Southern Bulbs

I went down to Golden, Texas Friday night to meet with Chris Wiesinger of Southern Bulbs, and I cannot praise that guy enough. He and Dr. Bill Welch, professor of horticulture at Texas A&M, had just returned from a scout trip to Louisiana looking for Naked Ladies (the flower in the posted picture; apologies to the folks whose browsers led them here while searching for something else entirely).

I’m writing a story about Chris so you’ll learn more later but, quickly, Southern Bulbs is 26-year-old Chris’ baby. They specialize in rescuing heirloom, drought-hardy bulbs from the bulldozer at a construction site or from old farm houses and abandoned lots from all over Texas. The results are tough, rare flowers that bloom in the harshest Texas summer and show beautifully. Hit jump for a pic of Chris and his friends and little more info on good ol’ Golden, Texas.

That’s Chris there, second to the left, sitting up. His business partner, Brad, is in the glasses (I met Brad’s darling fiancee on Friday night. Congrats!) and I believe that’s Dr. Welch in the back. On his blog you can read a little about D Home’s photographer Dave Shafer who went down there last Tuesday for the photo shoot. (But I gotta warn you, the blog entry about his dog Fischer will break your heart.)

After being the consummate gentleman by hosting me and my friend for dinner at a family-run steak house in Minneola, Chris gave my friend and me a nighttime tour of his flower farm (most of the bulbs are dormant at the moment), then to the barn to show me his stock of bulbs.

“Look at this one–when you polish it up it turns gold,” and he’d take one of the muddy bulbs and rub it between his fingers and suddenly it looked like a gemstone in the palm of his hand. “I love polishing these. The guys make fun of me but I can do it for hours,” Chris said.

Later we went back to his cabin (pictured) with the rest of the group, and he served us Port in ceramic mugs and we toasted Chris, Dr. Welch, and dear, sweet Fischer.

Down by the dock Chris said to me, “So, this is my life. It’s not what a 26-year-old is supposed to be doing.”

“What is a 26-year-old supposed to be doing?” I asked.

“Something else, I guess.”

But I don’t think so, Chris. You’re doing what you love and what you’re passionate about. You’ve been named a Tastemaker by House and Garden and written up in the New York Times. I think most 26-year olds dream of having that kind of focus and drive. So keep doing what you’re doing. Let the other 26-year-olds play catch up later.

Gig ‘em.