This Friday is Earth Day 2016—a day allocated for collective appreciation and celebration of this Blue Planet on which we all reside.
It all began in 1970, when 22 million Americans came together to raise awareness about the importance of clean land, air, and water, which eventually led to the creation of the US Environmental Protection Agency and the passage of the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts. Now, 193 countries join in celebrating the planet, with the aim to protect and preserve it to the best of our abilities.
Lisa Waud and the Detroit Flower House
Symbols used for Earth Day typically involve images of trees, flowers, or leaves depicting growth and a healthy environment. Last year began the trend of using Iris as the Earth Day Flower, a fitting symbol of a Blue Flower for a Blue Planet.
Recently, this Blue Flower for a Blue Planet concept was beautifully captured by our friend and renowned floral designer, Wil Gonzalez. His floral installment for the annual Bouquets to Art exhibition in San Francisco featured our Telstar iris, and his commentary on the piece was just as gorgeous as the floral art itself:
"Cool, wet and inviting, the tranquil, watery blue, the continually changing textures of these slowly maturing blossoms over the pass of the next week allow this flower arrangement to evolve...A flower arrangement reminds us to enjoy this moment in time. It will never look the same again."
Wil Gonzalez's living exhibition
Like this ever-evolving floral arrangement, so grows and changes our Blue Planet (and us along with it). This is why Sun Valley strives to change and evolve with the Earth, rather than fight against it. We do this by continually improving and innovating our sustainable farming practices as time goes on.
For example, we sustain our blue planet through recycling and reusing our greenhouse drain water, practicing crop rotation, integrated waste and compost management, and steam-sterilization techniques (an environmentally-friendly way to reuse soil). We have energy-efficient greenhouses, Snap Fans in our hoop houses (see video below), and we, the people, use bicycles to get from place to place, which is friendly for the land and for our bodies.
All of these practices are guaranteed and verified by Bloom Check, a strict certification program for flower farmers in the United States. It is through these "best practices" that we can achieve a healthy, symbiotic relationship with the planet that gives us (and you!) its gorgeous flowers. We strive to be as refreshing and pure as the most fitting Earth Day symbol, the Telstar Iris. This Blue Flower for a Blue Planet shows the beauty that clean air, land, and water can achieve.
It's no small thing, Earth Day. After all, this blue planet is the setting for our entire existence; and truly, the one thing that all of humanity shares, no matter what our beliefs, location, or history. Let's celebrate it!
"CreatingaWorld of Color" has long been the motto here at Sun Valley, but today I'm only concerned with one color: Green. As you probably already know, today is Earth Day. So to get into the eco-friendly spirit of this magnificent day, I've been taking my boots all over the farm this week to find out just what we're doing around here to keep it green.
Here are some of the ways Sun Valley is keeping its carbon footprint small:
Green compost
1. Composting: All discarded green flower products are composted for two to three years. This compost is later mixed in with new planting materials and spread across our flower fields. It's like a mini circle of life!
2. Energy-efficient lighting: We've recently replaced literally thousands of 90 to 100-watt Halogen reflector light bulbs in greenhouses and other buildings throughout our Arcata and Oxnard farms with 20-watt fluorescent bulbs and 23-watt CFL reflector lamps, significantly reducing our energy usage.
3. Solar energy: Hey, flowers have been way ahead of the game with harnessing solar energy for growth! So, in a round-about way, we're pioneers of solar power!
4. Reduced trucking distance: Opening a Tulip farm in Canada has greatly helped in reducing our carbon emissions by cutting down on the amount of trucks carrying Tulips from California to the east coast. That's approximately 30 trucks per year travelling a distance of 2,900 miles one way (SoCal to NY)!
Skyscraper of bulb crates, ready for recycling!
5. Steam cleaning: We sterilize our soil with steam rather than harsh chemicals, meaning less chemicals entering the atmosphere and into Mother Earth's groundwater.
6. Recycled materials: Our booth design for the upcoming International Floriculture Expo 2011 (June 14-17) almost exclusively features materials recycled from our farm, including old conveyor belts and Redwood boards from an old barn on our Arcata farm. We've been using recycled farm materials, such as old Tulip crates, in trade shows for awhile now to save on waste.
7. Recycling:We recycle the plastic from our hoop houses and our bulb crates to make recycled plastics. All cardboard is bundled and sent to the local recycling plant. We are also avid recyclers of paper, glass and aluminum from our office spaces. On top of that, any broken pallets we have are ground up and sent to the pulp mill for electrical energy generation.
8. Cycling: Rather than navigating our large farms in vehicles, many of our employees bike to and from the places they need to be. Healthy for the heart and the environment!
These are just some ways that we are trying to show this planet of ours a little love.
What are you doing, on a regular basis or particularly for Earth Day, to keep your world green?
