Watch the very first Floret Original documentary film, Gardening in a War Zone. This film features Alla Olkhovska, a gardener, writer, photographer, and clematis seed grower in Kharkiv, Ukraine. Unable to leave the country, Alla supports her family by selling the rare seeds she collects from her small garden. This story is rooted in beauty, inspiration, and hope.
In addition to this documentary film, you can read a full written interview with Alla here:
If you’d like to support Alla and her family, here’s how:
PURCHASE A COPY OF ALLA’S E-BOOK
E-book – Clematis by Alla Olkhovska
DONATE VIA PAYPAL
standwithkharkiv@gmail.com
List “humanitarian aid” in the payment field description
SUBSCRIBE TO PATREON
https://www.patreon.com/allaolkhovska
FOLLOW ALLA ON SOCIAL MEDIA
https://www.instagram.com/allaolkhovska/
https://www.facebook.com/allaolkhovska
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1CICqWkJyDz6-ECFqTa-QQ?sub_confirmation=1
SPECIAL THANKS
To Alla Olkhovska and her family for their courage and contributions to the making of this film. Thank you for all your efforts to make this world more beautiful.
VIDEO CREDITS
Executive Producer: Erin Benzakein
Director: Rob Finch
Editor: Sarah Bourscheid
Producer: Rob Finch
Associate Producer: Sarah Bourscheid
Director of Photography: Oleh Halaidych
Additional Cinematography: Alla Olkhovska, Vitaliy Olkhovskyi
Color Correction and Sound Mix: Sarah Bourscheid
Production and Post Support: Chris Benzakein, Jill Jorgensen, Laura Davis, Melissa Reese, Angela Strand
Stock Footage: iStock, Adobe Stock, Pond 5
Music: Soundstripe
Copyright Floret LLC
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Sometimes, I’m trying to get to sleep and I begin to think about the war, about the explosions, about this possibility that any time, my dearest persons can be killed. I say to myself, do not think about that. Think about flowers. Oh, it’s so beautiful. Just look at this huge, huge, huge clematis.
Oh, yeah. It also smells very, very nice scent. Smell it. I started gardening long, long ago. When I was a small child, I adored flowers. The parents say that they just couldn’t take me away from the flowers when I saw them. I have two gardens because I have a plot at my granny’s
And I also have a plot at my mother-in-law’s. The garden in Kharkiv, it is bigger in size, much bigger in size. My great grandfather received this plot after World War II, and his dream was an orchard. It was the Soviet times. It was really difficult to buy something in stores.
The shortages were all over the country. He decided to change the situation, at least for his family, and he made this orchard. It was his hobby, but he turned his hobby into his business. He was gathering apples and selling them at the market, and in this way he made his living.
My gardening also started as a hobby, just like my great grandfather. I never thought that it would become something that important for my whole family. My husband, my granny, my mother-in- law, we all depend on the garden now. Well, I arrived to the garden. Let’s enter together. Oh, granny’s waiting for me already.
It’s such a happiness to see her. She’s 89 years old and every day with her is a treasure. The granny took medicines and she’s sleeping. And here you can see the garden outside the window. Here it is, so beautiful. Well, I planned to get to the garden early in the morning, but
The day started just terribly with those explosions and, as a result, I arrived only by the evening. And, well, I’m starting doing the most important things which can be done today. Look how beautiful it is. This is Clematis glaucophylla, and it’s a very strong plant.
Many, many seed heads and I will be gathering seeds with my own hands. And these are very nice and very good quality ripe clematis seeds. Look how beautiful and how nice they are. Every time when I look at them, I just enjoy this sight. I hope you will enjoy with me.
It’s incredible how many lives, future lives, I have in my hand right now. Selling seeds is our main income and actually it’s for the whole family. My aim is to collect as many seeds this year as it would be possible. Just every seed I see on my plants.
Lots of wonderful and rare clematis are growing, species peonies, snow drops, garden orchids, and rare perennials. This is my real passion. All the gardening season, all my efforts are dedicated to seeds. Providing the best quality possible, the best conditions possible. The survival of the family depends on it,
But I’m always short of time. When there are air alerts, it is dangerous to stay in the garden. Sometimes we have rather quiet days, but sometimes it is just terrible, like, we can have an air alert every hour. Air alert, and air alert, and again and again. Especially here in Kharkiv,
Everyone is afraid. Russia is very close to our city. When the war started, we heard the shots the same very day. The shots, the explosions. Oh, just terrible. We have air alert. The sound is so unpleasant, it’s very strong. And you just got extremely scary immediately when you hear it.
