While good things were happening indoors, we did take a late-summer hit from Mother Nature. Always a formidable competitor, she followed a cool, temperate August with extreme heat in September that forced us to harvest a surplus of over 120,000 bunches of Sunflowers in September and then to leave another 40,000 bunches behind, all of which left us with precious little product for the next two weeks. Protea, Millet, Majesty, Broom Corn, and Marigolds also were affected by the swing from cool to hot. Despite the major steps we’ve taken to diversify our growing areas and minimize the effects of a “gap,” Mother Nature has a mind of her own. We worked hard to juggle orders and find acceptable substitutions for as many of you as possible, and we’ll continue to make the best of the situation until we’re back on track this week.
The good news is that our Master Grower Todd Thornton is all over the issue. His expertise and commitment are second to none, and he’s a huge part of what makes Dos Gringos different. I asked Todd for a plan of attack that avoids a future gap, and he responded immediately with initiatives already in the pipeline as well as new approaches to consider. These include but are not limited to:
- Additional farm locations for us in Baja;
- Additional weather-stable areas for outdoor farming in Sept. and Oct.
- Sunflower trials in new areas in Florida
- Increased production in Pennsylvania and Virginia
