A Forgotten Father's Day Tradition

Hi my friend,

The summer solstice is upon us, as well as what my husband calls the "most forgotten holiday of the year", Father's Day.  As a florist and a flower farmer, I assure you that the majority of folks "forget" about Mother's Day until the last minute as well.  Father's Day has an interesting history that is closely tied to locally grown flowers. The first Father's Day was celebrated in Spokane, Washington in 1909.  Sonora Smart Dodd came up with the idea to celebrate her father and all other fathers after a Mother's Day church service inspired her into action.  She worked with her local YMCA and the Spokane Ministerial Association to set aside the third Sunday in June as a day to celebrate fathers.  She personally delivered gifts to disabled fathers who couldn't leave their homes. Children gave red roses to their fathers and pinned red roses on their shirts if their father was living and a white rose if their father was deceased. For a time, the tradition was for each child to gift their father a red rose. Over time, this tradition faded away. Father's day became a federally recognized holiday in 1972.

I love the symbolism and the sentiment so much that I have revived the tradition in our family.  My husband was really touched the first Father's Day that I gifted him four red roses, one for each of our children.  It didn't matter that I didn't go to the store or purchase something online.  The gift was multi-dimensional; the roses were harvested from the bushes that I lovingly tend and care for, grown in a yard that is filled with our family's blood, sweat and tears from years of raking rocks, hauling rocks, unloading topsoil, laying drip and planting.  It took many years to get to the part where we could enjoy it.  

The summer solstice ushers in summertime this weekend and Utah flower farmers will soon reach the stage where we get to enjoy the fruits of our efforts.  Other than succession plantings of crops like sunflowers, zinnias and cosmos, the majority of the planting season is wrapping up.  Early summer brings maintenance. Weeding becomes our new best friend and the pile of weeds to compost grows weekly.  Spent crops from the spring are pulled out, replanted with short season crops like sunflowers or seeded for fall crops of zinnia, cosmos, asters and celosia. I am planting my pumpkins this week too. It's the perfect time to plant them so that they ripen a week or two before Halloween. I am hoping that by mid July I can stroll through my flower field and greenhouse in the evenings and really enjoy it.

I hope that you get our to your local flower farm and enjoy their hard work too!  There are so many ways to connect with them during the summer.  Many of our members can be found at Farmer's Markets.  Other growers provide U-pick experiences or workshops on their farms. Some partner with other local businesses and sell their flowers through storefronts and coffee shops. Utah Flower Day is scheduled for August 29th.  Our member growers will be celebrating all over the state with unique activities and experiences for you to participate in. The Utah Cut Flower Farm Association will have a gorgeous flower arch display at Thanksgiving Point that day as well and all of the flowers and greens will be sourced from Utah flower farmers!

Exciting things are happening as we run head-long into summer.  Get out and enjoy all that our growers have to offer.  Fresh flowers are always a good idea!

If you need me, I'll be weeding from now until the next newsletter.

Warm Regards,

Sara Asbridge

Publicity Chair

Utah Cut Flower Farm Association