Blooming Passion: A Floral Journey with Bill McKinley, AIFD, CFD, ICPF

Episode 229:  Join us for an inspiring conversation with Bill McKinley, AIFD, CFD, an Instructional Associate Professor for floral design at Texas A&M University and the endowed chair of the Benz School of Floral Design. Bill shares his remarkable journey in the floral industry, from its humble beginnings to his current roles at TAMU which also include an advisor for the Forsythe student chapter of the American Institute of Floral Designers (SAIFD). Discover how Bill's unwavering passion for floral design has driven him to generously give back to the industry while aspiring others to follow in his footsteps.

Note: AIFD stands for American Institute of Floral Designers, CFD stands for Certified Floral Designer, and ICPF refers to the Illinois Certified Professional Florist.

Sponsored by:
Flower Clique
Flower Clique Prep School
Real Life Retail Florist

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:03

I guess I'm a nasty. What are your magic moments to keep it coming? Welcome to the Business Pleasure Flowers. We're your host, Fundilla Fever, and Lori Wilson.

SPEAKER_00 0:19

And we believe the business and fun are a perfect combination. Kind of like this one.

SPEAKER_02 0:30

Hey Lori, a few weeks ago I had the opportunity to take that quick trip to Texas, remember?

SPEAKER_01 0:36

Yes, where I was hopefully gonna meet you, but then I had a tooth emergency. Yes, you did. You had a tooth emergency. I did. I had an emergency root canal. I've never had one in my life. You've never had a root canal? No. No, it was my first one. Wow. So it all went well though. It all I'm I'm glad you got it taken care of, but I was sad that I wasn't able to see you. I know of all days. I was so excited. Anyway, you got to go be with your buddy Bill.

SPEAKER_02 1:10

I did. Yeah. I went to college station to Texas AM, met with Bill McKinley. He had asked me to do an air program, and everybody's like, what's an air program, right? An AIR program? Correct. It stands for Artist in Residence. Oh. And it's when another AIFD member comes into the student chapter, which they have at Texas AM, the student chapter of AIFD, and presents some type of program. So I got to do sympathy, which is my favorite, as you know. Oh, yes, it is your favorite. It is your favorite. And you taught it to college students. I did, yes, to the graduate student. So it was it was fun to go in there. And then they did a project. So I did a demo and talked a little bit about sympathy. And then they did a really cool memorial piece.

SPEAKER_01 1:59

So it was good. Wow. And how long have you known Bill McKinley? A long time.

SPEAKER_02 2:05

Let's just I was trying we were trying to figure that out. Probably 1992, probably. So that goes back just a few years.

SPEAKER_01 2:17

Wow. Yeah. The first time I ever met him was when you were doing your main stage at AIFD in DC, and he was there helping with his AM students. And my memory of him was part of your stage presentation. You were showing like a drive-thru for that. And you had built like a little drive-thru window type thing. And he had a steering wheel. And he was walking with the steering wheel pretending he was driving through. And I thought, he's the funniest guy I've ever seen. Like it was hilarious. And he did it with just a straight face. Yeah, that's right. And it was hysterical. It was absolutely hysterical. And I thought, this guy's really funny. Yeah. So he's a great guy.

SPEAKER_02 3:11

He really is. So I had the opportunity to sit down with him and uh interview. But first, you know, if people haven't heard about Bill McKinley, who he is, he's the instructional associate professor at Texas AM University. And he's also the endowed chair at Ben's School of Floral Design. And I'll get into that or he'll get into that a little bit too. But I think it's most important to know that he really is so active in AIFD. And in 2010, he received the award of distinguished service to the floral industry. And then about 10 years later, he received another award, which was the award of distinguished service to AIFD, which is really known as a fellow of the Institute. So Lori, he's kind of a big deal. But you would never know that, would you? You know, he's just a wonderful human being for sure. Humble man. Very much so. So I had a wonderful time with Bill and his wonderful, witty and caring, amazing wife, Nicole. They were very hospitable. So I sat down and talked to him. So let's just listen in. I'm excited. I have my special guest with me here today, Bill McKinley. Thanks for joining me, Bill.

SPEAKER_04 4:25

Glad to be here, Vonda.

SPEAKER_02 4:27

When I look at everything you've accomplished, if I go back a few years, Bill, you've worked in a flower shop, you've owned a retail flower shop, you worked for floral life, really education, promotion, and sales, all three of those, before stepping or jumping into a career of education in horticulture, floriculture, and floral design. What drew you into that desire to teach? I mean, was there something, someone that planted a seed years ago?

