2025 Ask an Expert

The Ask an Expert webinar series features ASCFG member experts who share their ideas, insights, and lessons learned on a specific topic. Driven by experience, these webinars provide a robust overview of the topic before segueing into an interactive question and answer period for attendees. View our forthcoming sessions below!

Reminders:

• Members can access recordings of prior webinars in the ASCFG Members Only Learning Portal.
• Interested in presenting? Apply to present an Ask an Expert webinar. Learn more here.
• Did you attend a recent Ask an Expert webinar? We’d love your feedback!

Testimonials from ASCFG Members

“I really loved those sessions. I learned something useful every time.”

“It has been an outstanding experience, especially during Covid, when we have lacked face-to-face opportunities to meet.”

Best Practices for Seed Saving
Monday, January 13
8:00 p.m. EST
Presented by Erika Clarke of Sow Local Seeds

Join us for the ASCFG’s January 2025 Ask an Expert webinar on Monday, January 13, at 8:00 p.m. Eastern!

Erika Clarke founded and manages Sow Local Seeds, a family farm that specializes in locally adapted and ecologically produced flower, herb, and vegetable seeds in Nova Scotia, Canada. During her presentation, she will walk attendees through her practices and processes for saving cut flower seeds before ending the webinar with a robust question and answer session.

Zoom instructions will be emailed to members on the day of the event. All Ask an Expert webinars are recorded. 

Pressed Flowers: New Products, New Customers
Monday, February 17
8:00 p.m. EST
Presented by Kate Punnett of The August Press

Join us for the ASCFG’s February 2025 Ask an Expert webinar on Monday, February 17, at 8:00 p.m. Eastern!

Kate Punnett created a small flower press company called The August Press where she sells flower presses across North America. She also captures her pressed art digitally and sells her prints, and her future goals are to create a longer format book celebrating local pressed flowers throughout the season. Learn from her experiences in developing alternative streams of income and a new customer base through developing new services and products featuring pressed flowers.

Kate Punnett is an artist, homemaker and homeschooling mom that has created an artistic practice in between mothering her kids, growing a garden, and starting a part-time school. She teaches art and the creative process in her community to both children and adults. Kate was a sustainable florist before she started pressing flowers. She ran a small social enterprise in her floral studio gifting flowers to community members. Her passion lies in mixing the ephemeral nature of flowers with people. Her artistic work is driven by the desire to create change through aesthetics, from garden, to street, to community, to city and beyond. She fell in love with pressing flowers as a way to slow down the quick pace of the locally grown flower season. Always celebrating the spirit of local, her pressed work is a call for hope, joy and connection.

Zoom instructions will be emailed to members on the day of the event. All Ask an Expert webinars are recorded. 

Solar Panels on Cut Flower Farms
Monday, March 10
8:00 p.m. EST
Presented by Jennifer Jonak of Dragon Song Farm

Jenny Jonak has been an attorney for 27 years as well as the founder and owner of Dragon Song Farm in Eugene, Oregon. During this Ask an Expert webinar, Jenny will describe her experience with installing solar panels on her cut flower farm. This important infrastructure investment required time, upfront costs, and research, and Jenny will share advice and considerations for fellow farmers.

Zoom instructions will be emailed to ASCFG members prior to the event. All Ask an Expert events are recorded.

Developing New Customer Experiences, Diversifying Income Streams
Monday, April 14
8:00 p.m. EST
Presented by Sarah and Curtis Millsap of Millsap Farms

Sarah and Curtis Millsap grow 2 acres of flowers and vegetables annually, with 25,000 square feet under plastic, including a 1,600 square foot Chinese solar greenhouse and a 6,000 square foot minimally heated greenhouse. They use organic practices, and offer their produce for sale through a year-round, a 185 member CSA, farmers’ market, and restaurant sales. They also offer an array of unique customer experiences: An Airbnb called the Tiny Turtle, a weekly Pizza Club, and Twilight Walks on the farm. The Millsaps will provide an overview of these on-farm programs and workshops, and share advice on building unique customer experiences. Attendees will leave the webinar with new ideas to apply to their own farms.

Zoom instructions will be emailed to members on the day of the event. All Ask an Expert webinars are recorded.

Online Bookkeeping for Cut Flower Farmers
Monday, May 12
8:00 p.m. EST
Presented by Jessica and Graham Chase of Sierra Flower Farm

Jessica and Graham Chase are the owners and farmer-florists of Sierra Flower Farm in Gardner, Nevada. The farm isn’t the typical farm of rolling acres, but rather a tiny urban farm with about a half acre in production, selling wholesale blooms and servicing local weddings. Conscious of their impact on the environment and the ecosystem within their gardens and beyond, the Chases are committed to only using sustainable growing practices and to adding to the earth’s health, not depleting it. In this webinar, the Chases will offer an in-depth primer on bookkeeping tools, good practices, and considerations for cut flower farmers.

Zoom instructions will be emailed to members on the day of the event. All Ask an Expert webinars are recorded.

