It wasn’t that long ago when you’d walk through the Market and see only a few vendors featuring the favorite ‘Pink Ice’ Protea or Australian Banksia. Now, you are likely to see it much more frequently and that is thanks to growers like Resendiz Brothers in San Diego County. For over 25 years, the Resendiz brothers have farmed acres of land with South African and Australian native plants and still introduce new varieties for sale every year.
Diana Roy, Business Manager of Resendiz Brothers says, “Design using Proteas has increased quite a bit over the years.” She continues that because of social media, they are selling quite a bit more varieties, too. “It’s taken years and years to introduce all the different varieties,” says Diana. She says they are at a point where people are asking for aparticular variety of protea versus just asking for a color like “pink.”
People are also asking for Hawaiian hybrids now and there is a greater awareness of the many varieties that are being cultivated and harvested now.
Resendiz is part of the International Protea Association which will be hosting its next conference in California in April of 2025.
It will be great timing for the more than 30 Protea farmers in California with more farms poised to open in the next few years. In addition to a huge variety of Proteas, the Resendiz brothers grow Manzanita, Boronia, Leptospermum, Rice Flower, Waxflower, Banksia, Leucadendron, Leucospermum, Kangaroo Paw, Grevillea, Bruniaceae, fruiting branches, Eucalyptus of all kinds, Aussie Pine, and other specialty flowers fromAustralia and South Africa including the sought-after wedding flower, Serruria ‘Blushing Bride.’
Source:
Bloomin’ News
https://issuu.com/bloominnews