Ep. 85: Growing & Breeding Dahlias at Scale: Inside Florelie Flower Farm in Australia

In this episode of The Backyard Bouquet Podcast, we’re heading south to Australia to visit Florelie, a small-scale but highly productive specialty cut flower farm near Ballarat, Victoria. Jennifer is joined by flower farmer and dahlia breeder Lorelie Merton, who shares how a gifted bunch of homegrown peonies sparked a journey that led her from speech pathology to full-time flower farming. Today, Florelie grows flowers on just 2.5 acres of a 20-acre property, with 20,000 dahlias, a robust dahlia breeding program, and a thriving tuber business serving Australian gardeners and florists. In this conversation, Lorelie opens up about breeding dahlias specifically for cut flower performance, scaling thoughtfully, rotating crops to protect soil health, and building a true family farm alongside her husband Ethan and their three children. She also shares behind-the-scenes insight into dahlia breeding timelines, seedling selection, tuber sales, and why dahlias are such a unique crop for agritourism and education. Whether you’re a backyard gardener, aspiring flower farmer, or deeply obsessed with dahlias, this episode is packed with practical insight and honest perspective. In This Episode, You’ll Learn: How Florelie grew from a hobby into a full-time flower farm Why dahlias became the farm’s primary crop What it takes to manage and evaluate thousands of dahlia seedlings How Lorelie breeds dahlias specifically for cut flower use How crop rotation and paddock rest protect long-term soil health The role Lorelie’s husband Ethan plays as farm manager and agronomist How Florelie offers workshops, tuber sales, and afternoon tea events in the dahlia fields ***Just a quick note about today's episode: We had a bit of connection lag while recording from across the world, so there are just a few spots where we ended up talking at the same time as we couldn't hear one another. It’s minor, but I wanted to mention it in case you notice in this episode. The conversation is still great and I know you're going to love hearing from Lorelie! Connect with Lorelie of Florelie Seasonal Flowers: Instagram:   / florelieseasonalflowers   Website: https://florelie.com.au [https://florelie.com.au/] Sign up for our podcast newsletter: https://bit.ly/thefloweringfarmhousen... Join Us At The Profitable Dahlia Summit The first-ever virtual summit focused exclusively on growing dahlias for profit is here! Join us March 3–4, 2026 to learn from experienced dahlia growers who are selling bouquets, tubers, CSA shares, event tickets, and more — and doing it profitably. You’ll walk away with real strategies to turn your passion into income, even if you're just getting started. Save your spot here: https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajab... [https://thefloweringfarmhouse.mykajab...] 00:00:00 Intro 00:02:03 Introduction to Floralie with Lorelie Merton 00:02:56 For listeners who are getting to meet you for the first time, can you please tell us a little bit about yourself and your farm? 00:04:55 What does your farm look like today? 00:10:33 Dahlia Breeding Program Insights 00:30:00 Do you know how many varieties you have released so far? 00:42:42 Community Engagement and Agritourism 00:51:22 Is there any advice that you would like to give our listeners today? 01:00:02 Connecting with Floralea Online and Conclusion 01:01:22 Outro