Les fleurs Franktown House flowers
Franktown House Flowers cultivates tranquility. Our regenerative flower farm is nestled in the idyllic setting of Wakefield, Quebec—the ancestral territory of the Algonquin Anishinabeg Nation. Now, well 10 years into our journey, Franktown House Flowers’ vision is evolving to invite community onto the land, into the stillness, by building a gathering space on the farm. Our workshop-studio will be a place for classes and events rooted in wellness and creativity, supported by the natural environment’s grounding energy.
Past
Since 2013, Franktown House Flowers has been growing flowers and creating bouquets for Ottawa and the Outaouais region. The first flower farm to become established in the Outaouais, Franktown House Flowers has helped spearhead a new generation of small-scale cut flower farms in Quebec.
Deeply rooted in ecological farming practices, we are mindful of supporting a healthy habitat for all creatures great and small, including pollinators and other beneficial insects, soil microorganisms, amphibians, reptiles, mammals and other wildlife. Our flower farm is host to many domestic and migratory birds, including threatened species such as the whippoorwill, bobolink, eastern meadowlark and golden-winged warbler. We encourage the propagation of milkweed in our fields, providing habitat for Monarch butterflies which have appeared in greater and greater numbers in recent years.
Danielle Schami is the heart and hands behind Franktown House Flowers. In 2013, she and her spouse moved their young family from the city, to pursue her dream of starting a flower farm. Danielle has over 20 years experience in public service, outreach and engagement, ecological agriculture, environmental education, and social justice. As a farmer-florist, Danielle has helped raise the profile of floriculture by establishing the first flower farm in the region, selling at public markets, speaking to media, presenting at the Guelph Organic Conference, offering the first cut flower production course to new flower growers through UPA U+, and as a founding member of the Ottawa Flower Market.
Present
Franktown House Flowers is currently focused on raising funds and launching our new workshop-studio. The project offers a gathering space for flower-related workshops and a diversity of other activities related to:
creativity · sharing · connection · slowing down · tranquility · play
Learn more here: Franktown House Flowers Crowdfunding Campaign
Future
The vision of our flower farm serving as a gathering place is inspired by the desire to invite others into a space where we can slow down, ground, and connect. We hope to foster experiences that will help to calm nervous systems, strengthen community relationships, and promote healing from the effects of stress, burnout, and conflict.
We are expanding beyond flowers as a product. With the capacity to host others on our farm, flowers become the medium through which we can connect and explore ideas and tools for grounding. You may have heard of “forest bathing”. Now think “flower showering”: bathing your senses in the healing power of flowers. Flowers offer joy and calm. Research shows flowers have a positive impact on emotional health and have immediate and long-term effects on emotional reactions, mood, social behaviors and even memory. (See: An Environmental Approach to Positive Emotion: Flowers, by Jeannette Haviland-Jones et al.)
By developing our flower farm into a gathering space, we will also have the ability to invite creatives, practitioners, teachers, and healers to lead their own workshops and events. Come back soon for details about the types of offerings we’ll be hosting, or sign up to our newsletter to receive updates and announcements.
