Grower News

(Eduardo Contreras/The San Diego Union-Tribune) Annual floral attraction that drew nearly 300,000 last year faces near total loss of its 2020 season CARLSBAD — Every spring, nearly 300,000 people visit The Flower Fields at Carlsbad Ranch , an ephemeral agricultural attraction highlighted by more than 50 acres of vibrantly colored ranunculus blooms. This year, the 10-week growing season was barely underway when the COVID-19 public-gatherings ban forced the shutdown of the tourist magnet on March 17. That was followed by the near-total loss of the Flower Fields’ wholesale cut-flower business as public demand for bouquets paled in comparison to toilet paper and canned goods. But nobody told the flowers. Over the past four weeks, millions of ranunculus plants have emerged from seeds planted in stages over the winter to ensure dozens of acres were always in bloom through Mother’s Day weekend. All of that untapped beauty gave Flower Fields co-owner Paul Ecke III an idea. If the public can’t visit The Flower Fields this spring, then why not capture the flowers in peak season for virtual tours? Over the past two weeks, Ecke and the farm’s longtime general manager, Fred Clarke, have been filming guided tours of the fields and the property’s other attractions. (Eduardo Contreras/Eduardo Contreras/The San Diego Union-Tribune) Fred Clarke (left), general manager at The Flower Fields, shoots an Instagram Live video with publicist Sonja Strand on April 16, 2020 in Carlsbad, California. The fields are in full bloom but the popular springtime attraction is closed to the public due to the Coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. During a 20-minute Instagram Live broadcast on Thursday afternoon, Clarke walked among hundreds of multicolored rows of flowers stretching as far as the eye could see. He answered questions from nearly 100 viewers and promised that even though the Flower Fields are down right now, they’re not out. “We’ll be back better than ever next year,” Clarke said. “This place is floraculture history. It’s world-class color you can’t experience anywhere else.” Over the past quarter-century, the Flower Fields have become one of the region’s most-photographed tourist attractions. In the early years, Clarke […]

Source: www.pacificsandiego.com