Building a Flower Farm

My dream has always been to live in the country, so here I am. So what does one do with 22 acres of land? Not knowing or having a plan - 2 years ago, I reached out to the local extension office. They had a great idea, build a Cut Your Own Flower Farm. 
 
Agritourism or agrotourism, as it is defined most broadly, involves any agriculturally based operation or activity that brings visitors to a farm or ranch. 

During our first year we planned and did research. The second year we started planting; our Zinnias, Cosmos and Dahlias grow great. Every week I cut buckets of flowers to give away to friends and neighbors.  Some of the other plants did not grow as well and we learned which plants the deer loved to eat.
 
Our goal is to "let nature do its thing". Try to recycle leaves and pine needles for mulch, chip fallen trees for ground covering. Spread seeds directly onto the ground. Rely on our natural weather patterns. Just like farmers before us sometimes things grow, sometimes they don’t. I imagine it will take us many years to evolve and to learn from our mistakes and successes. We will need to rearrange our beds and plantings till we get it right.

So here we are, this is our third year on this farming adventure, will it be a success or failure only time will tell.
 
Our interns have been working hard to help us prepare to open soon. I am asking all of our interns to contribute there thoughts, photos and observations to this blog. I expect some will enjoy their time in the country others may not. 

Check our website weekly for updates on when we our open and our availability.