Local, seasonal British blooms
About HOMEstead GROWN
On the face of it, the name says it all – I live at a house called The Homestead and I grow flowers! There’s actually a bit more to it than that, though…
About me
Hello, I'm Rachel.
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I started sowing my first ever seeds with the first lockdown when it seemed that working life and much else had come to a standstill, and the weather was blissful outside in the garden.
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To my astonishment, the seeds grew, flower-growing became addictive, and the nurturing of plants and spending time outside through the year has become part of the rhythm of my daily life. When people ask if I ever grow vegetables, I explain that rather than growing food for the body, I love to grow food for the soul.
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Fast-forward four years since the first passers-by asked if they could buy some of my flowers, and I now have a home studio, a full diary of orders and events, a much larger growing area, and the latest game-changer, a polytunnel!
Where do I grow and sell my flowers?
In 2013, we bought the 100 year-old Homestead house and garden in the ‘silk town’ of Macclesfield, East Cheshire, within sight of the Peak District foothills. After completely renovating and extending the house, we turned our attention to the garden which was laid out in the 1920s as a collection of outside ‘rooms’ separated by arches and hedges.
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Most areas of the garden are now given over to growing flowers for cutting (nowhere is off-limits!) and I arrange flowers in my workshop.
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Head for the lovely South Park and tucked just inside, that’s where you will see our pale green gates. For a town location, we really are in a small world of our own - 'rus in urbe' as the previous occupants always said: a little bit of countryside in the town.
About my flowers
First and foremost, I grow the seasonal British blooms and colours that I love – that means stunning tulips and narcissi in spring; glorious alliums, sweet rocket, foxgloves, and roses in summer; beautiful dahlias, zinnias and cosmos into autumn, and many a dozen other well known and unusual varieties in between.
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All flowers are lovingly grown from seed and bulb throughout the months, so I can also plan to grow flowers and colour palettes with a customer's special request in mind.​ Each arrangement or bouquet is specially handpicked to order, every stem conditioned, and the combination of blooms unique and always beautiful.
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I grow along with the rhythm of nature from March to October, using only sustainable methods. The garden isn’t just my space of course and I actively encourage wildlife into many areas of the garden – even if much of it does dig up the bulbs and nibble the dahlias sometimes! Our most recent addition has been two beehives to make the most of the pollinator-friendly flowers.
My ethos
I grow specifically for my locality, to reduce the carbon footprint of delivery with the freshest of blooms and to enjoy being part of the local network of artisan traders and high street independents.
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It’s important to me to connect regularly with other small local businesses to encourage people to buy local and ‘small’. Whenever there’s a need to supplement my own flowers, I’ll source more from other local or British growers as much as possible.
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As a grower-florist, my style is a natural, garden-gathered look. As well as growing flowers sustainably, I’m also committed to arranging flowers in a way that won’t harm our environment, by avoiding plastics, chemicals and floral foam in preference for eco-friendly methods and materials.
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I’m proud to be a member of the award-winning association Flowers from the Farm which champions artisan growers of seasonal, scented, locally grown cut flowers throughout the UK.
You can search on their website to find flower farmers in all localities if you’re looking to buy yourself or send beautiful flowers to someone further afield.
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