About Us
The Farm
What started as a few raised beds in a friend’s front yard became a long term mission to start a flower farm in the city. We are still looking for a permanent home in Baltimore where we can plant fruit trees, shrubs, and flowers for years to come. This year we partnered with Real Food Farms in the Clifton neighborhood of Baltimore to grow unique flowers unlike any you’ll find in a plastic sleeve at the grocery store.
The Farmer
I’m Grayson (they/she/he), the farmer behind Alchemist Flowers. When I got a BFA in Fibers from MICA, I thought I might be using it to make puppets for Saturday Night Live, and I almost did. The summer I decided not to take that job but I met a 3″ basil plant that followed me to three apartments. At first I just wanted an herb, but the curiosity that plant gave me offered a window into a profound understanding of ecology, reciprocity, and community.
Right: Art by Grayson Guthrie
The Alchemist
One fall, my dad and I cut perfect holes in the ground for dry, garlic shaped bulbs and I wondered how something so small could yield the brightly colored lollipops of cool, smooth green with silky, pursed heads I came to recognize with zeal.
Tulips really are alchemists. How else can something both completely transfigure itself and utterly enchant us the way a flower can?
As a farmer I ask “How can this plant be useful to me?” so that I can grow the right plants to meet demand, but I am just as occupied with how I can be useful to them by asking questions like:
- How can I grow them more successfully in the field?
- What can I do to ensure that their species continues to grow in the wild?
- How can I help the people connect with plants again?
Left: Art by Tyler Mathai
Friendship.
We’re coming off the height of the spring season and the start of summer with the last few markets before our break in July. This spring was an eventful one. The farm at Perlman Place was robbed over and over by an unknown woman who came and took entire plug trays I had planted in…
Restoration.
It’s February, the shortest and second longest month of the year. In Winter, nutrients return to the soil from decaying leaves and last summer’s bounty. The Earth seems to be sleeping, but just like a ray of sunlight falling on a dozing face, she’s about to come to life again. We all feel colder and…
Discover Our Flowers
This list is not completely comprehensive, but it will give you a brief history of what flowers we offer, where they come from and what time of year you can expect to see them in bloom.
More than just flowers.
Environmental responsibility and stewardship is at the core of our business. That’s why we’re dedicated to education, conservation, and planting endangered flowers. Click below to find out more about how get involved.
Season
April – November
Location
1950 Perlman Place
Baltimore, MD 21213 USA
Question
Email Grayson at: alchemistflowers@gmail.com