Unfortunately, it’s night so nothing can be seen. Just those very vicious, air alert signals. It sounds just terrible. Many people left, many people. We just have empty flats here. Many, many people, I would say. Everyone who could actually left, and lucky they are, I would say.
In several days we can have first frost and this year I’m waiting for the winter with, how to say it, with much fear because it will be severe. The authorities promise that it will be even more severe than last year’s winter, so I don’t want my garden to fade.
I don’t want my garden to be frozen because all those flowers, they bring so much joy. I still have roses there. And like the roses are even higher than me this year as they were very, very abundant and they’re still flowering, adding much color to our lives. Clematis are also flowering.
Now I just look. This is, I think, the third wave of flowering. So it’s beautiful. And while I can see, I will cut off several flowers to take them home because I just adore arrangements. It’s very important for me to have some fresh flowers and I do it despite everything, even
When it’s really hard, because it helps, it helps to cope with the problems. So, let me cut off some flowers and make a small arrangement at home. Most news agencies promise a black winter for Ukraine. Everyone understands that the missiles are being put aside for the coldest period of the year.
This period is the best for damaging infrastructure in order to leave the country without heat, without electricity and without means of survival. I understand that as soon as we have the black winter, when the infrastructure is damaged and we do not have electricity, and we do not have heating, the prices for fuel
They will just fly up. I had some plans before the war. I made this YouTube channel about gardening in Ukraine. I wanted to show that we can grow the same types of plants as highly developed countries. When Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union, we didn’t develop simultaneously with the Western garden culture.
Only when Ukraine gained its independence and when the internet appeared, we were able to see the gardens abroad. It’s very interesting to be at the very beginning of this industry, nurseries and gardens forming in our country. We wanted to make a nursery. There was a high demand in the country for rare plants.
But then my husband fell ill with COVID. He was on oxygen for almost three months, And then the war started. I miss those times before the war. I was actually paralyzed in the first months of the war because I had a very difficult situation. The husband, who didn’t walk and used oxygen concentrator.
He had around 90% of lung injury and some heart damage. Also, a very old granny who was 88 years old and with serious heart disease. Also, my mother-in-law, she’s not too young. They were unable to work. I understood that I do not have means to continue the treatment of husband, of granny.
I do not have means actually to buy food. I do not have means to leave the war zone with all my family. I cried half a day because I understand that I do not have the funds, and well, that moment I started realizing that I have to do something like
Maybe else in my life because I’m just unable to help the people I really love, the people, my relatives. So, and when the war started, I keep thinking this way, that I am doing not enough in my life. Selling seeds, it was like my last resort, my last attempt, with no,
No hope that it will work out. Foreign followers started ordering seeds. I understood that it may be a very good way to support my family. The granny is clothed warmly in her warm coat at home because we have no heating and in order to heat with some electric devices, it’s just extremely expensive.
So we need to withstand this somehow. More roses to enjoy and even some clematis. You can see some beauty, even in the middle of October, though, it’s so cold. This place was so beautiful and so charming in spring and in summer. But soon it all will be covered with snow
And it will be really, really cold here. I’ve sent seeds to the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Switzerland, Poland, Lithuania, and also I had a parcel to one Japanese gardener. He wanted snow drops a lot, as I have quite many, and so Japan as well. So today’s harvest.
Here it is, and it is a very good result. I gathered lots of seeds. I worked for half of the day and now I need to process them. So I have lots of work at home too. It’s a big, big joy that I bring some joy to the gardens of other people
And they helped my family to survive. Oh, just look. Granny decided to support me from the window. Here she is, my dear granny. The first snow of the season, so early. Previously, the first snow of the season was a fairy tale. This year I rather feel sad.
I’m so much scared of the black winter. Well, this year I do not enjoy the snow. But yes, it’s beautiful. Just look at the garden. We are afraid that international support started to shrink. It’s understandable because the war lasts too long, more than a year and a half. We can just hope
And we hope for the best, you try to hope for the best. While you are alive and while you have an opportunity to make something productive, beautiful and good, there is always a hope. So we try to hope for the better and we tried to hope that the war will end,
But we can’t say when. Yes, of course it’s difficult, but actually no one promised that the life would be just pleasure, that it would be just simple. I’m, I was born in a very, very simple and poor Ukrainian family, so no way. Oh, you can’t imagine how cold I am,
And it’s high time to leave the garden because the curfew starts soon, and the curfew is the time specifically for the military men and no civilians can be in the street at the moment because it’s very, very dangerous and prohibited by law. So I’m leaving the garden and going home.