SPEAKER_04 5:00

Well, it's kind of a long story. I had no intentions of being in education when I started my undergraduate degree. I was going to be a greenhouse grower. That was my desire. That was my goal. And as I progressed through my bachelor's, it became apparent to me that I think there's a need here for higher education in floral design. It really wasn't until my senior year that I really made that decision to go on to graduate school to be able to teach in higher education. Most institutions require you to have a master's degree in order to teach at the college or university level.

SPEAKER_02 5:48

Okay, so it was started early on when you were in the greenhouse studies. What made you like floral, right? What what took you into floral instead of a greenhouse? There had to be something.

SPEAKER_04 6:00

Well, yes, there was. There was a course that I had to take. Oh a floral design course. And of course, I put that off as long as I could because I knew I was going to be a greenhouse person. And so I waited until my senior year to take that. And I decided, oh, I think I'm in the wrong area here. I finished my degree in greenhouse. So it was much too late for me to change into the other track at that point. Right. Would have taken another year and a half or something, and I wasn't willing to do that. So then that was also the decision-making process to get the master's was okay, I know what I want now. So let's go into the master's level and start doing that.

SPEAKER_02 6:48

Did you have your flower shop before this? Or then after you had your master's, you owned a flower shop. Where did that play into the picture?

SPEAKER_04 6:56

The flower shop was a little bit farther down the road.

SPEAKER_02 6:59

Okay. Got it.

SPEAKER_04 7:00

So when I finished my master's degree, that's when I went to work for Floralife. So as a territory manager, traveled all over the Midwest, every wholesaler that between Des Moines and you know, Houston and east-west, my territory was from Colorado over to Mississippi. So it was a huge territory. Wow. Lots of travel. I was newly married. So three years into that, I was pretty tired of all of the travel.

SPEAKER_02 7:30

Nicole said, Come home.

SPEAKER_04 7:32

Well, you know, I'd come home on Friday and say, hey, honey, and then see you later on Sunday. So but it was wonderful experience, you know, learning all the post-arvice physiology details in and out and setting up experiments and doing all kinds of trade shows and that sort of thing. After that, that was when the flower shop came.

SPEAKER_02 7:55

Okay. All right.

SPEAKER_04 7:56

And then the the children.

SPEAKER_02 7:59

Okay.

SPEAKER_04 8:01

And at that point it was like, well, I don't want to bring up my children here in the flower shop, chewing on flower stems. But I'd always want to get back into education anyway, so an opportunity came up.

SPEAKER_02 8:18

And that's what took you to Illinois, correct?

SPEAKER_04 8:21

Took me to Illinois.

SPEAKER_02 8:22

Okay. Okay. And take us on that journey.

SPEAKER_04 8:26

Well, it was a cold, snowy day in January.

SPEAKER_02 8:30

Of course. Of course it was.

SPEAKER_04 8:33

Everybody tells us we moved when we did our major moves the wrong season.

SPEAKER_02 8:37

Was it really in January? It really was January.

SPEAKER_04 8:39

Oh my god. It really was January. And it was so foggy you couldn't see 25 feet in front of you. And I'm driving this, you know, 26-foot U-Haul with a car in tow and my wife and three-month-old baby with us. Oh my gosh. Oh gosh. But long story. And then when I moved fully back to Texas, we moved in July.

SPEAKER_02 9:04

So you picked the coldest and the hottest months?

SPEAKER_04 9:06

Yeah. We did.

SPEAKER_02 9:08

Well, let's stay in Illinois a minute.

SPEAKER_04 9:10

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 9:11

Hold on there.

SPEAKER_04 9:12

But not cold, Illinois.

SPEAKER_02 9:13

No, no, no. Let's just think about the good times there. So when I look things up, you were inducted into AIFD in 1991. What year did you move to Illinois?

SPEAKER_04 9:23

Uh 89.

SPEAKER_02 9:24

Okay. So two years later, you were inducted. The next year you established the student chapter of AIFD at Kishwaki. So like you jumped in headfirst to AIFD and education and bringing them together.

SPEAKER_04 9:37

Well, that was important. You know, the SAIFD or the student chapter part is an important experiential learning process for students to come into the industry. You get to see and meet and and know what the newest and the greatest and the latest is all about.

SPEAKER_02 9:54

Yeah. It I I watched that last night as we worked on that air program, the way some of them really connected. Others, you know, they're maybe not in their major, but just the connection that you think they felt with others who were sharing their same passion. And that's what you're doing when you bring them to symposium, right?

