Happy New Year All! Phew! It has been a whirlwind the last few years since the pandemic. We had a record number of weddings and events, improved our studio workspace, added several formal perennial gardens, gave our annual fields a much-needed rest and time to rejuvenate, added a cooler to the farmstand (longer lasting flowers!), added a number of beautiful and authentic rental items to our growing inventory of wedding and event supplies, and spent a great deal of time evaluating processes and programs that made sense for us. We are ready for the 2024 Season and are looking forward to a thoughtful, focused and productive year.
The new year is always bittersweet providing an opportunity to reassess our goals and mission and take stock of what works and what no longer fits. This year is no exception for us. It is often sad to let go of things that have brought us so much joy in the past like our customers (and the great staff and managers) at the Amherst Farmers Market, serving our neighbors throughout the Hilltown area with personal orders year-round and pumpkin sales in the fall. We have met so many wonderful and thoughtful people over this 12-year journey through these activities.
Over the years, we’ve learned a lot about ourselves and the capacity of this farm and we thought a lot about this during 2023. What started as a modest wagon full of flowers at the side of the road, has, thanks to our customers, become much more. We have been very fortunate and busy. However, the reality is that it has been challenging and often we have strayed away from our original intended purpose in an attempt to compensate for some of the realities of flower farming in a rural community, in a challenged climate and in a rocky landscape. We tried a lot of things. Some worked and honestly others failed. There were many challenges to overcome and to take into consideration. Soil quality, transportation costs, labor availability, population disbursement and other factors definitely called for a new and more sustainable plan. We’re doing great but we could be better and want our success to last far into the future. We’ve got 12 years of hard work under our belts and want to continue well beyond another 12!
In the end, we did a lot of soul searching after the last of the 2023 weddings and decided to get back to our roots and our original simple vision to provide beautiful, flowers grown from a beautiful farm for the farmstand and weddings/events. Each time we expanded into new distribution channels, the time we could spend on our craft and with clients and our connection to the land and work dimmed. So, as we move into 2024, we plan to step back a bit and focus on the things that are most important to nurturing our souls and which more appropriately align with this rugged, rural and challenging part of the world in which we operate.
So for 2024, we are going to focus on what we love because as they say, “if you love what you do….” - you get the picture. We will continue to expand our perennial gardens, adding some new and exciting landscaping elements and enhancing the quality and variety of flowers at our farmstand. Weddings and events will also be a continued focus for Bride’s who appreciate a classic, authentic, romantic and carefully curated floral ensemble for their wedding. We will also begin work to more formally catalog our extensive inventory of wedding rentals on our website before the head of the 2024 season in May.
So, step back and get back to basics, there are a few things that will change for the season which are important for you to know:
The Farmstand: The farmstand will be open Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from late May to late September (weather permitting). This is a change from 7 days a week which we experimented with in 2023. We will likely be open 7 days a week but want to have some flexibility to accommodate the time we need to put into managing the gardens and fields this year and to continue to offer a larger variety of high quality flowers at the farmstand and wedding and event floral design services. We’ll try to be better about posting information regarding hours for the upcoming week on our Instagram, Facebook and this website.
Credit Cards: As of January 1, 2024, we are no longer offering credit cards as an alternative option for payment. This is largely due to the hefty merchant card services charges, which frankly can eat up to 5% of our margin on each sale. Rather than adding the fees, we have made the decision to go back to basics (like when we first started), to save everyone a bit. We thank everyone in advance for their understanding.
Personal Orders for Birthdays, Sympathy Florals, etc: We are no longer able to provide last minute fulfillment of personal orders. With advance notice (typically a week) between June and September, we would be happy to assist with these orders, time permitting. Call 413-992-8757 or email if you would like to arrange for bouquet delivery. Free delivery will be limited to Ashfield. Deliveries throughout the Hilltowns will be offered at an additional charge to cover time and labor costs.
Placing Orders and Wedding/Event Inquiries: The best way to get in touch is to:
Send an Email to wells@sweethavenfarm.com or call or text 413-992-8757. You can call the farm phone 413-628-3947, but no messaging service will be available.
Wedding Wire/The Knot: We are pausing our service for the 2024 season given the level of current bookings. We have some dates available, however, please use the above to contact us if you are interested in a consultation. Consultations can be conducted locally, at a mutually convenient time in the Hilltowns or New York City (Manhattan) in person or from any where via Zoom. There is NO CHARGE for up to two 1-hour consultations prior to our submission of a preliminary estimate. We hope to have our portfolio updated soon on this website to showcase this year’s amazing wedding season.
Wedding and Event Rentals: We have invested in a number of wedding and event rental items including: arbors, chuppahs, concrete urns, pots, vintage and new vases, votive holders, candlesticks, place card holders, table number markers, and a number of other items to help set the mood and tone of your ceremony and reception. We hope to have this inventory up on the website before May when the heart of wedding season begins.
As we regroup and internalize a bit over the next year, we are reminded of how grateful we are for the amazing support of our customers and clients. It is the hope that these changes will result in more and better flowers for your enjoyment and that our love of our farm and flowers will shine brightly in all that we do.
Much peace, happiness and health love to you and your loved ones for 2024 - Sharon