A local source of blyss

If you picked just the right August evening to visit Blyss Flower Farm near Ada, Minnesota, you may have found love amid the blooms.

Two Loves, actually.

“I think those dark purple flowers there would be really good for fill in,” Emily Love told her mother-in-law Julie Love as they assembled bouquet cups of freshly snipped flowers. The duo from Crookston, Minnesota, decided to attend a Tuesday You-Pick event at the flower farm after feeling some Instagram envy from a friend’s visit.

“I told her we needed to come here next Tuesday, which is today,” Emily said. “It’s beautiful here.”

These moments of connection – with nature, with friends, with family – were what Alyssa Johnson envisioned when she established Blyss Flower Farm on the farmstead she shares with her husband and two children. In the fall of 2020, Johnson planted her first few hundred tulips in what used to be her vegetable garden. After they bloomed in the spring, she decided to go even bigger with a field of zinnias. The zinnia field turned into more of a zinnia patch as she experimented with weed management and general care.

“Every year I’m learning, but that was a year I learned a lot. I reached out to other farmers, tried to read a lot and did a lot of research. I grew a lot personally during that first growing season,” Alyssa said. “It ended up being a nice little zinnia patch, and it inspired us to continue and figure out how to make it bigger and master that opportunity.”

The zinnia patch has now grown into a half-acre field of pink, yellow, white and orange flowers, ready to be cut by visitors. In 2022, the Johnsons added a smaller, fenced-in area with several more flower species to build out a bouquet for any taste. Although the varietals change, Alyssa says she’s found the sweet spot for plot size.

“Our family is a priority to us and comes first,” said the stay-at-home mom. “We wanted to do something that’s manageable for our family and is a blessing to the community and a blessing to our family – and doesn’t just run us ragged.”

Alyssa grows all but one of her flower varieties from seed, either indoors or in ground. Over the first two months, they need daily watering and tending to grow into healthy seedlings to be planted out.

Once planted, the flowers become more vulnerable to weather, pests and critters. The Johnsons use all-natural pest deterrents and Organic Materials Review Institute-rated (OMRI) fungicides to keep the plants clear of infestation or disease while protecting local pollinators like bees and butterflies. As the flowers grow, Alyssa makes sure they get adequate water and proper support, adding netting or staking where needed.

“Then there’s weeding of course. The first six weeks after seedlings are planted out are mostly spent weeding,” she said with a smile. “That’s the joy of those months as you anticipate the harvest.”

From April through September, Blyss Flower Farm shares the yields of that hard work with the community. The local florists enjoy picking from her fields for their arrangements and Alyssa occasionally prepares bouquets for local farmers markets, but on selected days in the summer, she opens the farm up for You-Pick events. Guests purchase a cup, grab floral shears and spend as much time as they want walking through the flowers, cutting just the right stems for the bouquet of their dreams.

Once a summer, Blyss Flower Farm hosts Flower Fest, a large community event with food trucks, kids’ activities, live music, local vendors and more. This year, the event brought over 1,000 people to the farm, some from as far away as the Twin Cities. “It was absolutely amazing,” Alyssa said. “Every piece of it was just really special. I was brought to tears a couple of different times.”

Although Flower Fest is high energy, most days on the farm are quiet. And that’s absolutely by design.

“I’m encouraging people to slow their pace a little bit. It’s so easy to let our calendars get so full, and we’re running to this and that,” Alyssa explained. “It’s great to be connected and involved, but it’s also great to just slow down and appreciate the beauty of creation.”

It’s that kind of zen-level bliss (or rather, blyss) that keeps people returning with their friends, their children and their mothers-in-law. Vistors understand that this little farm is a vibrant gift to Ada and the surrounding region.

“Everyone’s been so supportive, from purchasing market bouquets to coming out to the farm to purchase you-pick bouquets, or on social media – sharing, liking commenting,” Alyssa said. “And in person, people are always so grateful for what this farm is for the community. It’s a unique place and opportunity for all ages. It’s been a real blessing.”

MAIN IMAGE: Blyss Flower Farm owner Alyssa Johnson stands among her zinnias near Ada, Minnesota.