Agriculture
Our 33-acre farm has nourished our guests over the years. Now it is time to share that bounty with our local community. We are in phase one of our agricultural cortex through education and outreach.
This past Spring, we planted over 6,000 Spring bulbs that blossomed into thousands of cut flowers for our special events and weddings.
This summer, acres of zinnias, cosmos, sunflowers, dahlias, and native pollinators will flank our fields, available for cut flower arrangements, private events, weddings, and workshops.
We will continue to build our infrastructure as a working farm growing produce, herbs, micro greens and flowers all the while supporting multiple local farmers. Meet Katie Hochstedler, our full-time Farm Manager in the next section. Katie works with sustainable and organic practices and will spearhead our partnership with the non-profit Known and Grown.
Explore our GET INVOLVED page to learn more about their mission and values! We are very excited to be partnering with them!
Meet Our Farmer Katie
Katie Hochstedler grew up gardening with her mother on the family farm in Iowa. Having studied social work and later culinary arts, Katie has spent most of her adult life focused on growing and cooking great food.
Most recently, Katie co-founded HartBeet Farm in Eolia, Missouri, with her wife, Nicki, and Nicki's parents. HartBeet Farm was a Certified Naturally Grown diversified vegetable farm with a CSA and a regular at the Lake Saint Louis Farmers Market. HartBeet also offered artisan jams, maple syrup, timber foraged fruit, and mushrooms.
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Katie looks forward to bringing her experience with sustainable produce farming and conservation focus to Le Champ de Fleurs and integrating agroforestry practices into the property. Katie will be exploring ways to grow a great mix of cut flowers, edible flowers, perennials, native plants, and other ornamentals to offer both beauty and benefits to pollinators and soil health. She is excited to have room for many valuable and beautiful cover crops. Katie is already identifying locations for fruit and nut trees and shrubs while looking at ways to build wetlands into wet areas of the property. She loves to see native pollinators buzzing all over flowers and cover crops and plans to partner with beneficial insects to fight pests.
With plenty of room to grow, Katie looks forward to providing abundant fruits, vegetables, and flowers to serve at Stone Soup Cottage, beginning a CSA program, selling at our market stand, and donating in the community. Keep an eye out for classes and fun events as we grow. ​
Katie plans to partner with the Known and Grown program of the Missouri Coalition for the Environment to build connections with other farmers and the community.
Meet our Summer Intern
Meet Jonathan Pierce, Le Champ de Fleur's first full-time college AG student. Jonathan studies at the University of Missouri - Columbia pursuing a degree in Plant Sciences. Part of our Agricultural Cortex is to provide interns with real-world/hands-on experiences in sustainable farming. Jonathan will work under the direction of our Farm Manager to tackle day-to-day projects and assist in developing the foundation in our fields and the newly built high tunnel.
"I am thrilled to be part of such a dynamic team at Le Champ De Fleurs, helping to build and maintain a new agri-centric property. I love Stone Soup Cottage and have worked with Carl and Nancy for a few years in the front of the house while pursuing my degree. When a full-time internship position became available, I jumped at the chance! Carl, Nancy, and Katie are very supportive of my education, and this hands-on experience will be invaluable towards my goal of horticulture and landscape design."
