Julia Keel of Fullkeel Farm - Efficiency on the farm (SFFF16)

(The Six Figure Flower Farming Podcast, Episode #16)

Episode Summary:

Julia Keel from Fullkeel Farm is a small-scale cut flower farmer in north central Florida and sells exclusively to florists. Due to the hot climate in Florida, Julia pauses production during the summer months when demand decreases and stem quality becomes inconsistent. In this episode, she share’s how she has found creative ways to improve stem quality by adjusting timing, nutrition, and cultivar selection.

Julia makes data-driven decisions on which crops to grow based on revenue per square foot (HELLO ya’ll! Let’s all start doing this, please!). For example, she stopped growing ranunculus due to high production costs and extreme temperature fluctuations (I know a lot of us feel that struggle).

Julia emphasizes the importance of knowing your numbers and making decisions based on profitability (can I get a heck yes?). She discusses how she pinpointed major points of failure in her flower farm and chose to invest in solutions for those problems in order to improve efficiency.

She realized that overextending herself and not having the right infrastructure and tools were causing failures. She invested in automating irrigation in the prop house, using the paper pot system for transplanting, and DIY-ing a compost spreader. These changes have made her life easier, improved flower quality, and planting efficiency.

Key Takeaways:

  • Selling exclusively to florists can be a successful sales outlet if there is demand for local product.

  • Adjusting timing, nutrition, and cultivar selection can improve stem quality in a hot climate.

  • Data-driven decision-making is crucial for determining which crops to grow based on profitability.

  • It is important to separate climate-driven issues from production-driven issues when evaluating crop success.

  • Knowing your numbers and making decisions based on profitability is essential for a sustainable flower farming business. Identify the major points of failure in your farm and address them with the right infrastructure and tools.

  • Consider the cost of production, risk, and production goals when deciding which crops to grow.

  • Harvest crops at the optimal stage to maximize efficiency and minimize time spent on grading and sorting.

  • Keep track of production costs and sales records to make informed decisions about crop selection and profitability.

Chapters of Interest:

02:21 Challenges of Growing in a Hot Climate

04:34 The Reality of Flower Farming: Imperfect Production

10:20 Improving Stem Quality in a Hot Climate

12:12 Data-Driven Decision-Making for Crop Selection

16:24 Making Profitable Decisions: No Longer Growing Ranunculus

18:22 Trusting Data and Moving On

21:58 The Reality of Social Media and Profitability

26:59 Efficiency and Growing Techniques

30:09 Investing in Infrastructure and Tools

39:13 Choosing Crops Based on Production Goals

41:46 Maximizing Efficiency in Harvesting

45:57 Dealing with Challenges in Crop Selection

50:19 Tracking Production Costs and Sales Records

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Profit, MarketJennifer MarksSFFFComment