Overview

Based on farm cash receipts, greenhouse and nursery crops are the fourth largest crop group. Leading floriculture states in value are California, Florida, Michigan, Texas and New York. Floriculture includes crops such as cut flowers, cut cultivated greens, potted flowering plants and potted foliage plants, as well as bedding and garden plants.  December 2009 ... Floriculture

Marketing

• Assessment of Product Development and Market Opportunities in Michigan’s Floriculture Sector, Michigan State University, 2008 - This AgMRC-funded study was conducted to assist Michigan entrepreneurs in the identification of floriculture product lines, markets and services with high profit potentials. During the study, the structure of the floriculture industry was examined to identify major production and consumption trends as well as the key market drivers, new product introductions and market channels. The authors conclude that growers who introduce new products meeting the needs of their direct and wholesale markets will likely increase the sales of their floriculture products.
• Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers - This site lists resources, publications, flower guides, conferences, etc. of interest to flower producers.
• California Commodity Profile: Flowers and Nursery, Agricultural Issues Center, University of California, 2002.
• Cut Florals As Specialty Crops In Iowa: Assessing Local Market Needs and Producers of Floral Products in Central Iowa, Iowa State University, 2003 - Survey results and summary from growers, wholesalers and retailers in the cut flower industry.
• Cut Flowers. Industry & Trade Summary, U.S. International Trade Commission, 2003.
• Economic Issues with Sunflowers, Kansas State University, 2002.
• Edible Flowers, Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas (ATTRA), NCAT, 2004 - Used to complement existing flower operation. Gives guidelines on growing and marketing edible flowers.
• Floriculture Information Center, North Carolina State University - Specific flower and crop information, as well as research reports, software, disease and pest information and more.
• Southeast Greenhouse Conference - Educational program and trade show.
• Statistical Marketing Research, American Floral Endowment - Numbers on floral production and marketing.
• Wholesale Cut Flower Price Reports, Ag Marketing Service (AMS), USDA - Under Browse by Commodity, select Ornamentals.
• Woody Ornamentals for Cut Flower Growers, Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas (ATTRA), NCAT, 2002 - This publication discusses how cut flower growers can extend the growing season and fill arrangements with ornamentals - marketing their flowers in a different arrangement.

Processing/Manufacturing

• Agricultural Permits – Cut Flowers, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), USDA - Importers of cut flowers are no longer required to have permits.
• Post Harvest Handling of Cut Flowers, Central Maryland Research and Education Center, University of Maryland Cooperative Extension Service, updated 2005 - This research covers preserving the life of cut flowers, vases, refrigerator storage and dry storage methods for the flower producer. 

Production

• Assessing the Market Potential of Specialty Forest Products in Local Food Systems, Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, Iowa State University, 2005 - This project evaluated the interest in and obstacles to the production and marketing of non-timber specialty forest products.
• Commercial Horticulture Fact Sheets - Cut Flowers, University of Maryland Cooperative Extension - This site lists fact sheets for individual flowers, including sunflowers, lillies, celosia, yarrow, purple coneflower, anemone and larkspur.
• Economic Contributions of the California Nursery Industry, Giannini Foundation of Agricultural Economics, Information Series No. 04-1, University of California, 2004.
• Floriculture, Integrated Pest Management guidelines, University of California, Davis.
• Floriculture, University of Massachusetts - Information on business management, greenhouse management, pest control and specific crop information.
• Getting Started in the Production of Field-Grown Cut Flowers, Virginia Cooperative Extension, 2002.
• Greenhouse Costs of Production Budgets, Rutgers Cooperative Extension Service. 
• Greenhouse Production, West Virginia University Extension Service - This fact sheet explains the steps to follow and the decisions to make before starting a greenhouse business.
• Phenology Web Links: (1) Sequence of Bloom, Floral Calendars, What’s in Bloom; (2) Birds, Bees, Insects and Weeds, Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas (ATTRA), 2002 - Phenology is the study of the annual cycles of plants and animals and how they respond to seasonal changes in their environment. Links include the timing of flower emergence, sequence of bloom, fruiting, and leaf drop in autumn.
• PlantFacts, Ohio State University - This Web site provides a full-text search engine of all extension and academic department information from all land-grant universities in the United States. Additionally, there are significant image and video databases, a FAQ database and a glossary.
• Floriculture, Purdue University Extension - Includes perennial, bedding plant, potted flowering and cut flower guidesheets, as well as greenhouse management guide sheets.
• Specialty Cut Flower Production and Marketing, Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas (ATTRA), NCAT, 2006 - This site covers production basics, harvest and post-harvest handling and several marketing channels for specialty cut flowers.
• Windflower Farm, SARE Farmer Grant Profiles, 2008 - Jan Blomgren evaluated the performance of 10 high-value organic cut flower varieties grown in five kinds of tunnels.

Businesses/Case Studies

• American Daylily and Perennials, Kansas City, Missouri - This operation produces daylilies and other perennials.
• Baker's Acres, Groton, New York - This operation began in 1980 as a modest, family business but today is one of the largest herb and perennial growers in Central New York. This 75-acre farm features more than 1,000 varieties of perennials and 250 varieties of herbs.
• Dickman Farms, Auburn, New York - This fourth-generation family business is a 365,000-square foot modern greenhouse facility. It provides finished plant product to more than 80 independent garden centers in the Northeast and operates an upscale retail garden center.
• Dried Flowers Direct , Penn Yan, New York - Located in western New York, this operation’s site contains resources for those wishing to market dried flowers.
• Flowers, The New American Farmer, Sustainable Agriculture and Research Education (SARE), USDA - Describes five flower-growing operations located throughout the United States.
• Nixon Flower Farm, Jacksonville, Arkansas - This farm will rent their gardens, house and even the entire farm for weddings and parties. The 200-acre fourth-generation farm is located about 15 miles north of downtown Little Rock.
• Oberle Botanical, Fort Collins, Colorado - Run by Matt and Sue Oberle, this diversified operation blends a variety of horticulture ventures with a commitment to keeping things local and using sustainable agriculture methods.
• The Sunflower Farm, Cincinnati, Ohio - This farm, a division of Turpin Farms, offers cut sunflowers shipped anywhere in the United States.
• White Flower Farm, Litchfield, Connecticut - This local nursery also has an extensive presence on the Internet.
• Woodburn Nursery and Azaleas, Portland, Oregon - This family-run business is one of the country's leading azalea growers. Outside the greenhouses, Woodburn produces 250 acres of ornamental nursery stock. 

Links checked December 2009.