Phoebe Poole heads up Weatherlow Florals, based in Westport, Massachusetts. Our introduction many months ago felt kismet as we had both shared a plethora of friends and business acquaintances leading up to meeting in person. She has since provided beautiful florals for some client-related projects and I was lucky enough to attend her Foraged Wreath Workshop this past December. (A MUST for your winter calendar next season).
Phoebe is not only dedicated to her farm and floral business, but she possesses this special je ne sais quoi quality that is equal parts magical, genuine, intoxicating and pure. This combination of her savvy business acumen, commitment to her work and delightful energy makes Phoebe the perfect addition to C&C’s Short List.
The COOLEST thing about Phoebe’s floral operation in my opinion? Aside from the stunningly bucolic setting on Weatherlow Farms, one can truly have a bespoke floral experience. As a bride for example, you can specify that you love Icelandic poppies in a certain shade, and she will grow them for your respective floral design. How special is that?!?
Read on below to get to know Phoebe! And, be sure to follow her on Instagram, @weatherlow_florals
Tell us a little bit about Weatherlow Florals…
Weatherlow Florals is a 1.5 acre specialty cut flower farm and floral design studio, tucked into the larger Weatherlow Farms operation, in the seaside town of Westport MA. As farms go, it’s still in its infancy, as we head into the fifth season of flower production. Though we aren’t certified organic, we follow all organic practices, and pursue the utmost in sustainable methods including no-till bed systems and intensive mulching and composting protocols. Our growing season here on the coast is quite long, and we are actively harvesting and offering flowers from April through early November. Many of our blooms and foliages are sold wholesale to floral designers across New England (and beyond, in some cases), while each season I’ve grown the in-house design side of the business. The floral design work we do is purely ‘seed-to-vase’, meaning we only use what we grow (or forage) here at the farm.
What’s the best part of being a floral farm?
Besides the obvious of being surrounded by beautiful flowers during the season, I enjoy the endless experimentation and inherent creativity. I’m always striving to get more local flowers into everyone’s design work, so that means meeting with our wholesale clients to see what colors and textures they’re looking to use for the coming season, seeking out ‘new’ varieties and perfecting how we grow the tried-and-true favorites, scouring inspirational arrangements on Instagram for ingredients that I’ve never seen before and then trying find seed for them to grow them… in short, there’s never a dull (or idle) moment and that’s the best part.
Daily uniform?
No matter the time of the season, wellies are a daily uniform staple. In the warmer months, they’re paired with high-waisted canvas shorts and an oxford shirt. In colder months, I’m most likely wearing them with wool tights, a wool dress, and a (slightly moth-eaten) wool sweater.
We love the idyllic farm setting you call home. What makes Weatherlow Farms so special to you?
It truly is an idyllic spot. The size and scale are partly what make it special to me - it’s a very large parcel for this part of the world, and is set atop the highest point in the county - so there are lovely open pastures and Wyeth-esque landscapes to admire. And then there’s the light - because the property is so high up and open, we have incredible sunrises and sunsets, and huge skies full of interesting clouds, and a clarity of light that is unique.
Favorite place to escape to, sans wellies & shears?
I was very lucky as a kid to travel extensively, so honestly when I have a moment away from work I love to escape locally - rather than a far-flung place - to the Elizabeth Islands. They’re a chain of small islands off our coast, between us and Martha’s Vineyard, that retain some of the magic and mystery of New England that can’t be found on the mainland any more. Scooting out there on the boat in October for a quick swim and picnic lunch can’t be beat.
What are you most excited for this coming spring?
I’m most looking forward to the continued expansion, and also refining, of this beautiful business. I’ll be cultivating a bit more land, but also making even better use of the space we have already. I’m adding more varieties of flowers and foliages, but also doing a better job of growing the pretties we’ve become known for over the last few seasons.
Other entrepreneurs you admire?
Taylor Johnston of Gamine Workwear, not just because I rely on her incredible clothing for my daily grind. Her commitment to sustainability, and the neglected art of practical and beautiful clothing for women, is unmatched. www.gamineworkwear.com
Jenny Tatelman of Fly and Flow, not just because I’d spend more time on the water if I wasn’t flower-ing all of the time. Her brand and ethos, of connecting and empowering women through the coolest sport ever (fly fishing), is admirable and inspiring. www.flyandflow.net
Semia Dunne of Semia Floral Design and The Floral Reserve, not just because she’s endlessly encouraged me in my business. In this part of the country I think she’s doing more than anyone else for the local flower community, educating other designers about seasonality - why it matters and why it’s gorgeous, and curating the whole scene beautifully. www.semiafloral.com and www.thefloralreserve.com
You’re hosting a summer fête at home with friends...what does your table look like? And playlist?
