GROWING
The cut flower industry is enshrouded with environmentally harmful, unsustainable practises built around the use of chemicals and pesticides. These flowers are often imported which in turn requires refrigeration as well as significant packaging. Kokutan grow and sell flowers with a much lighter carbon footprint that have a different beauty and quality. Working with the seasons then picking to order rewards with natural, healthier blooms that are more fragrant, longer lasting, delicate and enchanting.
This commitment to sustainable growing practices means constantly exploring ways to improve the ecological balance of the flower farm. Step one is creating an ecosystem where the soil and biological communities can build. Synthetic fertilisers and chemical pesticides are avoided which means the flowers here are food sources and homes to the bees and other beneficial insects. Crop rotation, cover crops, crop diversity, rain water harvesting and biodegradable packaging all add to the mix. Green waste is composted and fed back into the earth. The unheated glasshouses themselves are second hand, 30 years old and still going strong. Soil health underpins everything at Kokutan.
