Micro Urban Farming with Dee Hall of Mermaid City Flowers (SFFF52)
If you’re dreaming of starting a flower farm but feel held back by a lack of land, you're not alone. It's a common misconception that you need acres of rural property to grow professionally. In reality, plenty of successful flower farmers are working with tiny footprints—and doing it profitably. Just ask Dee Hall Goodwin, the founder of Mermaid City Flowers, who has built her flower business across four micro plots in Norfolk, Virginia.
In a recent episode of the Six Figure Flower Farming Podcast, Dee joined Jenny to talk about growing flowers on borrowed land, navigating the challenges of urban farming, and how she built a sustainable business rooted in community and creativity. Her story is a refreshing and realistic take on what flower farming can look like—and a powerful reminder that resourcefulness and flexibility matter more than acreage.
Farming Without Land: How Dee Found Her Growing Spaces
Dee launched her business right in her front yard. With no traditional farmland available, she turned to her neighbors—quite literally. As her flower sales grew, she put out a simple call for land on Instagram and started receiving offers from community members and friends-of-friends. Some plots came with raised beds and drip irrigation systems already installed. Others were yards that needed a little TLC.
Rather than leasing in the traditional sense, Dee uses informal, low-commitment land agreements—just enough to meet USDA requirements for grants and business operations. She’s able to scale within a short drive of her studio, while maintaining close relationships with the people who share their space. For anyone curious about accessing land without ownership, her advice is clear: start with your network. Talk to Master Gardeners, attend local events, and lean on word of mouth.
How to Grow More with Less: Urban Flower Farming Tips
Urban flower farming comes with its own unique challenges—but also major advantages. With small, spread-out plots, Dee’s learned to match crops to conditions. For example, she grows shade-tolerant or low-intervention crops in locations that lack irrigation, and reserves sunny, easy-access areas for more intensive production like tulips and ranunculus. This strategic approach helps maximize productivity while reducing labor and input costs across her micro-farm.
Dee Hall Goodwin is a florist and urban flower farmer based in Norfolk, Virginia, known for blending eco-conscious practices with floral artistry. Inspired by her grandmother’s garden in St. Lucia and her upbringing in Brooklyn, Dee launched Mermaid City Flowers to grow and design with seasonal, locally grown blooms that reflect nature’s beauty.
She is also the founder of the Tidewater Flower Collective and Black Flower Farmers, organizations that promote collaboration, sustainability, and diversity in floriculture. Her work has been featured in Black Flora, Garden & Gun, and Country Living for her unique approach to urban flower farming and community-based design.
Follow Dee on Instagram at @mermaidcityflowers or learn more about her mobile flower truck, @sprouttheminitruck.
She also shared how critical it is to understand urban pest pressure, which can differ wildly from rural environments. Think squirrels and raccoons instead of deer. To maintain a sustainable system, Dee avoids harmful chemicals and leans on companion planting, crop rotation, and building healthy soil to reduce disease and pests. It's a system that’s constantly evolving—but one that works well for her urban setup.
If you’re farming multiple plots, organization is everything. Dee juggles what’s blooming where, when to harvest, and how to efficiently check each site. Keeping things staggered helps. In early spring, she focuses on two active locations, then ramps up to all four in the summer when her season is in full swing.
When CSAs Don’t Work: Pivoting to Workshops and Events
Like many flower farmers, Dee started with the traditional market bouquet and CSA model. But over time, it just didn’t make sense for her customer base—or her sanity. Missed pickups, long delivery days, and limited return led her to pivot toward workshops and event design.
Now, she offers seasonal, art-inspired workshops out of her shared floral design studio—featuring themes like Dutch Masters and Impressionist painting styles. These classes give her customers a hands-on, memorable experience with her flowers and generate higher per-client value than a weekly bouquet.
She’s also seeing a major increase in demand for corporate events and intimate weddings, where clients specifically request locally grown, seasonal blooms. It’s a reminder that being seen in your community, whether through a workshop or flower truck (more on that next), can lead to high-value connections and future bookings.
Selling Flowers with a Twist: Meet Sprout, the Mini Flower Truck
Rather than stick with farmers markets, Dee invested in a mini electric flower truck, lovingly named Sprout. It’s just big enough for 12 buckets and compact enough to park on sidewalks, driveways, and event lawns. With no insurance or registration needed (she hauls it on a trailer), Sprout became a low-cost, high-impact mobile sales tool.
The flower truck model lets her pop up at breweries, coffee shops, festivals—even the local zoo. And the visual impact? Huge. People stop to take photos, ask questions, and walk away with a bouquet. Custom bouquets are made on the spot based on customer preferences, blending the flexibility of farmers markets with a more curated, personal touch.
Building Community Through Flowers and Collective Support
Beyond the flowers, Dee is a passionate advocate for diversity and equity in floriculture. She’s the founder of Black Flower Farmers, a growing network of over 50 flower farmers across the U.S., Canada, the UK, and South Africa. The group shares grant opportunities, growing advice, and mutual support in a space where shared experiences matter.
She also co-founded the Tidewater Flower Collective, promoting local blooms and collaboration between growers in her region. These collective efforts aren’t just community-focused—they're also smart business. They increase visibility, reduce isolation, and open doors for new income streams.
The Big Takeaway: Start Small and Stay Flexible
Dee’s journey is a powerful example of what’s possible when you grow what you can, where you can. Whether it’s a backyard plot or a borrowed raised bed on the river, flower farming is ultimately a relationship-based business—both with people and with the land. Flexibility, creativity, and community are your greatest assets.
You don’t need a big field to build a successful flower business. You just need a little space, a lot of heart, and a willingness to adapt.
