‘People just like flowers’: Annual giving officer’s green thumb brings joy through nature

Courtney Durham has an eye for mixing color and texture — and a detailed schedule to make sure her garden always has a good selection of both. Durham, senior annual giving officer in Wayne State University’s Division of Development and Alumni Affairs, takes great pride in her organic cut flower garden.

Focusing on a softer, natural color palette of pinks, yellows, apricots and berry tones, Durham’s garden includes everything from perennial hydrangeas, peonies, roses and lilacs to colorful annuals like zinnias, dahlias and snapdragons.

“Time in my garden is time for myself; it’s unplugged and active, as well as a real lesson in delayed gratification,” said Durham. “But the wait is always worth it when I can cut a whole bouquet out of flowers I grew myself.”

While Durham has long been interested in gardening, her own backyard masterpiece began more than five years ago. She began experimenting with cut flower arrangements in 2017, when her now sister-in-law was planning her wedding and struggling to find affordable and unique bouquet options. After that,  Durham started growing a mix of dahlias and zinnias — and she hasn’t looked back.

Following several years of providing floral design services for friends and family, Durham turned her hobby into a small side business, Pembroke Flower Company. Named after her pair of Pembroke Welsh corgis Ellie and Rex, the company provides floral arrangements and design for events and everyday occasions.

“I’ve found that people just simply like flowers — whether they know exactly what variety they’re looking at or not, the beauty of flowers is that they bring joy,” said Durham. “Turning my hobby into a business was a fun challenge, and it allows me to purchase wholesale flowers when I have to supplement what I grow for larger events. Flowering weddings for friends and family is so fun and personal, being able to spread the happiness that flowers bring.”

Despite the occasional wholesale supplement, Durham’s company focuses on providing local and organically grown blooms, which she says helps build and support the environment sustainably. Our own backyards can build biodiversity and provide a valuable habitat for pollinators.

Although most associate gardening with the spring and summer, Durham is thinking green year-round. To plan for season-long interest and color to support her business needs and keep the garden looking beautiful, she maintains a calendar of sowing and planting plans. Durham sows seeds indoors in the winter to be ready to plant in the spring, and tends — in some form or another — to her garden from January through the first frost, which is typically in late October or early November.

“Off-season is spent cleaning and dividing tubers, starting ranunculus and other seeds, and planning the garden for the season ahead,” she said.

Gardening has become somewhat of a family affair for Durham, who fondly remembers her grandma’s “amazing” garden. Her husband occasionally selects shrubs and perennials as gifts, and her mom played a key role in transporting perennial plants across state lines in a box truck when the family moved from Iowa to Michigan.

Durham’s favorite flowers include heritage variety roses and peonies. She finds most of her seeds online or through local seed swaps with other gardeners.

“I like to grow unique varieties — the kind you don’t necessarily see at every garden center,” said Durham. “Not only do these plants usually have very special colors and scents, but they’ve been passed down from gardeners through generations.”