(soft music) - This week on The A List, I talk with a fourth generation florist whose passion for the power of flowers is spreading joy to PBS viewers around the country.

- If you do what you love, magical things happen.

I mean, it just happens.

And it was never my intention when I said I wanted to make a cute little show about flowers that was instructional and empowered people.

That's all I wanted.

And it's turned into much more than that because it's personal for so many people.

And so I enjoy every step of the ride.

Every piece of it is so fun.

- Join me as I sit down with flower expert and host of Life in Bloom, J Schwanke, coming up next on The A List.

(bright music) (soft music) Regular PBS viewers might be familiar with Create TV host J Schwanke.

For seven seasons, J has shared his lifetime love of flowers by creating unique arrangements and sharing crafts, recipes, and more on J Schwanke's Life in Bloom.

Whether he's on screen or on stage, writing books, or giving one-on-one arranging tips, J has spent his life and career sharing his passion, his knowledge, and a whole lot of joy with us all.

I had the chance to sit down with J while he was visiting Chattanooga for WTCI's Power of Flowers fundraising luncheon, where attendees enjoyed learning from the flower guy himself right here in our own backyard.

Well, J, welcome to the A-List.

- Thank you, I'm so excited and I'm so honored.

- Oh my gosh, we are so honored.

I will tell you on behalf of my crew, I can speak on behalf of them because we're obsessed with you and I'm not even kidding.

And we follow you.

We watch your show.

We try to emulate some of the beautiful work you do.

Only two of those things end up being successful.

But we're thrilled you're in Chattanooga, and we're thrilled that you are gonna share your passion and your love for flowers and the way you just bring joy to the world with all of us.

- Thank you.

It's a pleasure.

It's a pleasure.

I watch your show all the time.

I can't believe I'm included in a group of some of the most wonderful people you've had on your show, so I love it.

- Well, you have elevated us today, so thank you.

- Thank you.

Thank you.

Enough of the mutual appreciation and fan club.

Let's start with your name.

I want people to understand when I call you J it's just the letter J, just J, right?

- It's just the letter J.

So the official story is my mom and dad ran the Nebraska Florist Society for 50 years and so they would run the conventions themselves.

And my mother was very pregnant at a grower school that was being held in Nebraska in March of 1960.

She was typing out name cards at the desk and suddenly turned to my dad and said, "I have to go somewhere and have this baby.

My water just broke.

We're gonna have this baby."

And I was the third child.

So I have two older sisters.

And evidently the pregnancy was exactly the same.

So my mother had determined that my name was going to be Jennifer.

And so there was a snowstorm, which did not allow us to leave the hotel.

So there was a general practitioner there who delivered me in room 386 of the Hastings Hotel.

When we were able to make it to the hospital, my mother had to fill out the birth certificate.

Now my father is German.

So in our family, there is a history of naming your children, giving them a first name, but then having them have two middle names.

One my grandfather's first name and one my father's first name.

So my name was something that began with a J, Melvin for my dad, Herman for my grandfather Schwanke.

My mother filled out the rest of the birth certificate, decided I need to sit back and decide what I'm gonna name this kid, you know, John, Jeremy, whatever.

She fell asleep.

They took the birth certificate, and I was officially just the letter J.

So there's no period.

It does not stand for anything.

I am just the 10th letter man.

- So you are part of a multi-generation flower family.

- Fourth generation.

Yeah, yeah, my great-grandfather started our family business in 1896.

He invested in a bankrupt greenhouse, and he was traveling to California to become a nurseryman.

And he got off the train in Fremont, Nebraska, which is dead center in the middle of the United States.

And there was a greenhouse for sale for $1,500, and he purchased it, which grew palms for Victorian homes.

And then over the years, they expanded into more flowers and more bedding plants and a full retail floristry and all that.

So yeah, Charles and Katie Green.

My grandfather, he lost the business in a card game one night at the Eagles Club.

He came home and he said to my great-grandmother, he said, "Katie, I lost the business in a card game."

And she was like, "You sit down in that chair."

She went out to the shop, opened the safe, took out her money, went back down to the Eagles Club and won it back.

And she would never allow him to be back in the flower shop after that.