26 Comments
I loved learning about Alla''s garden
I love watching her work with her seeds. What a beautiful person. The therapeutic value of gardening is priceless.
It's hard to wrap around how much money the US has sent there, yet the citizens do not seem to be benefitting. Why do utilities need to cost so much? Surely with all the aid it should help keep them warm? How close were the bomb scenes to her? Is her husband able to be at home? Are there grocery stores nearby? It seems it'd be easier if her mil and dear granny lived together. They could eat together–keep each other company. But what do I know? Lol
What a beautiful soul. What a powerful story. This really moved me. ❤
This is so raw. God bless Alla and her family. I wish that I had one tenth of her strength and courage. Thank you for making this film! 💐💪🏻💪🏻💪🏻💪🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻💐❤️❤️❤️
I am very touched by this story. Thank you to all the people that have worked in this project for making it reach the world. What an incredible way to communicate such a difficult time. I am in awe and very inspired by your work.
Thank you for sharing this impactful story.
What a wonderful video!
Amazing Alla! strong, passionate, courageous, and loving her gardens , her family is so precious! Wishing you the best Alla hope & peace.🌹🥀🌹
You're a courageous and inspiring person, Alla. I hope that this chapter of your life is followed by one that allows you to not only care for your family but to realize all your dreams. My thanks to Erin and Floret Flower Farm for sharing your story.
Congratulations Alla for your resilience. I can’t wait to read your book and buy your seeds. Wish you and your family the best of luck 🤞🏻🤞🏻🤞🏻🌸🌸🌸
A beautiful piece. Thank you Erin. The documentary should be sent to every legislator in Washington who is holding up the funding for Ukraine.
What a remarkable woman. Thank you for sharing her story and her beautiful book and seeds. My son married a woman from Ukraine so this is so close to my heart. I pray for an end to this terrible war
Growing up, my grandmother would tell me of all the horrors she witnessed as a young girl living on the war front of World War II (Stalingrad). This film brings to the surface so many things we take for granted in this life. I am grateful for safety, heat, electricity, freedom, not having to live in constant fear, and alarms ringing.
When Alla said, "I am doing not enough in my life," it was heart-wrenching to hear. You are doing enough! I pray that someday we'll live in a world without war. I hope Alla's story is heard and peace is restored.
Thank you for sharing this film with us. I cried more than once.
The resiliency Alla shows in the situation she is in should be a lesson to everyone in the United States to appreciate the freedoms we enjoy everyday. She is a remarkable young woman, from the love she shows for her granny and family to the love and nurturing extended to every flower in her garden. The clematis varieties she is growing are astounding and I pray her garden will stay intact and survive the war that is tearing Ukraine apart.
Very touching video, Erin & Alla — thank you for sharing this story! Alla, I sent you some funds via PayPal and available on 23DEC23, not a lot but maybe of some help. God bless you and your family!
Thanks! Alla is fantastic 💚💚💚
We are all connected by a very fragile thread.. Alla is a treasure.. I pray for her and her family and that she will experience peace in her life.💔🇨🇦💔
Thank you for sharing your story and caring for your family under difficult circumstances. Sending good thoughts to you in this season of Peace. I am inspired to grow Clematis after reading your book. I am a teacher and just now have the time to watch your story and missed out on getting to order your seeds. I will keep watch for next year's sales as I am just starting to build my garden and would love to have something from you in my garden.
I know Russians that are beautiful people as well. It is the leaders of countries that are evil. I think Rick Steves, who travels the world, would tell you the same. War is just horrible , and if you look at all the homeless in Seattle and elsewhere, you will realize our own government cares little for its people. 😢😢😢
Think about flowers
Alla, may you and your Baba and family find peace this year. You have so much courage. Good luck with your business. Your work is important for the reconstruction too. Stay safe. Slava Ukraini from Canada!
❤
…. beauty will prevail all the ugliness of the war… something productive and creative will prevail all the destruction…. 😢 Alla your strength, courage and attitude is so unbelievable and inspiring❤
Just heard that Kharkiv has been bombed. To the folks at Floret, please let us know as soon as possible the status of Alla and her family. 🙏 Thank you.
My heart goes out to your country and your people. It makes me sick to see how evil men can cause such destruction with impunity. May God judge this evil.
Thank you for sharing this. It was absolutely beautiful. My wife is from Ukraine but we live in the Pacific Northwest. She loved the video and happens to be a great gardener herself, so it did speak to her in many ways.
Inspiring story about perseverance. Gorgeous cinematography. Send it to Sundance so more of us more fortunate will be educated.