Lourdes Casañares-Still moved to Canada 11 years ago from the Philippines and the first thing she noticed was how fresh the air was. Lourdes didn't anticipate being a flower farmer as a child, but does remember her school notebook covers being filled with flower doodles she made during class time. 

She didn't ever anticipate living in the country growing flowers as a career...but that is exactly what she is doing!  Masagana Flower Farms began 2 years ago and Lourdes is currently in the middle of planting this year's flower gardens and is very busy harvesting the tulips she planted last fall.  Look at how beautiful those tulips are!  The cold Manitoba winters are ideal for tulip growing and her tulip garden is flourishing!

When asked the secret to a bountiful tulip harvest, Lourdes said it's never the fault of the gardener when things fail.  Soil health is crucial, and recommends sprinkling bone meal in with the bulbs.  She also suggests checking your tulip bulbs for disease and has actually peeled off that initial layer of covering off her bulbs in the past to check for disease to avoid having diseased bulbs negatively affect the soil.   

Lourdes harvests her flowers with a huge smile on her face.  Her hope is that those that purchase her flowers experience as much joy in them as she does in growing them.  She has big plans and dreams often about the future of her flower farm and hopes to one day have a medicinal garden as well.  So many plans, with lots of room to grow (haha), but maybe not enough time to get to all the gardens yet!

Lourdes feels like she really started setting down roots in Canada as her second home when she started gardening.  One look at her tulip harvest and we would have to say it sure looks like she's set her roots quite deep just outside La Broquerie!