At that point in time, then it was her flower shop.

So yeah, all kinds of great stories that go with it.

I mean, it was the best place to grow up.

My grandfather and grandmother were wonderful.

My grandfather was just adventuresome and exciting.

And he, you know, was magical and allowed us to do all kinds of stuff.

And I was born on my grandmother's birthday, so I was her favorite.

- So is that Lily?

- That's Lily, yeah.

- I kinda love that her name was Lily of all of all names.

- Correct.

Was that intentional too?

- Well, it's just so funny.

My grandfather wore a red carnation every day.

And so he was known as Carnation Joe Green, because he would go out in the greenhouse, pick a carnation, put it in his lapel every day.

And he said he was a florist 24 hours a day 'cause he wore red carnation all day long and slept with his lily at night.

My grandmother's name was Lily, so there you go.

So yeah, it was the perfect story.

Perfect story.

- Well, it might have seemed like you were fated to be in the family business.

- Sure.

- But, I love the story that you wanted to be a zookeeper.

- It's true.

So I had the most incredible guidance counselor in school.

Her name is Jan Therian.

She's a Native American.

She was wonderful and she watched out for me.

And one day she called me into her office and said, "You know, your parents say you have to go to college."

My dad, that was my dad's rule.

You have to go to college and go anywhere you want, but you have to go, and we need to figure out what you wanna do for a living, because I don't think you really know.

I was taking drama classes and I was taking art classes, and I was just having the best time.

And I was done with school at always two periods early, so I would go work in the flower shop.

And she said, "What do you wanna do?"

And I said, "I would love to be a zookeeper."

And she said, "Oh, well, you know, that's a lot of science.

That's a lot of math.

You're gonna have to become virtually a doctor and you're gonna have to take chemistry.

You're gonna have physics, you're gonna have biology, and you're really good at the fine arts."

And she said, "So I don't know if that's the best idea."

And I said, "Okay, what should I do?"

And she said, "Well, you know more about flowers than anyone I know."

And I was like, "Okay."

And she said, "You should go into it and you will like it 'cause it will be easy for you and you will have fun and it will be great."

And she was absolutely right.

And I have my own television show about flowers.

So she was absolutely, positively correct.

Jan Therian is amazing.

She was the right guidance counselor for me.

- But you were what, a junior in high school at this point?

- Yeah.

- And she was the first person to suggest that you go into the business.

- Yeah.

- So did your parents, did your grandparents just not wanna do pressure on you, do the hard sell?

What do you think?

Why was she the first voice, at least at the time that you recall, really saying this is where you should be?

- I think she cared about me.

And I think, you know, and my parents were show people.

My parents were, I always joke about my mom and I being like, Liza Minnelli and Judy Garland.

You know, we were very competitive.

My mother would always be doing those, you know, she did flower shows and like even when she saw my show, she was like, "Oh, it's okay.

I don't really like it."

You know, and I was like, "Oh, okay."

You know, but that doesn't surprise me and don't feel bad.

I mean, you know, that was just the way that she was about it.

So I think they always assumed I would be in the family business.

So maybe that was the assumption.

And, you know, I do regret the fact that I went to the Lutheran Parochial College in my hometown, because that was the easiest thing for me to do.

But thinking now, I wish I would've gone to Hawaii State, or I wish I would've gone to the University of Michigan or the University of Ohio because they could have had, like George Staby be, you know, my educator.

And I would've gotten a degree in ornamental horticulture.

And I walked away with a marketing degree and a public relations degree from my parochial college, which was great and has served me well.

But I do, I sometimes regret that I don't know the botanical names of everything and that kind of thing, you know?

So, yeah.

- Doesn't matter though.

- It doesn't matter at all.

But it's just fun.

And so sometimes when somebody's like, oh, you know, the helianthus and I'm just like, "That's so great that you know that."

For me, that's a sunflower, but okay, great.

You know, so I love that.

And I think, I don't know, that's part of, I just saw a Mr. Rogers quote the other day that said, they were asking him about success.

And he said, "Success is being able to do what you love, because then the success follows your passion and follows what you love."

I don't regret, I've never worked a day in my life.