SPEAKER_04 10:16

Yeah, they get not only other students, but the professionals in our industry.

SPEAKER_03 10:21

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 10:21

You know, and and the whole networking thing, I tell I tell the students half of your life should be working towards increasing networking.

SPEAKER_02 10:31

Interesting. I have not heard that before.

SPEAKER_04 10:33

Because if you don't know, someone in your network might. And so if you know people in all the different aspects of the industry, not just the design, but it could be the grower level, it could be the import level, it could be the wholesale level. Someone can really be the answer to that.

SPEAKER_02 10:52

And you can pick up the phone or you can send an email and you have that because of that connection you've made, they're going to answer you.

SPEAKER_03 10:58

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 10:59

Yeah. So share uh a highlight or two about working with those students. Do you have any of those like aha moments that you go, wow, I'm so glad I got to see that?

SPEAKER_04 11:10

Well, that happens a lot. You know, when you're in class or when you're in a club meeting and you you introduce something new, a new technique, a new foliage manipulation or a new design style or something. And students, oh my gosh, I never thought about that. That's a reward. Because now you've expanded theirs not only their knowledge, but hopefully their skill set, so that it's continues to grow. And it opens the door for them to understand that oh, this is the first new thing I know, but there's gotta be more. And so it sparks that interest in them to want to continue to educate themselves.

SPEAKER_02 11:56

And that thirst for the knowledge and the thirst for the something new. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 12:00

You know, there's always the pride moments when you have a student who has accomplished AIFD.

SPEAKER_02 12:06

That's what I was gonna say. I mean, there's so many that I've known who have mentored it and they're like, oh my gosh, there's another one, Bill. There's another one.

SPEAKER_04 12:14

Well, you know, it it it's a good feeling that you have helped them along their journey to get to that pinnacle of uh expertise. And that's not only with the academic students, but that's also with the BIN students, because I have a lot of BIN's students who've been through my continuing education program that are also AIFD, C of D, and you know, goes on.

SPEAKER_02 12:36

Mm-hmm. Wow, proud moments for sure. But it's interesting when I go back and think, because I never heard that before, that you changed your major or you would have changed your major when you're a senior, because that's what you have students that are required course here in all your programs is that they're required to take floral design for so many majors, right? Just or undergrads. It's like, oh, I have to take floral design. And you see those lights go off, and there's probably many others like you who have changed, you know, their whole course of action to go into floral.

SPEAKER_04 13:11

Well, our intro course here at Texas AM is a creative arts course for the whole university. So it's not just horticulture or just floral majors who take that course. 90 some percent of our students in that course are non-horticulture. However, it's also a recruiting course. Sure. Because they take it thinking it's their creative arts course for biology or engineering or whatever it happens to be. And they take that course, they go, I never thought about this as a career. And so we gain I I shouldn't put any numbers to this, but you know, three or four or five students every semester out of those courses because it's an eye-opening experience for them.

SPEAKER_02 13:57

They've never had the exposure before. You know, they're like, This is a career, you know, kind of thing. Like, yeah, yeah, it really is. Okay. I'm gonna come back to AID in a minute, but let's continue on the education path. You were very instrumental in setting up the Illinois State Florist Association certification classes, if I remember correctly. Is that is my mind just still kind of kind of on that, Bill?

SPEAKER_04 14:25

Yes, yeah, yeah. So many years ago, decided that Illinois needed to have a certification for professional florists. So it's called ICPF, Illinois Certified Professional Florists. So we developed a uh curriculum and courses that uh people would take. And at that point, it was all in-person. So you had to come and uh take some business courses as well as uh design courses, and then at the end of the series of courses, you could be certified as an ICPF person that has evolved over the years. Uh a lot of it's online now, but uh it's a convenience for a lot of people, but there's still hands-on in-person workshops that are a part of that.

SPEAKER_02 15:14

The Illinois State Florist Association is really strong. I mean, they have a good conference and a lot of people go through that program still.

SPEAKER_04 15:21

Oh, yeah. They're they're very, very much into the educational process. As a matter of fact, their last conference in March was really dedicated to education. All the programs were some form of uh bringing people up in where they were to another level or giving them more techniques or uh ideas for their businesses. So they're very pro-education in that respect.

SPEAKER_02 15:48

And they keep bringing people through that program. It's still a very viable program, and people are still aspiring to be Illinois certified.

SPEAKER_04 15:59

As they should.

