THE trader of the week this week is Rozanne Delamore - the Ledbury Flower Farmer.
As Rozanne gears up for a busy summer we asked her about her business.
What is your name?
Rozanne Delamore
What is the name of your business?
The Ledbury Flower Farmer
Are you the owner?
Yes
What do you sell?
I am an artisan grower of seasonal flowers that I nurture on site one mile from the top cross in Ledbury. I grow and sell a wide range of flowers and foliage to provide beautiful seasonal scented blooms in a garden gathered style. 
I am able to provide flowers for small weddings, parties, gift bouquets and farewell tribute flowers. I also do lots of talks, demonstrations and tours which I enjoy. I am able to offer workshops ranging from flower crowns which are great for birthday or hen parties, hand tied bouquets and wreath making. I enjoy having people here and interacting with them, the pick you own sessions are particularly relaxing and enjoyable. 
What is your best selling item?
The most common request I have is for gift bouquets. These can be for birthdays, anniversaries and thank you’s. Everyone loves to have sweet peas included when they are in season and when I do the Hellens Produce Market the sweet pea bunches always sell very quickly – they evoke such wonderful memories for everyone. Last year I completely sold out of ornamental gourds so I am looking forward to growing a lot more this year.
How did you get into farming flowers?
 I grew up 3 miles from Ledbury and got my green fingers from my mum who created the most beautiful garden that has interest all year. I’m sure like many teenagers I wasn’t the most enthusiastic helper to start with but I was soon bitten by the bug. I was fortunate enough to spend a few years in Norfolk restoring a garden where I fine tuned my pruning and knowledge of many garden trees, shrubs and perrenials. A change in family circumstances saw the children and I return to Ledbury in September 2020 and I ‘literally sowed the first seeds of The Ledbury Flower Farmer’ so 2022 is my second year in business and I am expanding into a new growing area and increasing the range of varieties of flowers that I offer.
What is the ethos of the business? The environment had always been close to my heart, this has come from my dad who knows every bird and sign of wildlife on the farm I was lucky enough to grow up on. I studied agriculture and the environment at Harper Adams and so its important to me to grow with sustainability and the environment in mind. I don’t use any sprays or chemicals to tackle weeds or pests and I grow within the seasons to allow for a natural balance of pests and predators. No flowers are artificially forced with heat or light and this helps to reduce any susceptibility to fungal problems. I do have two small greenhouses and two Haygrove garden tunnels to help to stretch my growing season at either end and to help with preventing rain marking and sun scorch for those perfect wedding blooms. 
I am a member of an organisation of just over one thousand flower famers across the country called Flowers From the Farm. It is the most amazing community of like minded growers who share their experiences and offer advice to each other. I am also one of 6 local businesses in the Ledbury to Lydney flower collective who all have the same values and we support each other should we have a crop fail or require a slightly larger number of stems for an occasion. It means that we can always supply flowers that are ‘grown not flown’ and are able to offer our customers a much lower carbon footprint and air mile alternative but with absolutely no compromise on quality and beauty.
 The beauty of being a small business is that all of my customers are very important to me and I can tailor each gift bouquet or funeral tribute to suit their special requests. I have been able to add miniature bulrushes into a wreath for a gentleman who had worked along canals and also add some dried wheat and Hereford cattle hair to a farmers cross. Flowers are a very important part of our culture and I love how we can express so much through them.