Happy Monday, all – I hope everyone’s enjoying the long weekend! Whether you packed it with fun-filled activities, took a little weekend getaway, or are just relishing some R&R time at home, I hope you’re having a good one.
If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you probably know that I have a bit of an obsession with flower farms. Over the years, I’ve had the pleasure of visiting several flower farms within Southern Ontario… heck, I even proposed to my fiancée at one! There’s just something so lovely and idyllic about them – whether you’re strolling through fields of beautiful blooms, clipping your own bouquet to take home, or enjoying a picture-perfect picnic. At the farm I’m featuring today, you can do all three!
Located in East Garafraxa in Dufferin County, just an hour north of the GTA, Hereward Farms is a family-run lavender and sunflower farm with a commitment to sustainable farming practices. The farm was founded by entrepreneur Julie Thurgood-Burnett in 2020, who – at the time – knew nothing about lavender nor farming. On a whim, she planted 40 lavender plants in her backyard, and started making and selling her own lavender-infused skincare products. The business took off, and Julie and her husband Stephen decided to order more lavender plants and expand the farm. Today, the 250-acre farm is home to no fewer than 6,000 lavender plants and 400,000 sunflowers. Talk about a fruitful pandemic project! (In contrast, all I ended up with is a multitude of uneaten jam jars from my COVID canning phase… but that’s another story.)
Hereward Farms welcomes visitors who want to pick-their-own lavender bundles, shop their farm store, or simply spend a relaxing afternoon picnicking in the flower fields. The farm hosts various events throughout the year, from creative workshops to psychic readings to holiday ‘sip & shops’. Last weekend, Tania and I attended their Sip, Savour & Stroll event* and we had the best time!
Sip, Savour & Stroll is a five-day summer event highlighting the best of everything Hereward Farms has to offer. Tickets are $50 and include admission to the farm’s sunflower and lavender fields, a gourmet charcuterie box, a beverage ticket (both alcoholic and non-alcoholic options available) and $10 in “Gordie Bucks” to spend in the boutique.
We arrived at the farm around 11 am, and the first thing we did was go for a scenic stroll through the sunflower fields. They’ve created a winding maze (don’t worry, you won’t actually get lost) with fun props for the perfect photo ops. How cool is that antique sofa!?
Then we headed over to the lavender field. I wish photos could capture scents, because the rows upon rows of lavender plants smelled absolutely incredible! The bees were buzzing from plant to plant, clearly loving it as well. As mentioned, I’ve been to a lot of flower farms, and while some of the larger “destination” farms are lots of fun, they can often feel a bit crowded and chaotic during peak bloom seasons. In contrast, Hereward is small and intimate, and that’s one of the things I love most about them. There were a few other people enjoying the property, but for the most part, it was beautifully quiet and peaceful, with just the sounds of the buzzing bees providing the soundtrack of the day. We really enjoyed just taking the opportunity to pause, relax and reconnect with nature.
At this point it was around noon and we were getting a little peckish, so we decided to enjoy our picnic! Sip, Savour & Stroll tickets include one charcuterie box and beverage of choice per person. There are both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverage options. We were torn between white wine and the farm’s homemade lavender-infused lemonade, so the “bartender” suggested we do a mix of both, and it was absolutely delicious – like a refreshing lavender-lemon spritzer! We also picked up our charcuterie boxes, which were all prepped and ready for us to enjoy. Neither Tania or I have any dietary restrictions, but for those who do, Hereward offers both gluten-free and vegetarian options. We’d brought our own picnic blanket from home, but Hereward had also provided pillows and blankets for anyone who wanted to picnic in the fields – a thoughtful touch. They also had picnic tables set up overlooking the fields, for those who aren’t “dinner on the ground” folks!
We spread our picnic blanket right in the lavender field, and tucked into our delicious charcuterie boxes. Inside the boxes were cold cuts, crackers, various cheeses, olives, blueberry-lavender jam, fresh fruits and veggies, and the most delicious shortbread cookies – the perfect sweet ending to our meal. They were also deceptively substantial – we were both quite full afterwards!
After lunch, we headed into the farm store to spend our $20 in “Gordie Bucks”. We met Gordie himself, who was eager to show us around the store and help us find everything we were looking for… in exchange for a few chin scratches, of course. Gordie’s the unofficial mascot of Hereward Farms and a bit of a celebrity – he even has his own Instagram account!
The store is filled with all-natural, small-batch, lavender-infused products that are made on-site using the purest ingredients – and no harsh, harmful chemicals! Hereward’s “farm-to-skin” products include soaps, bath salts, body scrubs, lotions and facial skincare. They also have goodies for your home (candles, reed diffusers, all-natural cleaners) and pantry (lavender-infused lemonade, jam, chocolate, and more!)
We got a lavender-lemon-vanilla candle that I’ve been absolutely loving. I don’t normally burn candles in the summer, but this one is too good to pass up! I’ve been lighting it pretty much every day.
All of Hereward Farms’ products use 100% Canadian ingredients, are paraben and sulphate-free, and are packaged in minimal plastic. The farm even offers a Refill Program to further minimize packaging waste. Along with using sustainable farming techniques and energy-efficient production methods, these are just some of the ways that Hereward Farms is committed to fostering environmental sustainability. Every business likes to claim they do so… but Hereward actually walks the walk!
The boutique is open year-round, but you can also shop online (get 20% off your first purchase when you sign up for their newsletter!) or via one of their local retailers. That said, I’d definitely recommend going in person and checking out the farm if you can – it’s truly a one-of-a-kind experience! Check out my Instagram reel of our visit here.
If you’d like to experience Hereward Farms for yourself, their lavender and sunflower fields are open every Wednesday-Saturday from 10-4, and admission costs $5 per person, per field. Lavender season typically peaks in mid-late July, but Julie advised me that the specific varieties of lavender they plant typically last all through August! Even when we visited last weekend – a time when many lavender fields are already starting to dry up and lose colour – I was impressed to see how lush and vibrant everything was. Sunflowers were just starting to bloom when we were there, and should be reaching peak bloom around mid-August. Note that the charcuterie picnics were only offered as part of the Sip, Savour & Stroll event, but visitors are welcome to bring their own picnic to enjoy on the grounds! You can also pick your own bundle of lavender to take home – PYO tickets are $15 per person and can be purchased on-site (general field admission tickets can be purchased online here.)
I’m so excited to return to Hereward Farms for next year’s Sip, Savour & Stroll! In the meantime, I’m keeping my eye on their calendar to stay up-to-date on the other fun happenings they’re hosting through the rest of 2024. In addition to public events and workshops, the farm also offers private events, group tours and property bookings – for everything from birthday parties to weddings to corporate retreats. Email [email protected] to inquire about hosting a private event at the farm.
A huge thank you to Hereward Farms for a lovely afternoon – and to all of you for reading about it! I hope you have a great rest of your long weekend, and a great start to your August. Here’s to savouring summer while we still can!
*Our tickets to Sip, Savour & Stroll were generously gifted by Hereward Farms. As always, all opinions and thoughts are entirely my own.
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[…] farms. From swinging in the sunflowers at Pingle’s to picnicking in the lavender fields at Hereward Farms, it’s been quite the floral-filled summer – and I’m not complaining! A couple of […]