Companion Planting for Cut Flower Crops
Monday, June 9
8:00 p.m. EST
Presented by Jalisca Thomason of Rustic Roots Floral Design

Join us for a session on companion planting for crop flower crops with Jalisca Thomason, founder of Rustic Roots Floral Design, and agroforestry professor at Bakersfield College. Jalisca will introduce the concept of companion planting, discuss the benefits and considerations, and provide practical advice that attendees can try on their own farms.

Jalisca Thomason is an educator and an artist. She spent a decade as a high school agriculture teacher in California, coaching Floral Design Teams and teaching introductory and advanced floral design. She is currently a full professor at Bakersfield College in the area of forestry and natural resources, with the occasional section of Floral Design. Jalisca started her studio, Rustic Roots Floral Design, in 2010 and enjoys working in her home based studio. 

Zoom instructions will be emailed to members on the day of the event. All Ask an Expert webinars are recorded

Developing a Safety Management Program
Monday, July 14
8:00 p.m. EST
Presented by Zach Bruce of Hortica

Zach Bruce is the Director of Safety Services at Hortica and joined the company in 2005 as a Safety Services Consultant, providing safety and loss control services to the horticultural industry. With decades of experience and insight, be sure to join in as he offers advice on developing a robust safety program for your farm. 

Zoom instructions will be emailed to members on the day of the event. All Ask an Expert webinars are recorded.

Sustainability Practices to Incorporate into Your Farm
August 12
8:00 p.m. EST
Presented by Mandy and Steve of 3 Porch Farms

So you want to be a more sustainable farmer but are uncertain how to get started? We’ve got you: Join Mandy and Steve O’Shea of 3 Porch Farms as they cover a sampling of easy-to-incorporate practices that will reduce the environmental impact of your farm.

3 Porch Farm is renowned for their commitment to environmental well-being and sustainable agriculture. The flowers are grown with only organic certified fertilizers and their pest control is managed through organic certified plant and fungal derivatives or with beneficial insects. 3 Porch Farm flowers are chilled and processed in facilities that are powered with over 150 solar panels and as of Spring of 2021, the farm now provides carbon neutral shipping on all products by purchasing Carbon Offsets through Pachama. Furthermore, 3 Porch Farm uses paper tape, recyclable boxes, post consumer paper packaging, paper towels instead of sponges, and plant based plastic baggies to keep stems wet. All of which can be composted or recycled. Even our shipping labels and stickers are compostable and printed with soy-based inks.

Zoom instructions will be emailed to members on the day of the event. All Ask an Expert Webinars are recorded.

Speed Guide to Making an Annual Marketing Plan for Cut Flower Farmers
Monday, September 8
8:00 p.m. EST
Presented by Myrna Greenfield of Egg-cellent Marketing

Join us for a session on developing an annual marketing plan for your farm!  Myrna Greenfield is the “Top Egg” at Good Egg Marketing and the author of Marketing Your Farm: A practical guide to attracting loyal customers and increasing sales (Savvy Press 2022). Good Egg Marketing provides business planning and marketing services for food and farm-related businesses and nonprofits. Clients include flower growers, garden centers, nurseries, and other businesses in the green industry. Attendees of this webinar will walk away with actionable next steps for their marketing goals.

Greenfield is a frequent speaker and trainer at conferences, events, and meetings on topics such as agritourism, branding, sales and marketing strategies, websites, and social media. She received her MBA from Simmons School of Management in Boston, MA. A foodie, treehugger, and mensch, Greenfield is a board member of Boston Farms Community Land Trust and lives in Jamaica Plain, MA. Connect with her on LinkedIn and follow Good Egg Marketing on Facebook and Instagram.  

Zoom instructions will be emailed to members on the day of the event. All Ask an Expert webinars are recorded. 

Florals for Destination Weddings and Elopements
Monday, October 20
8:00 p.m. EST
Presented by Jalisca Thomason of Roots Rustic Floral Design

Join us for a session on floral designs for destination weddings and elopements with Jalisca Thomason, founder of Rustic Roots Floral Design, and agroforestry professor at Bakersfield College. Jalisca will discuss the unique considerations and practices inherent in creating floral designs for small and unique events held in distant locations, such as transportation, heat management, and other aspects.

Jalisca Thomason is an educator and an artist. She spent a decade as a high school agriculture teacher in California, coaching Floral Design Teams and teaching introductory and advanced floral design. She is currently a full professor at Bakersfield College in the area of forestry and natural resources, with the occasional section of Floral Design. Jalisca started her studio, Rustic Roots Floral Design, in 2010 and enjoys working in her home based studio. 

Zoom instructions will be emailed to members on the day of the event. All Ask an Expert webinars are recorded. 

Tentative: IPM Strategies
Monday, November 10
8:00 p.m. EST
Presenter TBD

More details coming soon!

Zoom instructions will be emailed to members on the day of the event. All Ask an Expert webinars are recorded.

See Our Top Picks in 2026! An ASCFG Supplier Showcase
Monday, December 8 and
Tuesday, December 9, 2025

This is a wonderful opportunity for members to connect with agricultural and cut flower vendors. ASCFG members are invited to attend these complimentary webinars, during which vendors will discuss current and forthcoming products, tools, and other useful resources. More information will be available in Fall 2025.

Zoom instructions will be emailed to members on the day of the event. This event is complimentary to our members.