Marnie Stetson said about half of the flowers grown at Cool Breeze Farm are annuals, with the other half being perennials. (Photo courtesy Cool Breeze Farm)
EAST AMWELL — Marnie Stetson did not initially set out to become a farmer.
Instead, she established a farm after years of practicing law and teaching students. Stetson was born and raised in Chestertown, Md., graduated from Williams College in Massachusetts and New York University School of Law, clerked for a Federal judge in New York City, and practiced environmental law.
She then taught reading and writing to elementary school students for 18 years in Essex County.
In 2022, while still teaching, she established a flower farm on part of an 18-acre property in Hunterdon County that she and her family had moved to eight years earlier.
“I was ready for a break after the pandemic,” Stetson said. “Only a small amount of flowers were raised for sale in 2022. The following year, in 2023, we were in full production.”
Today, Cool Breeze Farm is a horse and flower farm, with the floral operations covering about an acre of ground.
“The field was previously a hayfield,” said Stetson. “The tenant farmer had lost interest, so I turned it into an area to grow flowers. Much of the rest of the property is paddock and woods. We currently have four horses here, two of which are boarded for others.”
According to Stetson, she prepared the ground to grow flowers so that the farm could be “a vibrant habitat for birds and insects, and in the process, create something that reflects the bounty and beauty of rural New Jersey. At Cool Breeze, every decision we make is based on what helps improve the soil and nurtures the native flora and fauna. The result is a growing flower field of annuals and perennials that yields bountiful stems and a vibrant landscape for birds and bugs.”
She explained that there was a lot of trial-and-error learning in creating this farm. For example, while she plants most of the flowers by seed, she found that it was more cost-effective to buy plugs for some of the flowers that were slower to grow.
“Our farm is pollinator-friendly,” said Stetson. “We don’t use chemicals — no pesticides, no herbicides. We sustainably manage our flowers. We’re a member of the Regenerative Flower Farmers Network.”
One of the techniques used by Stetson at her farm is planting umbel flowers at the end of rows of other flowers as well as throughout the garden.
“Umbel flowers attract bees,” she said. “The bees are attracted to those flowers and then go on to sample other flowers.”
She also plants sunflowers every few weeks.
“I don’t cut the sunflowers,” Stetson said. “Instead, I leave the sunflowers to grow in an area of about 100 feet by 30 feet. They produce seeds for the birds.”
Drip irrigation is used throughout the flower farm.
“In 2024, with the drought, we used the water from the drip irrigation a lot,” said Stetson. “This year, we had much less need for watering because of the rain we received.”
About half of the flowers grown here are annuals, with the other half being perennials.
“We grow about 70 kinds of annuals,” Stetson said. “Many of the perennials are woody shrubs like peonies and hydrangea.”
“I choose flowers to grow at the farm that are unique,” she continued. “For example, flowers you couldn’t find at Trader Joe’s. Flowers in different colors. The flowers also have to be profitable to grow.”
Stetson sells seasonal bouquets and buckets of blooms as well as offers on-farm workshops. Most of the flowers sold are annuals.
Individuals can purchase 12-week subscriptions to receive flowers for 12 weeks during the year. Subscribers can select any 12 individual weeks from May through October.
The farm’s clientele, Stetson said, is very local.
About half of the customers pick up their flowers at the farm or at a location in Hopewell; the other half get their flowers delivered. Delivery is available for customers within five miles of the farm, including East Amwell, most of Hopewell, and portions of West Amwell and Skillman.
“Starting in 2025, we began to sell flowers on a wholesale basis,” said Stetson. “We upped our production to meet demand.”
She explained that she now sells flowers at the Jersey Cut Flower Market in Columbus, New Jersey. Designers are able to purchase flowers here on a wholesale basis from Stetson and other flower farmers; members of the general public are also able to buy flowers directly from Stetson and other flower farmers by purchasing a pass in advance to shop at this market. The Jersey Cut Flower Market is open from early spring through mid-autumn.
Stetson has found two other techniques useful in extending the life of flowers bought by customers.
“Flowers are harvested when green,” she said. “We then place the flowers in our cooler for conditioning one day before delivery. We built the cooler within one of our horse stalls that we converted for that purpose; the cooler is 12 feet by 12 feet by 10 feet.”
“We sell the flowers when their blooms are starting to open,” Stetson continued. “One fully-opened bloom is included so that the customers can see that flower in color.”
She sees great potential for cut flower sales in her community, especially for those seeking flowers grown in sustainable operations.
“Roughly 80 percent of flowers in the United States are imported,” Stetson said. “Many of the cut flowers sold in the U.S. come from South America. That means a large amount of cut flowers are flown here. Locally-grown flowers last longer and are grown in more sustainable ways.”
Deer are a challenge at this flower farm. To minimize damage from deer, Stetson installed an eight-foot-high deer fence around the farm’s garden area. This fencing, though, doesn’t always deter the deer.
This summer, despite the fence, two fawns somehow got inside the farm’s enclosure, even though the gate to the fence was closed, according to Stetson.
“I have no idea how they got there,” she said. “I tried to encourage them to head to the gate that I opened for them. Eventually, they found the gate and were able to go back into the woods.”
Comments are closed.