Flowers And More For Fall Gardeners

Story & Photos By PAMELA QUIRINALE

Soares Flower Garden Nursery

Once you enter Soares Flower Garden Nursery, you will likely not want to leave. At the entrance, you’ll see old-fashioned claw-foot painted bathtubs, creatively filled with greenery and plant arrangements. Once inside, there are literally thousands of plants to look at—all organized into annuals or perennials, by color, for sun or shade, and by new seasonal arrivals.

Some suggested fall perennials for your garden? The Montauk daisy, which blooms well into October; Heuchera, asters, mums, ornamental peppers, Plumbago and Rudbeckia. These will lend fall color and will continue blooming until the first frost—with some blooming even after a frost.

A new fall annual for your garden? Purple calibrachoa. Annuals for contrast? Dusty Miller, Celosia, ornamental cabbages and sweet potato vines in a deep rich burgundy color. Annuals for backgrounds? Tall and spiky salvia, and coleus in varied shades of greens and burgundies as well as smaller potted zinnias and begonias.

And don’t overlook the pollinators: Joe-Pye weed, liatris, bee balm and Agastache ‘Blue Boa,’ which will continue blooming into the fall—while attracting those favorite butterflies and bees.

Strolling around the displays, you’ll see numerous baskets, wall hangers and containers such as kitchen colanders used as planters. Soares creates both window and container gardens for homeowners and businesses. Here you’ll find gorgeous and unusual combinations of yellow zinnias, purple calibrachoa, ornamental peppers and assorted cabbages—some in chic wooden planters.

If you need shrubs, check out the butterfly bush, the Rose of Sharon, phlox and hydrangeas. Some of the offerings are quite unusual such as the “Wikstroemia” bush and the extremely rare “Franklin tree” (named after Benjamin Franklin). Soares also sells herbs and fall vegetables, compost and organic fertilizers, and gardening supplies.

Both of the Soares owners, and also the manager, are certified horticulturists. The staff is very friendly, knowledgeable and helpful. The deliveries at Soares are frequent, so the plants are always fresh, healthy and gorgeous. Indeed, walking around Soares Nursery was like entering a gallery of floral paintings—so inspiring! Apparently, people also come here simply for walks and just to see the lovely colors and trees. You’ll definitely get lots of creative ideas!

508-548-5288 / soaresfgn@gmail.com / 1021 Sandwich Road, East Falmouth

Blacksmith Shop Farms Inc.

Blacksmith Shop Farms sells mulches, compost and screened loam. Mulch helps to hold water and offers a possible solution for the current concerns with drought.

If you’re planning to mulch your gardens, this operation offers several varieties. Their most popular is the “chestnut brown” mulch, which consists of aged native (local) woods such as pine, spruce, oak and maple, and the material is made on the premises. It’s their most natural mulch and offers a rich dark-brown color.

Blacksmith Shop Farms sells other types of mulches as well, including some unusual color-enhanced ones, and the manager encourages people to come by and learn about their uses. Blacksmith Shop Farms customers range from homeowners to landscapers and commercial customers. The company services Bourne, South Sandwich, Falmouth, Mashpee and Cotuit and will make deliveries if your order is for six yards or more.

508-548-7714 / 716 Blacksmith Shop Road, East Falmouth

Brick Kiln Farm

Women-owned and run, Brick Kiln Farm is a business with a story—of perseverance, creativity and reinvention—and that story is just as amazing as the stunning fields of flowers growing behind the greenhouses.

After Brick Kiln Farm operated as a busy, full-service nursery and supplier to landscapers, it all changed two years ago. Owner Teri Navickas lost her husband to kidney disease, and suddenly she had to figure out how to keep the business going. Teri and her assistant, Lianna, learned to drive large machinery, clear and rearrange spaces, and even move a huge compost mountain. Ultimately, the idea of simply growing flowers for cutting took off, and the business was redesigned to service others in a new way. These newfound strengths also became the inspiration for “Sturdy Girls” mugs and T-shirts (later designed by Teri, who also is a potter).

