Kentucky-Grown Cut Flower Month spotlights state floral industry

Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner Jonathan Shell recently declared July as Kentucky-Grown Cut Flower Month to highlight the state’s floral industry. One Mayfield flower farm hopes the visibility encourages consumers to support local cultivators. According to the Kentucky Department of Agriculture, approximately 80% of cut flowers are imported for domestic markets, yet Kentucky farm conditions are “well-suited for high-quality commercial production.”

KDA said cut flowers have become one of the Commonwealth’s fastest-growing specialty crops, with the number of farms growing the commodity more than doubling between 2017 and 2022.

Today, KDA reports that the state is home to 233 commercial cut-flower farms working 220 acres and producing $2.2 million in flowers each year. KDA said most of these farms are “small, family-run operations that sell directly to their neighbors through farmers’ markets, roadside stands, florists and online platforms.”

Honey Hill Farms in Mayfield is one of those family-owned businesses. Visitors can pay to freely roam the 10 acres of perennial and annual flowers, picking them at their leisure to fill a container. Co-owner Rebecca Phelps said what originated roughly a decade ago has now flourished into a full-scale operation with rows of colorful crops and other amenities.