Meet Lourdes Still

MASAGANA FLOWER FARM

@masaganaflowerfarm​

Growing joy and creating magic is right at our fingertips: a mantra Lourdes keeps close to her heart. She hopes to inspire others with her work at Masagana Flower Farm & Studio by interacting with plants and flowers as natural dye sources. She juggles the roles of a flower grower, a natural dyer, and an experiential tourism guide at her farm in southeast Manitoba. In her flagship offering, the Tinta Experience, Lourdes started as a self-taught flower grower, natural dyer, and tourism operator but has since learned and trained from industry leaders. Her curiosity continues to lead her entrepreneurial journey. It has expanded her work outside the farming community to explore ways to diversify her farm operations in the short growing season of Manitoba. Her farm may be seasonal, but her floral-dyed projects are year-round. She is in the first year of having a new studio-in-the-woods at the farm. She is currently exploring all the programming possibilities she can implement in her dream space to show others that growing joy through flowers and creating magic through plant dyes are right at our fingertips!

1. What is your astrological sign? Aquarius

2. What book(s) are on your bedside table right now? The Artisan Soul by Erwin Raphael McManus

3. What do you want our guests to know about Canada's local flower/Slow Flowers or horticulture/garden scene? We have a vibrant and thriving community of flower growers in Canada and this Summit is a great opportunity to meet some of them. The Canadian growers are just as diverse as the micro-climate we experience from coast to coast and there's so much to learn from one another. There is also a growing number of flower growers and designers who want to shift their practices to eco-friendly ones and it's important to amplify their work to inspire others to do the same.

4. Share something that you're excited about exploring in your floral enterprise this year?Planting fewer flower crops and focusing more on the dye plant and flower cultivation to meet the offseason demand my DIY Floral Dye Kits and ready-to-wear pieces.

5. What is the craziest or most clever thing you've done to pack flowers or plants for travel?Setting up a plastic, adjustable shelving unit in my station wagon to carry all my seedlings for a farmers market setup!

Learn from Lourdes at the Slow Flowers Summit:

Monday, June 24th. Lecture, demonstration, and hands-on group design FLORAL IMMERSION: Plant-based Pigments for Textiles

Lourdes will lead one of three afternoon break-out sessions during our Floral Immersion Experience. She will cover growing dye plants and touching on several of her favorite techniquest taught in her popular, on-farm series: the TINTA Experience.

Participants in this half-day session will explore various methods of adding botanical prints and colors to fabrics, while using pigment flowers and foliages from Masagana Flower Farm. The hands-on group project will produce a textile installation that will be on display throughout the Summit.

LISTEN: Hear more from Lourdes on the Slow Flowers Podcast Episode 588