With cut flower production becoming a fast-growing horticulture enterprise in Kentucky, Horticulture Extension Agents from Boyle and Warren Counties saw the need to offer commercial cut flower production classes. Extension agents met over Zoom and planned out 4 sessions to be offered seasonally throughout the 2021 growing season into early winter 2022 to give new and interested growers more insight into Kentucky cut flower production. This series of classes was later titled Kentucky Cut Flower Short Course which was the premiere program to aid commercial cut flower growers in the state.  

Agents collaborated with other colleagues from the Center for Crop Diversification and the Kentucky Horticulture Council to discuss further plans and marketing strategies for the short course. Program details about the virtual cut flower short course were advertised in the February issue of the Center for Crop Diversifications (CCD) Newsletter. Agents also worked together to design a marketing flyer and shared it to the private Facebook group for Kentucky Flower Farmers as well as posting it on several social media pages.

Due to COVID-19, programs would be offered virtually via Zoom. The first educational session for the virtual Cut Flower Short Course took place in the spring of 2021 on March 22^nd with a discussion on Perennial Cut Flowers best suited to Kentucky. Shari Dutton from the University of Kentucky’s Horticulture Department was the speaker for the evening’s program.     

This first program for the Cut Flower Short Course attracted an overwhelming amount of 169 participants to pre-register with 72 participants in attendance at the actual program. By conducting poll questions through Zoom, we learned that 31% were commercial growers, 36% were hobby growers, 22% were pre-commercial growers, and 12% were seeking information. Another poll questions revealed that 34% of participants were beginning growers, 34% had 1-5 years of experience, 17% had 6-10 years of experience, and 16% had 10+ years of experience.

A Qualtrics post-evaluation survey was emailed to registrants to gather other successes from the program.  Here are some of those results.

• 100% of individuals said that they gained knowledge on Perennial Cut Flowers in Kentucky.
• 100% of surveyors revealed that they plan to use information on Perennial Cut Flowers in the future.
• 93% intend and plan to grow some of the perennials that were highlighted in the talk.  

Others noted that the information was helpful in growing and developing their businesses. One person mentioned that “I’m a first year cut flower farmer but I have experience growing KY natives for the past 20 years, so I’m looking to combine the two. I’m also hoping to turn it into a full-time job over the next few years”. Another participant commented that she plans to use the information “to grow my business. I currently sell at a busy Saturday market and also to a handful of local florists. I would like to get more florists added and double my market output”. 

The recording from the presentation was later posted to the Center for Crop Diversification (CCD) website so people could watch it later. The recorded video has received 116 views with 368 total visits to the cut flower production resource page.