SPEAKER_02 16:00

Yeah, absolutely. No, we always want to better ourselves, right? No matter what stage we are. It's always about getting getting better at what we're doing and more professional. Okay, so now I'm going back to AIFD because we talked about one program that you started. When I look at this, I remember changing the evaluation program for AIFD. It used to be let's be an AIFD member and let's go try to be an AIFD member. It was all those kind of things. And then we changed things to the PFDE, the professional floral designer evaluation. Now you were very instrumental in that as well. That whole change, which I was on membership at the time. So there was a lot of back and forth, right? I know you did so much behind the scene that I didn't even see, but it was the education committee and was a task force, actually. Okay, go ahead.

SPEAKER_01 16:59

Tell me a little bit about that.

SPEAKER_04 17:02

Well, the the name change was brought about just because we needed a better way to describe what it is this process was all about.

SPEAKER_02 17:11

Instead of steps to membership?

SPEAKER_04 17:13

Well, that was also part of it at one point because you had to you had to go through certain steps to get to the PFTE. So you had to go through an educational process before you could sit for the PFDE. But prior to that, just changing the name to PFDE was that was a committee selection. We narrowed it down. It was a board, whole nine yards discussion that probably took longer than it should have.

SPEAKER_02 17:39

But uh committee stew.

SPEAKER_04 17:42

Yes, yeah. But but the collaboration is always very helpful for everybody.

SPEAKER_02 17:47

Oh, yeah, for sure.

SPEAKER_04 17:48

Then the whole the C of D. I'm guessing that's where you were.

SPEAKER_02 17:51

That's where I'm going. Yes. We have accredited members of AIFD, but we also have certified floral designer program, and that one was your baby.

SPEAKER_04 17:59

Well, yeah, I was tasked to create a curriculum for that. I can't say it was only my baby because it was a group of people that assisted with that.

SPEAKER_03 18:11

Right.

SPEAKER_04 18:11

But the certified floral designer program was was created because there was a huge need in our industry for competent, well rounded, good designers that are maybe not quite floral artists yet. And some way to give them a national certification, some something they could take from Illinois to Texas to Florida to California.

SPEAKER_02 18:36

Right.

SPEAKER_04 18:38

Which was a huge undertaking because there are so many different kinds of certifications state by state that wanted to have some of their content in it. And so I played mediator on many meetings to try to get things in the right places and laid out correctly and that sort of thing. So it was a birthing a a I'm not gonna say a baby because I could never do that. Uh but it was a long, arduous process that took almost two and a half years.

SPEAKER_02 19:18

Wow, wondered if that was how long it took. Two and a half years. Because you were not only trying to write the curriculum, you're trying to balance the curriculum of other state associations and to make sure everything was meeting their requirements as well as the new requirements that are being set forth.

SPEAKER_04 19:34

Well, so we wouldn't step on toes. So you know, we didn't want to make waves, so to speak. We wanted it to be an all-industry buy-in. So meeting with all of the different groups was important, at least initially, that was the the process.

SPEAKER_02 19:53

Yeah, no, no, it makes sense.

SPEAKER_04 19:55

Um so yeah, it took took quite some time. In the meantime, of course, the national board changes membership in the two-year period. I mean, every year it changes, but uh, so then every year I'd have to uh re-up on the board to get everybody back up to speed on what was actually going on and what was happening. So yeah, it was an interesting process.

SPEAKER_02 20:16

And that's why you always have this thing called the red folder. The red folder. Bill had this red folder he would carry with to the membership meetings, a membership of the PFDEs, anywhere, and it was like, Don't touch my red folder. Don't touch my red folder.

SPEAKER_04 20:33

The infamous red folder. Just to give myself a little bit of legitimacy. Sometimes when you have a large project, such as CFD, and you have multiple people working on multiple things, there's got to be a way to keep some kind of centralized finalized record of what is happening. So if someone is meeting someone in Timbuktu, and another person's meeting someplace else, I didn't want those people to come to me and just hand me these notes or put them in my file because then I wouldn't know what was actually supposed to be in there and what wasn't. And so the red means bill only, do not open this and do not mess with the paging that's in there because that would mess up my organization of the process.

SPEAKER_02 21:37

I just knew red was in the most important it could ever be or not to touch it. So it was it became a joke over the years. So it was great.

SPEAKER_04 21:46

Just just to tell you though, that's not the only time I've had a red file.

SPEAKER_02 21:50

Oh, it's not. No, no, no.

