PFG was honored to collaborate with Jen Reed of Jennifer Designs to curate a special order of locally grown stems for her master class on large-scale floral installations at Longwood Gardens this week.
An award-winning florist whose many accolades include Best in Show at the 2025 Philadelphia Flower Show, Jen is truly a floral installation ninja. We can’t imagine anyone better to teach this master class!
For the class, Jen paired a beautiful creative vision with a practical and intentional mission: to give students hands-on experience with a wide range of mechanics and materials—both sustainable and conventional. By demonstrating foam and foam-free techniques and working with both local and imported flowers, she empowered students to make informed choices for their own floral businesses.
Jennifer Reed of Jennifer Designs at Longwood Garden. Photo courtesy of Mara Tyler.
What we especially loved about the class—aside from its spectacular conservatory setting at Longwood—was that it didn’t force sustainability or local sourcing down anyone’s throat. As a hub that champions local flowers, we’re well aware that these conversations can sometimes become dogmatic, unintentionally alienating florists who are more comfortable with traditional sourcing and mechanics.
Instead, Jen’s class presented the full spectrum of options while achieving a truly luxurious result. It beautifully demonstrated how local flowers can dovetail into any design plan. They don’t have to dominate the flower list to make a difference: every local stem included supports nearby farms, strengthens local economies and contributes to healthier local ecosystems.
It’s always fun to share a little of the behind-the-scenes work we do to support designers like Jen. She came to us with an extensive wish list and a special delivery timeline because the class took place on a Tuesday. Our team coordinated with five local farms to harvest and organize the order outside our normal weekly distribution cycle.
Our operations manager, Tim, did the honors of driving from farm to farm to collect the flowers before delivering them directly to Longwood Gardens. It made for a long, beauty-filled day—and one we would absolutely recommend. 10/10! Check out our Instagram for more #bts.
We’d be happy to do the same for you if you have a large event coming up. Minimums apply to special orders outside our normal distribution cycle, but we’re always glad to work with designers to make sourcing locally grown flowers easier.
Have a big event or a special request? Email us at info@philadelphiafloralguild.
Ready to order local for next week? Click here.