Bay Flora Brings Bounty to Backyards and Budgets

Bay Flora, an online nursery that offers unusual and hard-to-find edible plants, botanical prints, herbal wreaths and related items, now provides fundraising support to schools, environmental groups, churches and other non-profit organizations across the U.S.

Berkeley, CA (PRWEB) September 22, 2006 -- Bay Flora, an online nursery that offers unusual and hard-to-find edible plants and related items, now provides fundraising support to schools, environmental groups, churches and other non-profit organizations across the U.S.
   
Maureen Burke, a long-time Berkeley resident, created Bay Flora last year after growing tired of the reality of California ranking 43rd in per pupil funding among the 50 states. “Having worked in the horticulture industry for years, I thought it would be great to have a nursery that could also raise funds for our local schools. And since my son attended King Middle School, with its famous Edible Schoolyard, it was a no-brainer to feature edible plants. It seems like everybody wants to grow something for the kitchen, even if it’s just a little pot of thyme. Once I got going, it was hard to say no to other, equally worthy causes,” says Burke.
   
When someone shops on the Bay Flora website, up to fifteen percent of the order total is directed to the non-profit designated at check-out. The process is automatic, so no one has to volunteer to organize the fundraising. But even better, the Tuscan organic olive trees, the Kaffir lime trees, the gojiberry plants and the botanical tableware are choice items that are unlikely to be available at your local nursery. And the herbal wreaths are meant to be used for cooking.
   
“The plant world is so rich, with over a quarter-million species growing around the world, why are we so limited in our garden choices?” asks Burke. “And if we’re going to grow something, why not grow something we can use?” Burke explains that Bay Flora offers only the most ornamental or unusual species she can find, and notes that a number of varieties are currently being tested across the country.
   
Most of the plants are more suitable for California’s Mediterranean climate than the rigors of a Vermont winter, but Burke says that citrus, for example, is a prime candidate for growing indoors during cold weather. “Citrus brings many pleasures to a household stuck inside for months at a time. The flowers are so fragrant. And when you make a fire, throw a leaf on the logs and you’ll get an immediate mental lift,” suggests Burke. Herbs such as rosemary and bay laurel are also good candidates for the kitchen windowsill.
    
Mushrooms, although they’re fungi and not plants, are also offered at Bay Flora. The kits can be grown indoors in any climate. “Some of our kits let you grow mushrooms that have been used as anti-cancer agents in Japan for over 25 years,” says Burke. “It’s very exciting to learn about the amazing bioactivity present in the natural world, and to raise funds at the same time.”

###