SPEAKER_04 21:51

I've had I've had a couple of red files over the years. The latest was was with the book revision. I didn't know. Oh, yeah, that is a big I didn't have a red file for a book revision.

SPEAKER_02 22:00

Oh, jeez. So that's been one of those things that's well known for Bill McKinley as the red file. But you also worked in automating the PFDE process, grading process. And you know, when it came to my mind that we had changed that so much is was meeting with my daughter Ellie the other day, and we were having other floral people. And she was saying, Oh, yeah, I've been going to symposium since I was 11. I was slave labor. She said, I used to have to do membership. And she said, then I would have to add up the numbers to make sure that they were really qualified and all this. She said, I've I spent hours at the desk adding numbers and assigning these numbers. And I'm like, oh my gosh, I forgot all about that. And then it's like now you just put it in a tablet and it adds for us automatically and tallies and tells us where we need to be. But yeah.

SPEAKER_04 22:55

No more piles of uh score sheets and double ads and triple ads to make sure that it's all uh done correctly. I I can't take full credit for that, by the way. I initiated that process with uh our executive director at that time, and um she happened to know a coder who could do that, and so that's how that all kind of came to fruition. And then training people to use the the iPads was it was another little bit of a challenge, but we've overcome that. We're getting a new system this year. I have not seen it just yet, but for the tallying.

SPEAKER_02 23:36

Keep moving forward, making it easier for that part of it, for sure, you know. So you've given selflessly to the floral industry, without a doubt. So serving on numerous committees, advisory boards, national as well as international, writing for publications, authoring, co-authoring books, and you were the contributing editor to the new AIFD guide to floral design. Each and every one of those takes time and dedication. However, we don't do it for the accolades. What's your reason for serving and to continuing to serve time after time? I guess I'm asking, what are your magic moments that keep you coming back for more?

SPEAKER_04 24:21

People and the joy of seeing people better themselves. And you know, that's all what education is about, is trying to make people personally better themselves, financially better themselves. You know, the list can go on, but you know, serving on a committee and writing a part of a textbook or whatever it is, that is part of the education process. And so it's ultimately the reward of having the people get it one way or another, written verbal or through a video, that makes giving easy. You know, it's not about individual me, it's about the industry, and the industry is important. So I like being able to give back. That's just it's done well by me, so I would certainly give it back, pay it forward.

SPEAKER_02 25:30

And you do, you do every day, every day, and sometimes it has to be tough, you know. It's like, oh, here we go again. That's what I would be saying, and you're just like, okay, um, here we go.

SPEAKER_04 25:42

Another day, here we come.

SPEAKER_02 25:44

Another time. Okay, so we could go on and on there, but I want to stop and ask. I want you to share something with our listeners that they might not know about Bill McKinley.

SPEAKER_04 25:54

Oh, they might not know about me.

SPEAKER_02 25:59

This is always a tough one.

SPEAKER_04 26:02

That I'm actually a very shy person.

SPEAKER_02 26:08

That's all uh no, I would not uh I would not dispute that.

SPEAKER_04 26:12

I have a public persona and uh and a classroom persona that is really different. I'm I'm the same person, I don't want to think about you know some sort of mental disease here or something. But but you know you can ask my mother.

SPEAKER_02 26:38

She said you were a shy little boy.

SPEAKER_04 26:39

I was the shyest little boy. I would hide when company came over.

SPEAKER_02 26:43

Wow. And here now you're stepping on the main stage.

SPEAKER_04 26:46

Here you are. But that that that's just one little quirk. Well, no, not a quirk.

SPEAKER_02 26:53

It's not a quirk. That's that's good.

SPEAKER_04 26:56

He loves sweet things too, by the way.

SPEAKER_02 26:58

Yes, he does love sweet things. We share that. We do. So another question. What do you do in your spare time? When and if you have any?

SPEAKER_04 27:09

Oh wow. Uh well, I love the garden.

SPEAKER_02 27:14

Which is obvious if you've seen his yard, yes. Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 27:19

Well, my yard needs lots of work, so don't line up to come and tour the garden just yet. Uh woodworking. I'm an avid woodworker. I I love the thrill, actually. It's just thrilling to me when I get a a slab and I do slab work, you know, start with a log, and you cut it, and then you put it into the mill. And what comes out the other end is breathtaking.

SPEAKER_03 27:47

Wow.

SPEAKER_04 27:48

Watching how the grains are on different levels and different layers, and and how, oh my gosh, there must have been a limb there at one time because now there's the scrunching up of the veins, and it's just God, I love doing that.