I love everything I do and it's the best.

There's no reason I would do anything else.

I love the flowers.

I love the flowers.

(bright music) - It's clear that living a life surrounded by flowers has made a remarkable impact on J's life.

And through life in bloom, he enthusiastically shares what he's learned throughout his journey.

For J, flowers do more than just add beauty to our lives.

And his science-based philosophy of flowers has set him apart as an expert in the field.

So you always talk about not just how flowers bring us joy.

- Sure.

- But also how I think, and this is not blowing this out of proportion, how they can change our lives.

- Absolutely.

The health and wellness benefits of flowers are so extensive.

A wonderful educator and research specialist, Dr. Haviland-Jones, did all of these studies that were funded by grants from the American Floral Endowment to find out how flowers affect us.

So simply by looking at flowers or pictures of flowers or prints of flowers, we are more relaxed.

We get more zen-like.

We have happier thoughts, we're less depressed.

If we have flowers in our home, there's less arguments in homes with flowers.

If we are sick and we get flowers, we get better faster.

And if there's yellow flowers, we get better faster still.

People who are seniors who are surrounded by flowers will enlarge their circles of friends.

They're more apt to seek medical attention for something that's ailing them.

They will have less depressed thoughts.

They have happier thoughts.

So those things, in our business too, so business is important too.

If we have flowers in our business, we're more apt to get creative solutions.

We're able to be more creative.

We're able to think broader and think more creatively.

So all of those things come together.

I think it's funny, I turned 65 just a couple weeks ago.

- Happy Birthday.

- Thank you.

- I have something for you.

(laughing) - And everyone always says, you don't look like you're 65.

- No.

- And I'm like, "Oh, okay."

And that's a very kind comment.

And people, "What do you do?"

I'm gonna tell you, it's the flowers.

I have flowers surrounding me all the time.

There's always flowers wherever I go, there's flowers in my home.

When I travel, I buy flowers, I put them in my room.

I think the flowers and arranging them, having them make me feel happy, less depressed thoughts.

I don't wallow in those things because I have flowers.

So there's 15 arrangements in my house right now for my dogs, you know, and the pet sitters.

You know, so that's what goes on.

That's what we do.

- So was there a moment where you knew that flowers would change your life?

- I don't know if anybody's ever asked me that question.

Of course, they changed my life.

It's the best thing that ever happened to me.

So, no, they were always there.

They were always there, just changing it the whole time.

I was just the fortunate little boy who was standing in their proximity and they took me along for the ride.

- So when did you make the transition from working in the flower industry to being Mr.

Flower, right, to being the foremost expert, to being the sought after flower guru?

And I'm not making up, you know, these terms or, you know, giving you undue accolades.

This is the status that you have achieved over many decades.

But what was that transition like?

Or was it so gradual that you're here and enjoying the ride?

Maybe it's a both/and.

- When I was nine years old, I would watch Carol Burnett with my mother at night, and I would sit on the floor and I would say to my mom, "I wanna have a television show," and I'm, "like Carol Burnett."

And she said, "You're no Carol Burnett."

And I was like, "Oh, okay, but with flowers."

And so that was always in the back of my mind.

And in 2005, when we started making a web-based television program, my dream was always to have the television show.

I was working at Disney, doing programs for them during Mother's Day for the Flower and Garden Festival.

I was working with Genevieve Gorder.

And Genevieve Gorder was there.

And I said, "You know, I want my own television show about flowers."

And she said, "Let me give you some advice."

She said, "Go to PBS, go to PBS."

She said, "Because you will be able to create the show you want and you desire, and you will be able to own it.

And you can't do that other places."

And she said, "I am living proof of that, so go to PBS."

And so I went to PBS, went to WKR in Lansing, pitched my show to them.

They loved it.

They were gonna air it in the state of Michigan.

And then all of a sudden, they showed it to American Public Television.

They said, "This is a national show, go back and get national underwriting."

So Albertson stepped up and got us national underwriting, and then it took off.

And, you know, I don't know, I didn't expect it to have that.

'Cause people tell me this, that it has a Bob Ross or a Mr. Rogers effect.

And I think that that's a huge compliment.

