On a recent sunny day in Kechi, Emma Neyens and her 3-year-old daughter, Berkeley, found themselves surrounded by blooms and on a mission.
"We're going to make a bouquet," Emma Neyens said. "Who are we going to give our bouquet to?"
"Grammy," the girl replied.
The Neyenses have visited Elderslie Farm for Easter egg hunts and to buy blackberry jam at the farm market, but the flower patch is something new.
"My mom and sister are in town visiting, and they're both in the floral and art business," Emma Neyens said. "So Berkeley likes to pick flowers, and they teach her how to make bouquets.
"We're excited to see that Elderslie has this to offer."
The Neyenses were among more than a dozen people who meandered through the rows of flowers at the farm on a recent morning — some walking loops searching for just the right bloom, others making a beeline to the first flowers to catch their eyes.
"The triumph for me is not the flowers themselves," said Katharine Elder. She and her husband, George, own Elderslie Farm. "It's the diversity of species of flowers, but also the diversity of human beings who are all here for different reasons.”
The farm's famous pick-your-own blackberries and farm-to-table restaurant have been the heart of the business since it launched in 2012, but the couple said each year or two has brought an experiment.
This year’s gamble: a you-pick flower patch.
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— Flower patch at Elderslie Farm
This year marks Elderslie Farm's first foray into cut flowers. The Kechi farm, known for its blackberries, planted a you-pick flower experience in February that has drawn the community to its sky-high blooms.
Meg Britton-Mehlisch / KMUW
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— Zinnia rows at Elderslie Farm
Visitors to Elderslie Farm wander through the rows of the farm's new you-pick flower experience. The flower patch is open from dawn to dusk at the Kechi-based farm and costs $9 a bouquet.
Meg Britton-Mehlisch / KMUW
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— Flower varieties at Elderslie Farm
George Elder and the growing team at Elderslie Farm planted varieties of zinnias, black-eyed susans and gomphrena and other flowers in a you-pick experience. Elder ordered seeds in February, planted young seedlings in April. The first blooms popped up across the patch in May.
Meg Britton-Mehlisch / KMUW
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— Flamingo feather celosia gets a visit from a bumble bee
George Elder planted well-loved flower varieties alongside interesting bouquet fillers like this flamingo feather celosia.
Meg Britton-Mehlisch / KMUW
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— Snapdragons at Elderslie Farm
George Elder said planting flowers like the snapdragons seen here was a welcome challenge at Elderslie Farm. The farm is famous for its you-pick blackberries which Elder has nurtured over 15 years. He said the first year of flowers were picked to thrive in the Kansas climate, like these snapdragons which flourish in the heat.
Meg Britton-Mehlisch / KMUW
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— Women build bouquets at Elderslie Farm
George and Katharine Elder created a self-guided flower-picking experience at their Kechi farm. Visitors scan a QR code, pay a small fee and then pick up a vase and shears to use to build a bouquet from the new flower patch.
Meg Britton-Mehlisch / KMUW
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— Sunflower and black-eyed susans
A post-bloom sunflower hides among the black-eyed susans at Elderslie Farm. Farm owner, George Elder, decided to plant a flower patch in February. The patch did so well in its first year that the Elders planted a second round of sunflowers that will be ready for Oktoberfest celebrations.
Meg Britton-Mehlisch / KMUW
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— Elderslie Farm zinnias
Rows and rows of zinnias dazzle at Elderslie Farm in Kechi. Co-owner and executive chef Katharine Elder said the flowers are inspiring her team at Elderslie, a farm-to-table dinning experience on the farm.
Meg Britton-Mehlisch / KMUW
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— Woman snaps a picture at Elderslie Farm
A woman stops to take a picture of the flower patch at Elderslie Farm. Rows of purple and white gomphrena are a popular addition to the bouquets built at the you-pick experience.
Meg Britton-Mehlisch / KMUW
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— Katharine Elder walks through flowers at Elderslie Farm
Katharine Elder walks alongside rows of cellway red celosia and orange amaranth, building a bouquet of the flowers and some red zinnias. The you-pitch flower patch is the newest addition to Elderslie Farm in Kechi.
Meg Britton-Mehlisch / KMUW
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— Bramble Cafe customers look out over flower patch
Customers at Elderslie Farm's Bramble Cafe sit in the shade and look out over rows of flowers. The new you-pick flower patch joins the property's blackberry brambles, cafe and farm-to-table dinning experience, Elderslie.
Meg Britton-Mehlisch / KMUW
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— People explore the Elderslie Farm flower patch
People explore the new you-pick flower patch at Eldeslie Farm in Kechi. Grower and owner George Elder says the flowers represented a challenge and departure from the farm's blackberry brambles. Elder says he planted the patch to encourage curious exploration of the land.
Meg Britton-Mehlisch / KMUW
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— Elderslie Farm zinnias
Zinnias in shades of linen, mauve, cream and pumpkin reach to the sky at Elderslie Farm.
Meg Britton-Mehlisch / KMUW
George Elder said he's normally drawn to the more productive side of farming — fruits and vegetables. But after attending a growers’ conference in February, he committed himself to a new challenge.
In July, he saw the rewards of that wintertime decision as people swarmed the rows of flowers.
"The property was this just vibrant," he said. "People were carrying bouquets everywhere, and everybody was smiling."
The land where George Elder planted the farm's original blackberry brambles is now covered in snapdragons, gomphrena, zinnias, celosia and black-eyed Susans.
Visitors to the farm can come during daylight hours, and for $9, fill a cup near bursting with a bouquet of their own making.
Katharine Elder said she loves mornings on the farm, when she walks side-by-side with new visitors to gather fresh blooms.
"It's stunning out here. We're standing in the flowers, and there's people on a picnic blanket, and you know, arranging their bouquets, and little kids running up and down the rows, and it's just so magical," she said. "And the magic is to be shared."
