Hardest Working Women in Flowers...

Grandma Kitayama and Farm Girl

Grandma Kitayama worked till the day she died at 85. She passed away during the morning break from grading carnations. Grandma raised 6 children in a country she couldn't speak the language and who put her and the family into concentration camps during WWII. However, she told her kids this was a good place and to work hard and it would be "daijobu" OK. Grandma's boys build greenhouses and grandma graded carnations and made sure everyone got along.  She was given her own color rubber band to grade carnations, she would grade every bunch "Fancy" because we could charge the most money for Fancys. I am reminded of Grandma Kitayama when I went to visit Christina Stembel AKA Farm Girl over Valentine's Day. Here is another woman who works very hard, every day to fulfill her dreams.

Grandma Kitayama on the rare day she wasn't working.

Once upon a time Kitayama Brothers would start at 4;30am and work until midnight during Valentine's Day. That was when we grew roses and carnations and stored them and then shipped thousands of boxes. However, now we are older and lazier. This holiday we went home around 5:00 PM, we did work 21 days straight (can't do that anymore in CA after this year). On February 13th I drove to San Francisco to deliver kale and visit with our great customer Farmgirl Flowers. She did not have time to chat with me, she was too busy working her butt off to get out hundreds more orders before cut off. She had just done a 24 hour shift. I love KB but I haven't worked 24 hours ever. Not only is Christina the hardest working women I have met since Grandma she also supports KB flowers almost as much as grandma. Christina buys as many California flowers as she possibly can and she doesn't get enough credit for doing so. From KB, "Thank You", get a little rest, and then get back out there! 

Farm Girl at Valentines Day, "no time to talk" 

PS: March 8th Women's Day. 

Women buy 85% of all flowers, 

please give you favorite female some flowers!

Robert Kitayama

KB California Carnations

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We're just back from Fun N Sun in Santa Barbara and a lot of attendees said it was the best Fun N Sun yet.  Kitayama Brothers staff and shareholders had a great time and I think we may have gained a little business.  Imagine that, actually feeling like a trade show was worth all the effort. Thanks NORCAL!  

One of the reasons the show was successful is because the flowers, the farmers and the programs were genuine. Nowadays consumers want genuine. Fun N Sun was a collection of the finest growers in California and each has a genuine story about how they have survived and thrived in this great but challenging industry. 

Another reason we like to attend these events is we have to periodically think outside of the box. I attended a presentation by J Schwanke where he lamented the fact that there might only be one carnation grower left in the USA.   

Later on that evening after a few drinks, J had me almost convinced that Kitayama Brothers should grow carnations again. “You were once the carnation kings!”  It is true, we once were the biggest carnation grower in the USA.   

It's so retro it might work. So if anyone actually reads this blog, let me know your thoughts. Does KB California grown carnations sound like a good idea?

Introducing KB Mini Gerberas!

NEW, NEW, KB Mini Gerberas

 

I am proud to announce Kitayama Brothers now grows mini gerbera daisies. We have had requests for mini gerberas for years but we felt like we weren’t large enough to handle both standard and mini gerbera programs. 

However, after expanding to more than 300,000 sq. ft. of gerberas, we felt that mini gerberas would enhance our gerbera program along with standard and gerrando gerbera daisies.  

 

Mini gerberas are smaller and compliment standard gerberas or other flowers very well. They are long lasting, hardier and a little less money than standard gerberas. In the US, more standard gerberas are grown, it is the exact opposite in Europe where mini gerberas are the dominant type. 

Go ahead and give us a call regarding our mini gerberas, oh and if you don’t know what a gerrando is, ask your KB salesperson to describe it.

In the Field...

GREENHOUSE DINNER

“In the Field” dinners are all the rage in California. Small farmers host well known chefs for events in their fields. What we haven’t heard about is “In the Greenhouse” dinners, so we held one a few weeks ago at Kitayama Brothers Watsonville. This was in conjunction with the annual Monterey Bay Greenhouse Growers Open Houses. Kathleen Williford of CCFC put together a guest list of local flower growers, food and wine writers and bloggers, other local media and industry people for a fun dinner in the greenhouse.

 

Dinner was catered by Local Harvest Catering which features all local food. The wine was supplied by Pajarosa and to put it mildly, it was very, very fun. Set among our gerbera daisies, we were able to let our hair down, eat, drink and enjoy each other’s company. Kasey Cronquist of CCFC and Debra Prinzing spoke about supporting local flowers along with local food and wine. We also wanted to press the point that flowers belong on the table along with food and wine.

KB will have more greenhouse dinners for business and pleasure because it is fun and unique. They also help us remember how lucky we are to be flower growers next to Sunset Beach on the Monterey Bay of Northern California. Let us know if you would be interested in attending.