Family, flowers and community drive success at Providence Acres Flower Farm

Iron River, Alta. (Rural Roots Canada) — Building a flower farm is often associated with beauty and abundance. For Lena Thiessen, the reality is balancing unpredictable growing conditions, long hours and raising five children while trying to build a sustainable business.

Thiessen and her husband, Ryan, own Providence Acres Flower Farm near Iron River in northeastern Alberta, where what began as a small gardening project has grown into a full-time flower business, offering U-pick experiences, flower subscriptions and custom bouquets.

Yet despite the farm’s growth, Thiessen says one of her greatest challenges remains finding a balance between family life and the demands and commitments that go into running a business.

“We want to make this a successful business and provide for our community,” said Thiessen. “We also want to be an example to our children of working hard, but also how to be able to take time off.”

To many businesses, success is measured by sales and financial growth. Thiessen has a different definition.

“My definition of success would be if people feel they were blessed by being here,” she said.

Thiessen says the farm is about more than just selling flowers. She wants it to be a place where people from the community can escape for a while, relax, and leave feeling at peace with a memorable experience to share.

“I want them coming here because they can’t get this anywhere else,” she said.

For Thiessen, one of the farm’s greatest successes would be teaching her five children the value of serving others, working hard, and remembering the people they are working for.

With a background in horticulture, Theissen started growing flowers in fewer than 20 wooden raised planters beside a small vegetable greenhouse on the family farm. What began as weekend market sales grew as visitors to the property picked flowers, then returned with family and friends. As interest continued to build, it evolved into a full-time flower business.

Like many Alberta growers, Thiessen quickly learned that flower production comes with a steep learning curve. In the early years, she relied on online videos and content creators for advice. However, many of the growing techniques that worked in other regions did not translate well to Alberta’s climate and growing conditions.

This season has brought challenges, including a wet spring, which has delayed production and forced Thiessen to adapt by converting her family’s basement bathroom into a temporary flower-growing space.

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For aspiring flower growers, Thiessen’s advice is simple: start small.

The sheer number of varieties and plant options can be overwhelming, she said, making it easy for new growers to take on too much at once. Instead, she recommends focusing on a handful of crops and gradually expanding each season.

According to Thiessen, trial and error, curiosity and a willingness to experiment are essential qualities for a beginner’s success. She also encourages growers to think beyond the large focal blooms and to plan for all parts of a bouquet.

“Consider a variety of plants that will grow together aesthetically at the same time, making sure that there are different elements, something spiky, something round, a little cluster of something,” she said.

As the business evolves, the family continues to look for ways to improve efficiency. The couple initially watered every plant by hand, but has since installed irrigation on their tractor-tilled rows. They are currently hand-pulling weeds and rolling fabric, but hope to reduce labour demands in the future by utilizing additional tractor-mounted equipment.

Providence Acres flowers are sold directly through the farm and carried by several small businesses in Bonnyville and Cold Lake. While wholesale sales may be an option in the future, Thiessen said the farm’s organic growing practices can create natural imperfections, making it difficult to compete with imported flowers from countries like Ecuador and the Netherlands. Unlike Alberta, growing conditions are more predictable in those countries, and they also allow for more chemical use.

Looking ahead, Thiessen hopes to expand the farm’s existing varieties and eventually create year-round revenue streams through seasonal plant and root sales.

Regardless of how much the business grows, her focus remains on serving her community and raising her children with the values the farm has helped to teach.

“It is so rewarding when people come and just feel at peace here; they don’t want to leave,” she said.

The post Family, flowers and community drive success at Providence Acres Flower Farm first appeared on Rural Roots Canada.