Where Flowers Bloom So Does Hope!
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How many times have we heard the saying, âStop and smell the flowersâ? The hurried pace we live in, is more about completing tasks and very rarely about admiring or taking in the beauty that is around us. If we did, we would understand the captivating power of one of natureâs beautiful gifts to us- Flowers.
Whether you gift it to an ailing friend, or to a cherished family member, flowers have been the most wonderful expression of human emotions. And Sue Newhouse sees this better than many of us.
From taming mustangs to growing strawberries, Sue had done it all until she was introduced to the splendor of cultivating flowers. Twenty years back, starting with a 10-acre family owned farm, lovingly named by her nieces and nephews, Aunt Sueâs Barn initially had two greenhouses, a beehive, and an orchard. âWhen we put up our first greenhouse, Amanda Austin of Coppell Farmerâs Market suggested I grow flowers, but I couldnât imagine growing that many so instead, we grew strawberriesâ, says Sue.
The following year, Sue and her husband Brain Odwyer took the leap and started growing flowers. That was the time when they both realized that this was what they were meant to do!
We chatted up with Sue to tell us more about this passion of hers and this is what she had to say!
TRF: When you started, you grew berries and peaches. How was that experience compared to growing flowers now?
SUE: Growing fruits is hard work, but we did successfully produce hundreds of pounds of blackberries and strawberries and peaches during the time. With flowers, I stepped into an area I knew nothing about. I could grow flowers but aside from a farmerâs market I had no idea how to pick, package, deliver, and market them â and I am still learning. Itâs very different to deliver to a florist versus a retail bouquet client. So, for me, itâs been understanding the product itself as well as the client.
Photo Courtesy of Aunt Sue's Barn
I started with only a few species and that limits how theyâre displayed and who will buy them. Finding my customer base, expanding more flower varieties each year and marketing to the different types of clients has been a huge growth experience.
TRF: What kinds of flowers do you grow at Aunt Sueâs Barn? Which ones are the crowdâs favorite, and which are your personal loved ones?
SUE: The first year it was just Ranunculus and Anemones. Then we added Snapdragons and Stock. This year we introduced Delphiniums, Yarrow, Sweet peas, Carnations, Amaranthus, False queen Anneâs lace, Bunny tails and Ornamental kale.
For the season, we are adding Bachelor buttons, Belles of Ireland, Bupleurum, Feverfew, Mountain mint, Bee balm, Coneflower, & Statice.
Every time I add a new flower itâs my favorite, but this year I fell in love with buckets of sweet peas! The aroma is incredible!
For the bouquets itâs the variety that makes a difference. And what most people donât realize any more is that most flowers have fragrance â some fill the room and the scent can last for days!
TRF: A bouquet of blooms can never fail to bring joy to oneâs day. Do you recollect some instances when flowers from Aunt Sueâs flowers added much appreciated delight to somebodyâs life?
SUE: This spring I had a pair of sisters ask if I could deliver flowers to their mother in an assisted living home on Southlake. They had just moved their mother here a week before and she was very ill with cancer. With the lock down in place, they weren't able to go see her. I took them flowers to make bouquets for the staff and their mother. I miss my mom, so it meant a lot to me personally.
We also had many families visit us this time around. Itâs so precious to see a parent explain nature to their children. So many kids never get to experience a place outside the city; it means a lot to me that the child will take this memory with them.
TRF: How has the COVID pandemic affected your business? Are there any special offers during this time that you would like to share with our readers?
SUE: We had just started selling wholesale when we were locked down. Many wholesalers closed as well as florists. With thousands of flowers in the ground, I was determined to move as many as possible
We started offering a free bucket of flowers to clinics, retirement centers, assisting living nursing homes or anyone who needed them. Then people started buying buckets of flowers â some for themselves and some to make bouquets for neighbors.
Photo Courtesy of Aunt Sue's Barn
The support from the community was overwhelming to say the least. Some florists were open. I offered bouquets to be pre-purchased online and delivered since I had a wider variety of flowers this year and things took off. We had hoped to offer an on-farm Motherâs Day U-pick and ice cream event like we did last year but with the virus it just wasnât possible.
One of the organizations we donated to, were the Denton FFA floral team who had lost their fundraiser. I partnered with them for Motherâs Day offering a fixed amount for every bouquet we pre-sold as a fundraiser. So, I picked flowers, they made bouquets and we delivered. Each bouquet had a tag with the FFA studentâs name on it that did the arranging. It was fabulous â a win-win for everyone in this crazy time and they earned money for their team!
TRF: Apart from the flowers, what else are you growing this season?
SUE: We are beekeepers and are members of both Denton and Wise County Bee Clubs. We are hoping to have some honey harvested this summer and have been expanding the number of hives we have. We are also currently working on fall pumpkins for a small fall fest. With the virus, we canât tell what that would look like, but if we can offer individual private family visits for pumpkin picking and photographs, along with some fall flowers, it will be fabulous. I really love when we can bring people to the farm. It is close to the city but feels a world away when youâre here.
TRF: Where can we currently find flowers from Aunt Sueâs Barn?
SUE: Weâre currently landscaping more perennials and planting for fall right now and hope to have flowers and pumpkins by September. We offer pre-sold bouquets, U-pick time slots, & honey when seasonally available through www.auntsuesbarn.com.
The barn in Ponder, Texas gives an experience that will ground you to nature and for those who want to get back in touch with their food and flowers, Aunt Sueâs Barn is a really good place to start.
