BLOSSOMING BLOOMS. Lacie Orysen of Field Road Flowers grows flowers locally and sustainably. (Submitted photo)

The Chippewa Valley is a gorgeous place to live, and one local grower is dedicated to keeping it that way by using sustainable farming practices to encourage bountiful – and beautiful – blooms.

Lacie Orysen, owner of Field Road Flowers, has always gardened with her mom and sisters, growing vegetables for as long as she can remember. “My gardens have always been my happy place,” she shared. After picking up the book Vegetables Love Flowers by Lisa Mason Ziegler, Orysen decided to add flowers to her vegetable garden.

Growing flowers in a veggie garden is a good growing move, Orysen said, as flowers can help with pest control and attracting pollinators.

“Little did I know how much we would love having flowers peppered throughout the rows of vegetables,” she said. “It made the process of weeding and harvesting that much more enjoyable, and the gardens that much more pleasing to look at.”

“Little did I know how much we would love having flowers peppered throughout the rows of vegetables,” said Lacie Orysen, owner of Field Road Flowers. “It made the process of weeding and harvesting that much more enjoyable, and the gardens that much more pleasing to look at.”

In 2019, Orysen picked up another read – this time Cut Flower Garden by Erin Benzekein. She thought, “Wow, flower farming? That sounds amazing. I bet I could do that.”

That led her to start Field Road Flowers, a sustainably grown hand-picked flower farm based in Fall Creek. The name – Field Road Flowers – is inspired by the field roads that criss-cross the farm she grew up on, which is where her flower garden is located. “I liked linking where I came from to where we are headed,” she said, “down a sometimes bumpy path to a fantastic adventure surrounded by God’s amazing creation.”

All of Field Road Flowers’ blossoms are planted and harvested by hand. The family composts and uses natural fertilizers – including cow manure, green manure, and green compose – to maintain and sustain the land they farm. They also use natural remedies for pests and diseases that may pop up. They also want to make supporting local florists – and nabbing gorgeous floral bouquets – possible.

“Some of the most gorgeous flowers must be purchased locally, as they don’t travel well,” Orysen said. “We miss out on so many varieties when we primarily use imported flowers.”

Orysen estimates that 80% of the cut flowers in the U.S. are imported. “When you get your flowers local,” she said, “you get extra vase life, which means more beauty and happiness in our lives. Why not enjoy what we can grow locally?”

The mom of two boys, Orysen is inspired by the outdoors and reading books, though she garners most of her inspiration for her stunning bouquets from tutorial videos and eye-catching colors. “I search out the most unique flowers, colors, shapes I can find,” she said, “and use my ‘bouquet recipe’ to make sure I have all the ‘ingredients’ to put them together.”

Field Road Flowers has a roadside farm stand just south of Fall Creek and offers market bouquets, buckets of blooms, and arrangements for small events by appointment. They also offer a flower subscription this summer!

Check them out at fieldroadflowers.com or on their Facebook page at facebook.com/FieldRoadFlowers.