In honor of the International Year of the Woman Farmer, meet Veronica Geisenhof, a cut flower farmer and florist in central Minnesota, south of Brainerd. Family is a big part of everything she does.
Can you describe a typical spring day? How about a typical summer day?
Spring here at Country Sunshine starts just after Christmas as the first seeds are planted for the greenhouse and cut flower season. Plants that take a long time to germinate and grow from seed are begonias, geraniums, pansies and violas for the greenhouse; and lisianthus and eucalyptus for cut flowers.
A steady seeding schedule is kept as the weeks go on. Mid-February brings in shipments of plugs (baby annual plants) for transplanting into hanging baskets, patio containers and single pots for retail sales.
February also means the first batch of baby goats is born. The count for this year so far is 12 mamas and 24 babies.
March and April days bring lots and lots of transplanting of Country Sunshine seeded annuals, herbs and vegetable plants in preparation for the opening of our greenhouses, usually May 1.
Transitioning into summer, the days are filled with customer service in the greenhouses with plant sales, cut flower planting in the fields and harvesting early spring blooms like tulips, ranunculus and anemones. Cut flowers are sold at farmers markets starting in May. A fresh-flower subscription program also starts in May.
I manage a seasonal crew of four to six employees completing the tasks at hand through the growing season.
You grew up on a livestock farm – how did you decide to produce flowers instead of food crops or milk?
Yes, it was dairy, then poultry. I am one of seven children, so my older four siblings have more memories of dairy farming. I do remember the cows in the barn, the smell of silage come feeding time, and scraping the aisle free of manure while making sure not to fall in the gutter.
After my parents sold the cows, they grew a poultry processing business from there.
Our family had a very large vegetable garden. We had two small greenhouses where we would start the plants. We grew more plants than we could use, so we opened up for people to come buy plants and took plants to farmers markets.
When I was in high school, I took over managing more of the greenhouse operation for my dad. My love and passion were in the plants and flowers, so I proposed to my parents that I take over the greenhouse business completely as I stepped back from the poultry.
In 2019, I created Country Sunshine. I added cut flower production to retail plant sales and also taught myself how to make soap and lotion from the goat milk. I saw a need and opportunity to expand the greenhouse business we already had. Locally grown cut flowers are a hot commodity, so with more learning and doing, I have increased the number of stems and bouquets grown and sold each year.
Your Country Sunshine Instagram account does show a lot of dairy goats! What role do they play on the farm?
My older sister and I raised goats for our 4-H project. When she moved on to college and her own family, I kept the herd and grew it in numbers. I took six 4-H and FFA trips to the state fair with them. They have been a part of my whole life, so when I grew out of 4-H and FFA, I incorporated them in my business by making soap and lotion.
In 2020, the goats became part of Country Sunshine agritourism. Groups come to the farm in the spring and either have a “Baby Goat Play and Snuggle” experience or “Dairy Goat Chore Experience.” Seeing the joy that they bring to other people when they visit the farm is truly special to me.
My daughters are getting to be 4-H age and so they have started showing them at the fair. It’s a full circle moment.
How has University of Minnesota Extension research and education played a role in your success?
Being in 4-H with my goats, I leaned into webinars, conference sessions and workshops teaching me how to better the dairy herd and properly care for them. I continue to learn, most recently at Extension’s Women in Ag Network conference in the “Raising a Goat and Sheep Herd” session. I spoke on the panel at the conference about our farm transitioning from my parents.
A few U of M Extension tours have taken place on my farm, so I and other participants were able to ask questions about plants and growing methods. I also have had Extension help with analyzing the needs of the soil for my crops.
I am registered for the Flower farming webinar coming up. I am excited to learn more from Allie with Bleed Heart Floral, as I follow her on Instagram and love seeing her operation. Learning from others is so valuable!
Talk more about the tourism aspect of a flower farm. How do you get people to come to your farm and what kind of experience do they have?
Earlier I spoke about the dairy goat experiences. That has been unexpectedly popular and successful! I plan on having baby goat yoga classes this May with the second batch of kids born late spring. I also host workshops, like succulent container planting, flower basket making, flower vase design.
I teach the workshop while also informing them about our farm and what we do on it.
A farm tour is a part of the workshop when weather allows. From July until the frost the farm is open for U pick flowers, as people come to the fields and pick a cup or bucket of flowers to take home. In August and September, we invite people out for the “Sunflower Stroll,” with many photo opportunities set up through the maze in the patch.
You have a family – what do you think life on the flower farm gives to your children?
My husband and I are high school sweethearts, marrying just one year after high school graduation. We have four daughters, three earth-side and one forever 8-month-old angel. I have five brothers and one sister, and I have the support of all of them. We live close enough to stay connected.
Farm life has taught many things to our family and particularly my girls. Some of the same things I learned growing up on a farm: hard work, long days and daily baths!
A sense of pride and accomplishment happens in many ways: animals and blue ribbons, strangers becoming friends, rocks are picked and so are weeds, and blooms are picked and made into a bouquet for a happy customer.
My girls love showing the farm to others and sharing what they get to experience every day with flower and animal enthusiasts.
What advice would you give to any young women considering a career in agriculture?
Set goals and revisit and evaluate those goals so you can stay on track with where you want to be. “Do what you love and you will never work a day in your life” is a cliché, but it’s true for me!
Have relationships that are meaningful and support and encourage you along the way. Farming is a tough road. Many good things happen, but bad things also happen. A loving and encouraging support system will get you through. For me, that is mainly my family with some close friends and colleagues.
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