And it's unimaginable to be in the room mentioned at the same time as those two people.

But people write me letters that our show changed their lives.

And a guy wrote me the other day and said, "I suffered from addiction and I couldn't get past it.

And I watched your show and I started arranging flowers.

And it was the only thing I was ever able to do that got me over the addiction."

That's other worldly from just making pretty arrangements.

You know, it's, you know, and we get 600 pieces of mail every week, and it's emails, it's messages.

I reply to them all.

- Every single one.

- Yeah.

I mean, Kelly makes sure that I see them and I talk to these people, and I just wanna know where they watch.

I wanna know who they are.

I wanna know how it affects them.

And it's amazing.

And I guess to answer your question, it all bubbled up around it.

And I think it's back to that Mr. Rogers quote, "If you do what you love, magical things happen."

I mean, it just happens.

And it was never my intention when I said I wanted to make a cute little show about flowers that was instructional and empowered people.

That's all I wanted.

And it's turned into much more than that because it's personal for so many people.

And so, I enjoy every step of the ride.

Every piece of it is so fun.

(bright music) - It's impossible to spend time with J and not be infected by the excitement he brings to his work.

So, of course, I couldn't pass a chance for a one-on-one lesson with the best in the biz.

So what, you know, okay, my instinct is I get these from the grocery store.

- Sure.

- I grab them as is.

I cut off the bottom and I go like this, because they're already sort of, - That's called chop and drop.

- Oh, that's what I do.

I'm a chop and dropper.

- Right.

So we're gonna arrange them today.

- Okay.

- 'Cause what happens is, as you pick up these flowers and you cut them and put them into a vase, your body's secreting endorphins that make you feel more relaxed and more calm.

- Okay.

- So that's the whole basic part of it.

It's a fun thing to do.

It's kinda like cooking.

- Yes.

- Like I do cooking to relax.

- Yeah.

It may not always turn out, but it was fun to make it.

- Well, and I like baking because there's measurements and there's a precision to it.

So now you understand where I'm coming from.

- And I am the one who throws in a little bit more or extra and doesn't measure.

So, okay.

All right.

- So what do I start with?

Does it matter?

- If I were you, okay, since we have foliage we're using today, we're using these beautiful Ethereum leaves, but it's a one big leaf.

- Okay.

- All right.

So I really think that you need some structure inside here 'cause what sometimes makes us nervous is that we have this hole and we wanna make sure that we're able to put flowers into it and make them kind of stay where we want them.

And when they start to flip around and flop around, it makes us a little nervous, right?

- And I think people should know, I got these from my house.

- I love them.

- I mean these, you know, my mom got me into collecting antiques.

And so she gave me that recently, which are these little, - This is fabulous.

- Usually I use them if you're having a dinner party to keep silverware in or something, I don't know.

She tells me all sorts of things.

- I love that.

- I thought flowers.

- Oh yeah.

- This is of course an old coffee pot.

It doesn't work.

- Right, and so the great part about it is you get your memories off the shelf.

You're thinking about where these came from.

You've already told me stories about both of these, and we're gonna fill 'em with flowers and that way we can get that off the shelf and we can interact with it.

So I would start with the orchids.

- Is this a test now?

- That's these guys right here.

Those are white dendro orchids.

- Okay.

- Okay.

And I would cut them individually and drop them into that.

- So how do I know?

So hold on.

So is that sort of a good length already?

- So you're gonna cut the end.

- Okay.

Oh.

- Alright.

Just 'cause you should.

That's a really good thing to do.

- These are awesome.

- I love them.

And so one of the things that I say is foliage first many times.

But instead, you're using these to create a structure.

The reason we would add foliage first is to create a little bit of a structure that would hold our flowers in place.

- Okay.

- So if you could imagine going out in the garden and grabbing some stems and putting 'em into a vase.

Now see with this, that's gonna give you some structure to put other flowers in, right.

Do you feel that?

- I'm feeling it.

(gentle music) Well, while we're talking about your love of flowers, I'd also like to talk about your other love who actually happens to be here, which is Kelly.

- Right.

- Tell me about Kelly's role in not just your life, but also in your professional world.

- Well, he's the best.

