibrantly as we move through the month of August and September. They will continue producing into October until the first frost arrives. Then we begin the process of digging up all the tubers for their winter storage.

Sunflowers - Focal Flower for August

Sunflowers offer one of the most cheerful blooms where the petals seem to dance like rays of sunshine. These summertime flowers take 60 days on average from planting to being ready for harvest. We sow the seeds in a six inch spacing pattern to produce the right size bloom. If planted too far apart, then the blooms may grow too large and not work for arrangements or bouquets. An interesting tidbit about Sunflowers, the young sunflowers will follow the sun during the day. In the morning their heads face to the east and then face to the west during the afternoon. Once the sunflower matures, their heads will stay focused towards the morning sun.

Current Offerings – Fresh Flowers, Edible Flowers, Dried Flowers, Honey and Farm Fresh Eggs

For August, we are offering the following products for sale: 

• Fresh Flowers – Ageratum, Basil, Celosia, Cosmos, Dahlias, Gomphrena, Hydrangea, Lemon Mint, Lisianthus, Nigella Pods, Salvia, Sunflowers, Triloba, Zinnias

• Fresh Foliages/Branches – Baptisia, Mountain Mint, Curly Willow, Ninebark

• Edible Flowers – Basil, Dianthus, Lemon Mint/Monarda, Snapdragons

• 2021 Bouquet Subscriptions

• Custom Arrangements – Available in select Vases and other vessels

• Seasonal Wrapped and Hand-tied Bouquets

• Dried Flowers – Ammobium, Blackberry Lily, Larkspur, Nigella Pods and Mixed Bouquets

• Other products - Farm Fresh Eggs, Honey

If you are looking for a special and unique gift, you may want to consider a 2021 Bouquet Subscription. Our Bouquet Subscription features a weekly bouquet filled with locally grown specialty cut flowers from our farm.

Also, if you have an upcoming Special Event/Birthday/Shower or you are searching for a garden inspired source for Wedding Flowers, we offer Custom Floral Design Services, A LA CARTE Selections and DIY Buckets of Blooms and Greenery. Our 2021/2022 floral event calendar is now taking reservations for Weddings and Events. Please fill out an inquiry form here for more information.

For more information about any of these items, please visit our online shop at www.stillwatersfarmandgardens.com or send us an email at stillwatersfarm@centurylink.net.

Our Story

STILL WATERS FARM AND GARDENS is a family run flower farm and floral design studio situated in the Mountain View community of Catawba County. Our farm offers seasonal specialty cut flowers 🌼, foliages 🌾 and edibles 🌿 to florists, restaurants and supermarkets. We also offer lovely garden style bouquets and arrangements using flowers and greenery carefully selected and harvested fresh from our fields. Our products are available for purchase at our seasonal roadside Farm Stand and online* at www.stillwatersfarmandgardens.com. Though we are growing all year round, our flowers and arrangements are offered beginning in late Winter and ending in late Fall. 

Whether you are looking for a custom arrangement or several buckets of flowers, we look forward to serving your floral needs.

* – Available for delivery in Hickory, NC and surrounding areas