Her smile lights up the room when Brittany Tilling talks about working with flowers and plants.
Her passion won’t come as a surprise to anyone who knows the Morris family, some of whom operated the Morris Flowers shop on Canyon Street and Morris Greenhouse on Erickson Road for decades.
Brittany’s mom, Grace, is one of several of the Morris siblings who inherited their parents’ talent for growing and designing arrangements. Brittany’s aunts, Pat and Edith, were major influences. Pat ran the flower shop in town for many years, and Edith has had her own flower shop in Olds, Alberta for more than two decades.
Like many young people, Brittany, a PCSS graduate, left Creston to pursue her post-secondary education. Business courses led to work at a Kelowna financial institution but she always hoped that one day her education would help her create “some sort of venture involving flowers,” she said on Friday.
The Tilling family—Grace, Don and their four daughters—moved to Creston in 2006 from Langley, where Grace had run her own flower design business. And, while Brittany admits she was excited to leave Creston after graduating from high school—“I wasn’t sure there were many opportunities here.” She was probably even more excited to come back.
She returned to Creston in 2018 and worked for a time in the newly sold Morris Flowers, but the desire to start her own business didn’t fade.
“I wanted to see if there was a way to start a flower farm.”
Luckily, her folks own an acreage on 27th Avenue South in Erickson, and she has been able to plant flowers there. A converted shed is now her workshop.
But Brittany’s Flower Farm really extends throughout the Creston Valley. Foraging, often with Grace at her side, is one of Brittany’s great passions. They have become familiar sights in flower-filled ditches on roadsides, and near trails throughout the area. The daughter-mother team has also become a regular vendor at the Creston Valley Farmers’ Market, where they both love the interaction with visitors.
“I couldn’t do this on my own,” she said. “but here I have my family and friends. They have been incredibly supportive and helpful.”
Her recently finished studio offers views to the east and south. From there, she will produce arrangements with plants and flowers, some grown from seed and others found in public areas around the Valley.
“Not having to order all the flowers I need is great. Going out into the garden and picking what is ready shows how seasonal this work is. It’s a lot like being a chef in many ways—creating menus from food that is in season,” she smiled. In the winter, evergreens are a major source of local colour.
“So many amazing flower varieties can be grown right here,” she said, adding that a greenhouse will eventually provide an expanded season for fresh flowers.
Brittany’s favourite flower?
“Dahlias. I’ve loved them since I was little. They come in every size, shape and colour, and I enjoy using them as features in my arrangements when they are in season.”
She does not limit her arrangements to flowers, though. Late last fall some of her creations included small apples, windfalls from a neighbouring orchard. Mandarin oranges and pine cones were featured in Christmas arrangements.
The Erickson location, adjacent to the Baillie-Grohman and Skimmerhorn wineries, will provide another place for visitors to stop and get a sense of the bounty produced in the Creston Valley.
“I’m looking forward to people popping in and seeing what we’re up to,” she said.
Inspirations and ideas are limitless in this age of the Internet, but personal connections are probably even more important. She refers to the support she has received from a mentor, Alanna Wilson, who with her husband recently purchased Sanctuary Lavender Farm in Wynndel. For 18 years Wilson was a flower shop owner and designer.
“Alanna is a very accomplished designer and she has been a tremendous resource and provided wonderful support.”
While most of Brittany’s Flower Farm business is for weddings and other events, Creston shoppers will get to see and buy her arrangements when she sets up a Valentine’s Day pop up shop in the Creston Liquor Store on Canyon Street. She will be on site from 9 am to 7 pm on Thursday, February 14.
For more information, search Brittany’s Flower Farm on Facebook, or email info@brittanysflowerfarm.com. Reach her by telephone at 250-260-0352.