- You're a package deal now, right?

- We are a package deal.

He's the best thing that ever happened to me.

He's the producer of the show.

He also writes the show.

- Wow.

- And he's always there behind the camera.

So he's always there in the back of the room.

And that's the most secure thing I can say in the whole world is when he's in the back of the room, I know everything's gonna be fine.

And he is different from me.

- Yeah.

- I am very, I'm a people person and I'm very, very, you know, I wanna meet people.

I wanna go do things.

He's a little more reserved.

You know, I think a lot about Dolly Parton and the way that showy would explain her husband and how he was not really crazy about the whole music industry, but they had a wonderful relationship and they had a whole lot of fun and they did all kinds of fun stuff, and I think that that's a really important thing.

And that's who we are, is we have so much fun and we get to do wonderful things.

We have two great dogs.

We laugh every day.

And the show is amazing because of what he writes and how he brings the ideas that we get together, together, so, yeah.

- Do you still surprise him with flowers?

Or is that like, at the end of the day, are you both sick of flowers?

- No, no, no, no.

- Is there another love language you have?

- There's flowers on his desk all the time.

There must always be flowers on his desk because that's, - Love that.

- And that's the first arrangement that I make on Sunday mornings when I turn on a little bit of jazz music and I'm arranging flowers and putting 'em around the house.

That's where the prettiest one goes, and that's where the first one goes is on his desk.

(bright music) - Oh, like a little bit.

Yes.

When you look back on everything you've done on, on your work, on the show, on your life, what do you hope people remember, not just about the flowers, but about the way that you use flowers to touch their lives?

- I think it's the thing so many people say to me, and I'm honored, is that I'm kind.

I hope that they would remember that he was a kind guy who liked to share flowers with people, but that he was kind.

Because I think kindness is vastly underrated and being kind is a wonderful thing to be, so, yeah.

- And speaking of kindness.

- Yes.

- Since you have been so kind to us, I brought you a little gift.

- I brought a gift for you as well.

- What?

- I know.

- Should we do a little exchange?

- Sure.

- Okay.

- All right.

- So, - Oh, I don't know how to compete with that.

- It's a flower crown because everyone I work with, I give them a flower crown.

Because when you give someone a flower crown and you put it on their head, - Oh my gosh.

- They just smile and they have fun.

Oh, now see, okay.

Now let's see.

Hold on.

Okay, I can fix it.

There we go.

- Yeah, oh, this is like epic.

- Is that okay?

- I have seen your flower crowns.

I did not know I would be worthy.

- They're very wild.

My flower crowns are very wild.

- I think it's perfect.

How long will this last?

How long can I wear it, legitimately?

Do I need to water it?

- Well, so you would take it home at night, spritz it with water and stick it in the fridge, then you could probably wear it for a week.

- Oh, I'm totally wearing this for a week.

- Okay.

- I'm gonna wear it to work out tomorrow.

- Okay, all right, perfect.

- I'm not sure.

(laughing) - It's true.

- I love it.

- I love it when people wear it to walk the dogs, when people wear it to mow their lawns, so yeah, I think that that's wonderful.

- I mean, how does that not spread joy?

- It's true.

- It's incredible.

- It's true, yeah.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Okay.

- Okay, so mine is because, well, I sort of knew about your affinity for carnations and your grandpa, Carnation Joe.

(gasping) - Oh look, there's little red carnations.

- So I found this and it's old 'cause I also know that you and Kelly love antiques, but it's an old condensed milk container, so I know that's hilarious to give a florist.

- I love it.

- Something with a hole.

But I figure if anybody can make it work into something utilitarian.

- Oh, sure.

- There's just a little cup, a little disposable cup like a to-go cup.

- Exactly.

We'll fit it down inside there to fill it up.

Isn't it cute?

Oh, I love it.

- You have taught me that never to judge something that others might consider pedestrian or unworthy.

And it is a reminder always to look for the beauty in everything.

And so seeking that for you was actually, it brought me a lot of joy.

- I appreciate that because it is something I will keep.

And every time I look at it, it will remind me of the memory of being here with you, and that's the best reason to fill something with flowers.

- Appreciate you.

- Love you.

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