The nursery’s focus evolved into the growing of flowers, specifically for arrangements. Today, walking through these fields is like walking into an Impressionist painting: the vibrant flowers in purples, golds and pinks are just gorgeous. Rows of zinnias, sunflowers, blue salvia, dahlias and purple statice abound. You’ll also find heirloom chrysanthemums such as “Spider” and “Football” mums. Teri, Lianna and a helpful friend do all of the work themselves. The various garden areas are also named, and each tells a story. “Two-Chairs Field” has more than 1,000 flowers growing in it and includes the two chairs that Teri and her husband used to sit in.

These amazing, organically grown flowers are sold to homeowners, local floral designers and several businesses for use in birthday bouquets, weddings, funerals and special events. You might also find their flowers sold locally at the Cape Cod Winery, Roche Bros. and the Old Maine store. Anyone wishing to book a special order or event should call or email the farm to make an appointment.

The Brick Kiln Farm shop is open to the public for buying flowers on Friday mornings from 9 AM to noon. (Also offered is the “Party Bucket,” which contains more than 45 stems of assorted flowers, which the customer can arrange themselves as they wish. Call ahead to the farm to choose the colors, then pick up your bucket on Friday.) When visiting the shop, be sure to note the “Pay it Forward” jar, which has proven very successful, with customers putting in a special donation that in turn allows Teri and her staff to create, donate and deliver arrangements to folks who can’t afford them. These small acts of kindness have already helped so many during the pandemic.

Brick Kiln Farm remains open until the fall, when gardens are no longer providing; the focus goes into creating their homemade holiday wreaths that are sold in the shop from the third week of November until the first week of December. You’ll also find locally made crafts and pottery for sale, and perhaps some of Teri’s famed “Sturdy Girl” T-shirts and mugs as well.

508-548-3276 / horticulturalservices254@gmail.com / 254 Brick Kiln Road, East Falmouth

Astri Floral Studio

If you’re looking for cutting-edge floral arrangements, look no further. What a delightful surprise to meet this incredibly talented floral designer. Astrid Brodahl operates her studio from the basement office in her home, which, with the vases of Pennycress wild greenery, appears more like an art studio run by a nature lover. Astrid works with the most unusual flowers, woods and stems that she finds around the world, as well as in her own backyard. Every plant and accessory is as natural, organic and sustainable as possible and is worked into her “New Age Floral” designs.

“Midsummer” was the theme of a recent wedding for which Astrid designed the florals. The groom wore a pocket boutonniere, a new trend for guys (replacing the pocket handkerchief), that was contained in a rectangular “pocket” that slipped right into the suit pocket. The bride wore a fabulous “floral crown” (instead of a veil), and her bouquet was equally unusual—very light, and more open, suggesting both simplicity and Scandinavian elegance. With more weddings currently being held in backyards, these fresh, natural designs are perfect.

In addition to weddings and special events, Astrid also designs for funerals. Her unusual, nontraditional designs are true eye-openers and pay sincere tribute to the individuality of the person who has passed on.

Many will recognize Astrid as the former manager of the floral department at Falmouth’s Windfall Market, where she worked for 20 years. Astrid, also a potter, is

originally from Norway and as a child was “always out hiking and picking blueberries and lingonberries.” As nature and the outdoors are highly important to the Norwegians, children were often outside, skiing through the woods. (Astrid’s dad was an Olympic skier.)

Astrid creates bouquets, arrangements and wreaths, using locally grown flowers as well as tropical flowers. (“Tropical Nouveau” is a new trend, mixing both local and tropical together.) You might see black-eyed Susan mixed with anthurium, ginger and birds of paradise—all in a stunning floral “sculpture.” She meets with a group of international floral artists who teach online, and their new ideas on natural materials and design are continuously flowing.

And always the emphasis is on natural, sustainable and fully compostable. Branches are fastened with hemp twine (instead of wire). The new floral media (bases) are biodegradable, and wooden supports might include marshmallow roasting sticks! There are vines, all kinds of dried grasses, twigs, ropes and dried flowers that Astrid used her own natural dyes to color. She even demonstrated how to make natural water tubes from the stems of Japanese knotweed plants!

One can’t say enough how lucky Falmouth is to have such a talented and creative designer. Astrid works by appointment only, through phone or email.

508-566-2449 / astridbrod@gmail.com / 12 Cachalot Lane, Falmouth / Also on Instagram