By Joanne Montgomery, Stems, Eglinton, Co. Londonderry

“I come from a farming background with potatoes and dairying as the mainstay of my family’s business. So it is not surprising that I joined CAFRE (College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise), based at Greenmount Campus, to do my Higher National Diploma in Agriculture in 2001.

It is true what most graduates say about their student days; it is the best days of their life, and I felt that I did not want them to end! As I felt that the future in conventional agriculture was uncertain I enrolled onto another course, this time in CAFRE at Loughry Campus and gained a BSc. Hons in Supply Management.

Having been brought up on a farm I have always been drawn towards agricultural related careers. It was in 2006 that I attended a day course at Greenmount Campus on Cut Flower Production. I was surprised by the diversity of cut flowers species that can be grown in Northern Ireland, the range of colours and scent from them, and the market opportunity that exists in my local area.

With the support of my family and my fiancé Jonny, I am now in my third year of cut flower production, producing alstroemeria, lilies, scented stock and solidago to supply to the local florists. Cut flower production is not for the faint hearted as one has to pay attention to detail from planting to harvesting, and the period after harvesting the crop. This is to ensure that the flowers are of the best quality and have a very good vase life.

Being very close to my customers, I am able to supply them with very high quality super fresh flowers according to their individual specifications. I feel this is one of the advantages of being in close contact with the florists who are very specific in their demands. Local flowers also save on air miles of which many customers are aware of.

Where will my enterprise go to next? Well, I have been experimenting with a range of other species of flowers and keeping an eye on the ever increasing market demand for cut flowers. I would consider supplying multiple retailers to expand the business. Surprising to some, Northern Ireland has a very good climate for cut flowers because of the cool summers. This has been proven again and again by the work carried out at Greenmount and by local growers.

Joanne Montgomery from Stems, Eglinton, with her alstroemeria crop