Bramble & Blossom is a proud member of the Slow Flowers Society. But what the heck are "slow flowers"? Flowers brought in by turtles? Snails? Sloths? Nope! Though all of that would be cute. 

 

Being a Slow Flowers designer means that we focus on the local, especially flowers grown within 100 miles of Pittsburgh.

 

Sourcing farther afield always means sourcing from American farms.

 

Our studio never uses imported flowers. Period.

 

There are just too many wonderful flowers growing right here in our region and too much negative impact on the environment, economy, and human lives to source from the global market. 

 

We go the extra mile to ensure that the arrangements we make are free of harmful chemicals and that the farms we partner with have safe work environments for their teams. Our farmers work hard year-round to grow these gorgeous blooms and we couldn't do our work without them!

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During the field growing season (May - October), we are proud to source our flowers exclusively from local farms. If your event falls during the cooler months, we are still able to source American Grown flowers from parts of the country where it's a bit more temperate. 

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If you're curious and want to learn more about Slow Flowers, beginning with their manifesto is the way to go: Slow Flowers Manifesto. Below are two excerpts that speak to some of the reasons that this is so important to us here at Bramble & Blossom. 

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"The [Slow Flowers] movement recognizes that [the global floral industry] is not sustainable for people or for the planet, particularly when flowers are often considered a luxury. Slow Flowers believes that it is irresponsible to support the continued production and consumption of a perishable product that devours so many valuable resources (jet fuel, packaging material, water, to name a few), especially when there is a domestic alternative to imported flowers"

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"Slow Flowers commits to the following practices:

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• To recognize and respect the seasons by celebrating and designing with flowers when they naturally bloom

• To reduce the transportation footprint of the flowers and foliage consumed in the marketplace by sourcing as locally as possible

• To support flower farmers small and large by crediting them when possible through proper labeling at the wholesale and consumer level

• To encourage sustainable and organic farming practices that respect people and the environment

• To proactively pursue equity, inclusion and representation in the floral marketplace, intentionally valuing Black floral professionals (farmers, floral designers and vendors) in our business practice with as much support as we give to environmental sustainability.

• To eliminate waste and the use of chemical products in the floral industry

 

The Slow Flowers Movement puts a priority on sourcing American-grown flowers. In a way, this also means that we redefine beauty. As a Slow Food chef cooks with what is seasonally available, a Slow Flowers florist designs with what is seasonally available."  (Debra Prinzing, "Slow Flowers Manifesto", 2021).

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