I can’t say that I entertain much in the summer (as it’s the height of our busy growing and wedding-ing season) but when I do the table is a weathered teak one that’s lived out on the lawn for many seasons, in partial shade from the big oak tree. It would be set with a large pitcher of bits and bobs from the garden, flowering perennials and herbs and whatever blooms are in season, mismatched plates and platters from our family friend who’s a ceramicist, and the clunky family silver. There would be a huge salad of local greens (with edible flowers, of course), grilled vegetables from my CSA share alongside Weatherlow burgers and sausages, good local cheeses, and plenty of wine.
My summer playlist would likely be an eclectic mix of classic rock, bossanova, and 90s pop hits.
What’s in store for Weatherlow Florals this Spring/Summer 2020?
I am slightly expanding the growing area, and variety selection, for our flowers and foliages so we will have even more lovely material for our wholesale customers and wedding work. Our floral design calendar is fully booked with 2020 weddings, and I can’t wait to make fun and elegant designs for each of the unique couples - and at some exciting venues around the region! We’re also slightly expanding our workshop offerings with a few farming-focused workshops for the spring, so that folks can learn how to grow a cut flower garden at home - and also how to arrange those blooms into artful centerpieces.
Your bouquet subscriptions look dreamy! How can I register for spring?
The bouquet subscriptions are so delightful, and informative! Rather than the flower CSA model of a single type of flower each week, we offer arranged bouquets each week for the spring, summer, or fall season. Plus, the subscriber gets a weekly email detailing the bouquet’s ingredients, plus growing and natural history information. You can sign up, and see photos of past season’s bouquets, on our website, https://weatherlowfarms.com/?page_id=1148
This season we’re endeavoring to reach new customers by adding pickup locations other than Weatherlow - if you and four friends register for spring bouquets, we’ll deliver them weekly to a location of your choice (within 45 minutes of the farm.)
If you could visit any other floral farm operation in the world, where would you go?
I’d most like to visit the amazing floral world that Erin Benzakein has created at Floret Flower Farm out in the Skagit Valley of Washington. She’s really pioneered the ‘farmer-florist’ arena and educated so many folks about the beauty and importance of seasonal floral design. I find the evolution of her business fascinating and would love to see the operation in person!
https://www.floretflowers.com/about-us/meet-the-family/
Can you tell us a little bit about your Seed-To-Vase Wedding Floral Design offering?
There’s nothing more special, I think, than the process that we get to go through with couples to create floral designs for their weddings. We rely solely on the flowers and foliages that we grow at Weatherlow, and foraged bits from the fields and woods, to embody their story and the season in which they’re celebrating. There are quite a few things that we now grow that stemmed from a need we had for a particular wedding - since we start the design process a full season ahead of time, if there’s a color or texture that they want to see as part of their celebration that the 300+ varieties we’re already growing can’t meet, we find seed or plants and add it to our repertoire!
If flowers were the new Zodiac signs, what would be yours?
My birthday is in late June, which is a magical and abundant flower time. I’d love to say that I’m something refined and elegant like a June peony, with hugely beautiful but not abundant blooms, and requiring time and patience to grow. However, the honest answer would be that my ‘zodiac sign’ flower would be the sweet pea - they’re also incredibly lovely and perfume-y like the peony, but they are fairly scrappy as well. They work hard, scrambling up the trellis and producing abundant vines and tendrils, and demand a lot of compost and stinky fish fertilizer. They want to be planted very early, it always seems impossibly cold still, but that’s their way. Then they reward us with incredible foliage and the most dreamy and delicate flowers until the heat of July - and then I miss them until the following spring.
THANK YOU, PHOEBE!
NOTE: Imagery provided by Weatherlow Florals, captured by Erin McGinn Photography, Caroline Goddard Photography, Caylin Harris, Henry and Mac, Jennifer Jeanne Photography and Silver & Salt Photography.