Moorabool farmer rewarded for promoting locally-grown flowers

Nikki Davey from Glenmore, south of Ballan, claimed the honour on Monday night after creating the kind of website and app that she was seeking out herself, just a few years ago.

'Grown Not Flown' is a slow flower movement digital platform that connects florists, retailers and others with local flower farmers.

"I was completely blown away when I was named. I was hopeful of winning the award but it was unexpected," she said.

"It was really great to share our story.

"The growth in the platform has been incredible."

GNF began in July 2021 when Ms Davey said she was struggling with marketing and sales for her proteas and native Australian flowers.

"Before we came up with the app, small-scale flower growers would've had to have gone to certain markets to get noticed," she said.

"You also had to do a lot of detailed research on social media to make the right connections.

"It was also hard work for florists to get local flowers.

"Part of the reason we built that app was because we were aware that we had to sell the flowers ourselves, and market everything ourselves.

"With the app you can list what you have - and buyers can see this.

"It also means there is less wastage in the industry."

She said 50 per cent of cut flowers sold in Australia were imported - but flowers grown overseas still played a role when stock was out of season or not available here.

"Really we just want to celebrate local provenance and make local flowers easy to find," Ms Davey said.

In fact, she said GNF had exploded overseas - where North American growers, for example, could connect with North American florists and other retailers.

"We have growers listed from all over Europe and America now," she said.

"It took off very quickly."

The Glenmore farmer said the bulk of the cut flower industry in Australia was made up of small-scale farms like her own - dubbed 'Duck Duck Pig'.

"A lot of small growers sell in different ways - not just to florists," she said.

"And these small growers tend to work together as well.

"Grown Not Flown was also about creating community.

"On top of that we have a grower forum and a great culture of information-sharing."

But it hasn't been easy.

In February the Glenmore property narrowly avoided a large bushfire that swept through the valley and burned for 50 hours.

The award includes a $15,000 Westpac grant which she said would help further develop the platform as well as kickstart a 'support local' campaign.

"We support local food - but we should support local flowers as well," she said.

Ms Davey will now represent Victoria at the national awards in Canberra on September 12.

Other finalists this week included Greendale paediatric nurse Sarah Duncanson who works in critical care at the Royal Children's Hospital

Her PAEDS Education program provides paediatric carer training to rural and remote areas.