https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIj5Amfyo4w

A conversation about the native plants and sustainable land care practices of the Canadian prairies and grasslands

Last Friday, November 10th, we held a virtual members meet-up to introduce the just-announced Slow Flowers Summit in 2024.

We shared the dates -- June 23-25, 2024 -- the venue, beautiful Banff Centre for Arts & Creativity in Banff, Alberta, Canada, surrounded by the Canadian Rockies, and highlights of our program.

We have eleven inspiring speakers, an extensive hands-on design immersion, and presentations on flower farming, floral design, floral entrepreneurship and sustainability. I can’t wait to see you there!

Latifa Pelletier-Ahmed, Becky Feasby, and Lourdes Still

I invited two of our Summit speakers, Becky Feasby of Prairie Girl Flowers and Latifa Pelletier-Ahmed, owner of ALCLA Native Plants, a Calgary area nursery. As a surprise bonus, Lourdes Still of Masagana Flower Farm in Manitoba, who will also present at the Slow Flowers Summit, joined our conversation.

We covered the highlights of their involvement in the world of plants, flowers, and horticulture In Canada’s prairies and grasslands – and the conversation took a wonderful turn toward sustainability and regenerative practices.

Here’s a bit more about these three women:

Latifa Pelletier-Ahmed of ALCLA Native Plants

Latifa Pelletier-Ahmed is a botanist, herbalist, educator, and artist, and is co-owner of ALCLA Native Plants a native plant nursery based in Treaty 7 Territory, near Calgary, Alberta, Canada. She holds a BSc in Botany from the University of Calgary and an MSc in Herbal Medicine from Middlesex University, London, UK. She has been working with native plants for 15 years and her expertise includes identification, sustainable collection, cultivation, and ethnobotany.

In 2016 she founded Latifa’s Herbs, which primarily serves to educate the public on the edible and medicinal uses of wild plant species in both Alberta and British Columbia. Latifa is a former faculty member at Pacific Rim College in Victoria, BC where she taught Botany and Horticulture in addition to Wild Plant Nutrition.

Becky Feasby, Prairie Girl Flowers

Becky Feasby completed her gardening and landscape design training in New York, Calgary, and Chicago and has completed floral design training with many leading florists who specialize in environmental-friendly floristry and who support the Slow Flowers movement.

She previously worked as the Horticultural Therapist at the Alberta Children's Hospital, where she oversaw the design and management of five acres of gardens. In creating prairie girl flowers, she wanted to utilize all of her training to bring sustainable beauty to Calgarians - and to cultivate a change in the floral industry.  A change that makes florals better for the planet and creates opportunities for clients to make a conscious choice that supports local growers and our environment.

Becky is currently working towards her Master degree in Sustainability at Harvard University - because sustainability is not only the focus of our work, but also the reason for our existence: to create a sustainable floral business in Calgary that maintains the environmental, social, and economic integrity of the floral industry. 

Hear Becky's previous appearances on the Slow Flowers Podcast:Episode 400 (May 2019) Episode 561 (June 2022)Episode 600 (March 2023)

Lourdes Still of Masagana Flower Farm

Lourdes Still is the owner of Masagana Flower Farm & Studio in southeast Manitoba. She grows and interacts with plants and flowers as natural dye sources, and juggles the roles of a flower grower, a natural dyer, and an experiential tourism guide at her farm. 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.