With the spring season upon us, Virginia gardens are brimming with beautiful flowers! I've been gardening in my own Foxhill Garden for the past eight years and just last year started offering fresh floral arrangements for local pickup and both virtual and in-person garden consultations to help others create a backyard oasis of their own to enjoy. As I've become more involved in the local gardening world, you can bet that I was thrilled when invited to join a new gardening co-op: Old Dominion Flower Cooperative (ODFC). With Mother's Day and other seasonal events right around the corner, it's the perfect time to share about the co-op!  From the Old Dominion Flower Cooperative founders:ODFC is an all-female-owned local flower farm collective that aggregates its flowers in one pick up location in Northern Virginia. Created in 2021 with a mission to make local flowers more accessible to the public and DMV floral designers, ODFC is determined to give its farmers fair pricing, education, and a voice in the local economy. ODFC has a total of 22 flower farmers from Maryland and Virginia, growing on a collective of 25 plus acres – 99 percent of these farmers are female. ODFC is the largest local flower cooperative in the country, in number of farms selling to the cooperative and total acreage being grown on.   If you would like to support ODFC in its efforts, you can purchase their flowers through various avenues found via the ODFC website. Specifically, there are two exciting Mother's Day gift ideas: a large local peony bouquet for Mom, or if you are looking for a fun, interactive activity together, ODFC is hosting a Mom & Me Bouquet Making Date Night complete with wine and snacks, held at the historic Birkby House in Leesburg, Virginia.  Other ways to support include:

• Purchase their Flower Friends Membership that grants you access to their bi-weekly public Sunday floral markets from May to October, located in Reston, Virginia.
• If you are a floral designer, you can sign up to be an official wholesale buyer, where you will gain access to their weekly wholesale website.
• Check out their events, including workshops and farm tours, all accessible to the public!

If you are interested in any of these listed events or membership opportunities, please check out ODFC's website: www.olddominionflowercooperative.com or email: melissa@olddominionflowercooperative.com.