Loving the Flowers at Winnipesaukee Woods Farm
Loving the Flowers at Winnipesaukee Woods Farm
By Kathi Caldwell-Hopper
Liz Lichtenberg has rarely met a flower she didn’t like. From standard to rare blooms, it is all of interest to Liz and you can see it in the way she marvels at and studies a flower. It is there in her conversation as well, as she speaks of a new flower and its color and properties.
If this sounds like a love affair with growing things, it is probably because Liz truly adores being a farmer. Along with her husband, Aaron Lichtenberg, Liz spends her days, like all true farmers, working very hard growing flowers and vegetables. The Lichtenberg’s business, Winnipesaukee Woods Farm, operates in a number of ways: via an extensive website where customers can order a variety of items, at local pop-up shops, wholesale and through sales at area stores (a list of locations can be found at www.winniwoodfarm.com
“Farming is a year-round profession,” Liz says. “Every day is different, but we want to have an honest living and we believe in feeding people.”
That philosophy of giving to others has been part of Liz and Aaron’s lives for years. The couple once owned a restaurant and even before that, Aaron spent years in the restaurant world. Once he discovered an interest in growing things, Aaron became a full-time farmer.
Liz is also a successful farmer, as well as working as an educator in Gilmanton during the school year. All of this keeps her very busy, and perhaps led to another business whose name was coined by Aaron. Liz laughs as she explains, “Aaron says I’m always doing something and dreaming up new projects; thus my nickname ‘Busy Lizzie’ or as the business is called, ‘Busy Lizzie’s Blooms.’”
With a home in Alton Bay (Aaron’s family history in the area dates back many years) and additional space in Gilford for crops, Winnipesaukee Woods Farm began about nine years ago. Liz says she previously assumed she had no talent as a gardener, but after buying their Alton Bay home 11 years ago, Aaron started reading gardening books and her interest was sparked as well.
The couple began with a garden at their home, which soon grew. And grew until it overtook all the available space. As their vegetable gardens expanded, Liz started growing flowers as well. She discovered she had a talent for growing flowers and began to experiment by creating unusual varieties as well as more well-known blooms.
With gardens full of flowers and vegetables, Liz says they decided it would be helpful to make some money off their efforts, as well as offering something healthy to others. Thus began a vegetable CSA which had over 100 members.
Restaurants and stores also bought vegetables and Liz’s flowers. “I offered just small bouquets at first,” she explains. But the demand for flowers has grown steadily and today, Liz grows 50 to 75 varieties and sub-varieties of flowers for eager customers and local designers who love the floral choices for weddings and events. “I grow flowers with the seasons. I like to experiment and every year I offer new flowers, along with the standard florals,” Liz says. With huge coolers at their home, Liz is able to bring a variety of flowers from the fields right into her home work space to create all sorts of bouquets and arrangements for customers (ordering ahead online is suggested).
In July and August, Liz sees such flowers as Lisianthus (a flower similar to a rose) in bloom, along with dahlias, sunflowers and many others. Her eyes light up when she talks about seeds she got for a purple flower called a Black Pearl, one of the unusual flowers she is growing.
And then there is a current passion for a delicate but gorgeous flower, called the Clarkia. It is a light pink color and the little flowers grow on long stems and seem to last forever. They are a perfect choice for a bridal bouquet or a floral arrangement and it is clear Liz is thrilled with this addition to her flower gardens.
Because of her willingness to experiment with new and unusual flowers, Liz is known for doing unique things and she also loves to share what she has learned with others in floral workshops.
Each day – seven days a week – Liz and Aaron are at their Gilford fields growing flowers and vegetables, tending the crops and even doing such mundane tasks as pulling weeds. Liz smiles as she says she loves to pull weeds, finding is satisfying to keep her gardens tidy. She enjoys having her hands in the dirt, especially when the stresses of life are felt. As it is for everyone, the pandemic is a worry, but growing things and working outdoors is a great way to cope.
“We have many orders, and that has only grown during COVID,” Liz explains. With more people at home, doing their own cooking, the desire for fresh vegetables has increased. “People are being creative with their cooking and learning what can be frozen and canned for later use.”
Along with customers who use Winnipesaukee Woods Farm produce, Aaron and Liz utilize their vegetables on a daily basis. Liz says they rarely eat much that they don’t grow in their gardens and the use of their vegetables changes as the seasons flow one into another. “We like to be creative with our cooking too.”
With an abundance of fresh vegetables, the couple knew they did not want to see things go to waste. (Anyone who has even a modest vegetable garden knows that when veggies are in season, they can produce so much the gardener cannot keep up with it.) Added to their background in cooking in the restaurant world, a new avenue to use the produce began.
Winnipesaukee Woods Farm works with the folks at Genuine Local (a unique shared-use, commercial kitchen that specializes in small-batch production) to create items using the fresh vegetables direct from the farm’s gardens. The spotless production facility gives businesses such as Winnipesaukee Woods Farm a place to create large batches of products, from sauces to jams and much more, right through to the end bottling and labeling of each jar. The food then goes to local markets and country stores. Or goods can be ordered at the Winnipesaukee Woods website. Just a peek at the online store offers choices such as Spicy Carrot Relish, Yankee Ingenuity Hot Sauce and Roasted Poblano Sauce, to name but a few.
“Local restaurants are using our products, and that is very satisfying,” Liz adds.
Clearly, the ability to collaborate with other local farms and businesses is important to the couple, and Liz names other local farmers as vital to the food chain as well.
What does the future hold for Winnipesaukee Woods Farm? Without missing a beat, Liz says it is their dream to find a place that will be their “forever farm.” This would allow the couple space to spread out and also to experiment with new crops and flowers, increase production and offer workshops on growing flowers and vegetables and even bring creative floral design to a public whose interest just keeps increasing as word spreads about Winnipesaukee Woods Farm.
Whether pulling weeds, tending crops, planning next year’s gardens or arranging a gorgeous floral bouquet for a wedding, Liza and Aaron are busy, successful farmers.
As she goes about her daily tasks, it can be sure that Liz stops now and then to say hello to a new flower she has just discovered or lovingly admiring a flower that is like an old friend, producing blooms each year. As a true lover of the earth and all it offers, Liz indeed has rarely met a flower she did not like.
For information and orders, visit www.winniwoodsfarm.com or email woodlandsfarmer@gmail.com.
Aaron and Liz Lichtenberg tending their gardens.