The Clarksdale Garden Club joined the Plantation Garden Club of Sumner for a tour of The Farmstead on Woodson Ridge in Oxford on May 9.
The groups gathered at the Farmstead Barn, Oxford’s premier outdoor entertainment venue, and were greeted by George Gates, hospitality manager, as they arrived. He explained there would be three phases to the tour: Farmstead Florals, The Cottages at Woodson Ridge and Covey Rise Farms vegetables.
Katherine Sharp, owner and operator of Farmstead Florals, outlined the challenges and joys of flower farming.
Farmstead Florals plants four acres of annual flowers each year and also has substantial plots of forsythia, snowball viburnum, Limelight hydrangea and oak-leaf hydrangea, which produce blossoms year after year. With the exception of sunflowers, the annuals are all planted by hand from seedlings in rows about 45 inches wide and 150 to 225 feet long, each seedling planted through a hole in a weed-controlling plastic barrier. Farmstead Florals uses drip irrigation allowing for precision control for species that have different water requirements.
The sunflower field is planted with a tractor, to the tune of 6,000 seeds per week from March through September. Throughout the season, plants are replaced on a rotating basis so that there are always acres of beautiful flowers in bloom.
Farmstead Florals sells to florists in Oxford, Memphis, Tenn., and, new this year, Birmingham, Ala.
The Farmstead Cottages at Woodson Ridge feature an innovative four-bedroom, four-and-a-half bath design that allows renters to engage the whole cottage or just a room or two, with every room having high-speed internet, high-definition TV, a private bath, its own thermostat and an outside entrance. There are full kitchen and laundry facilities, a dining table, and a covered patio with grill, television, seating and dining area overlooking a serene lake.
Covey Rise Farms consists of 13 acres of heirloom vegetables, which are sold mostly to upscale restaurants from the mid-South all the way to Rosemary Beach to Houston, Texas. The vegetables also are rotated throughout the season as weather conditions change. The focus is on unusual, hard-to-find varieties selected for their outstanding taste.
The group finished the day with box lunches prepared by Elizabeth Heiskell Catering.
“Everyone left making plans for another visit to The Farmstead on Woodson Ridge as soon as possible,” said an article submitted by the garden club.