SPEAKER_02 28:04

The knots, and don't you love the smell of wood?

SPEAKER_04 28:08

And every wood has a different fragrance.

SPEAKER_02 28:10

It does, it does different fragrance and different wood. Do you have a favorite?

SPEAKER_04 28:14

Oh, a favorite. You know, a lot of people might say cedar or western red cedar. Uh that's okay. I like that, but it's it can get overpowering after a while. Probably black walnut.

SPEAKER_02 28:29

I actually was gonna say walnut. That's my favorite as well.

SPEAKER_04 28:32

It has a very distinct odor. Uh fragrance. Fragrance.

SPEAKER_02 28:36

Fragrance.

SPEAKER_04 28:38

But it's not overpowering. But you know it's there.

SPEAKER_02 28:42

I was gonna say walnut too.

SPEAKER_04 28:43

My a middle child, he and I both do woodworking. And if I have been doing woodworking and happen to go see him or vice versa, you'll say, Oh dad, you've been down in the shop.

SPEAKER_02 28:52

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 28:52

Because he can tell. He can tell that they're and I haven't showered or something.

SPEAKER_02 28:57

Sure, you were working and you're going over his house. And yeah, and he loves to woodwork as well. Share that.

SPEAKER_04 29:02

Yes. We actually have a a shared business that's sort of on the back burder until a little later. Oh, it's called McKinley Woodworks.

SPEAKER_02 29:12

Oh, we'll look for that to emerge and some pictures. Maybe a little website might pop up and you could sell some things.

SPEAKER_04 29:19

Well, maybe so.

SPEAKER_02 29:21

We'll see. Okay, two last questions. What favorite city or place to visit?

SPEAKER_04 29:28

Oh my goodness. There's so many fun places.

SPEAKER_02 29:31

I know.

SPEAKER_04 29:34

Can I rephrase the question?

SPEAKER_02 29:36

Okay, sure.

SPEAKER_04 29:38

What what city or where would you want to go back to that you have been relatively recent?

SPEAKER_02 29:45

Oh, okay. I'll let that. And where would that be?

SPEAKER_04 29:48

Well, thank you.

SPEAKER_02 29:50

You always do rephrase everything you say, Bill. It's all good.

SPEAKER_04 29:54

Naxos Greece.

SPEAKER_02 29:56

Oh, that was that was a magical place though.

SPEAKER_04 29:59

Greece was not on my bucket list at all.

SPEAKER_02 30:01

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_04 30:03

And my daughter got married there a couple years ago, and she had a destination wedding. And anyway, it it is by far the neatest place for relaxation. You know, if you're looking for tourism, go to Santorini or someplace else in Greece. But Maxos, it's so laid back and beautiful. And it was just a great great restaurant. Oh, the food. You know, they don't put the seafood on the menu. It's just fish. And because it's the fish they caught that morning.

SPEAKER_02 30:44

Yeah, right.

SPEAKER_04 30:45

So they don't want to change it all the time. Um that's that there's where you go. That's where I would go.

SPEAKER_02 30:51

Okay. And your favorite flower.

SPEAKER_04 30:54

Oh, you are so bad.

SPEAKER_02 30:57

I know because you've got access to whatever you want.

SPEAKER_04 31:02

That's probably the most common question I ever get.

SPEAKER_02 31:04

Is your favorite flower?

SPEAKER_04 31:05

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 31:06

Okay.

SPEAKER_04 31:06

Every garden club or every uh show that I've ever done. Well, Bill, what's your favorite flower? Oh my gosh.

SPEAKER_02 31:11

It's just like what's your favorite flower today?

SPEAKER_04 31:14

That's I qualify that by saying it depends on the day, depends on what's on season and what came in. My cooler, that looks good. My favorite flower today is grape hyacinth.

unknown 31:26

Oh.

SPEAKER_02 31:27

Because we were using those cute little grape hyacinths.

SPEAKER_04 31:30

They're so cute, and they have a fragrance and they're delicate and they're blue, and they're just nice. They're nice to use.

SPEAKER_02 31:38

They're sweet. They're very sweet looking. Well, Bill, thanks for taking the time to spend with us and share with the clickers a little bit more about you, and we'll look forward to seeing you in symposium again.

SPEAKER_04 31:49

My pleasure. Thank you, Vonda, for inviting me.

SPEAKER_01 31:53

Thank you so much for listening to our podcast. We hope you enjoyed spending time with us because we enjoy spending time with you. If you did, make sure you hit that subscribe button or this is a pleasure of flowers here. Good morning.