Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
Kosciusko Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon-cutting for The Big Gray Barn Company, 3816 N. CR 400E, Warsaw, Tuesday.
Owner Joan Harden said The Big Gray Barn Company is a you-pick flower farm, “so people can come and fill up a bucket and go out and pick flowers.”
In the fall, they move to a you-pick pumpkin patch and people can pick out pumpkins, gourds and mums.
This is the fourth season for The Big Gray Barn. Harden said she grew up gardening and her family has done it for years. She also has a biology degree from Grace College and taught agriculture at Wawasee High School.
When she left teaching, she said she had to keep growing. She heard about you-pick flower farms and knew Kosciusko County didn’t have any, so she decided to start one. Harden said her family already had the land, so they had to till rows and plant in landscaping fabric. Then she had to pick the right seed and start some of the plants inside early in the spring and “then we wait for them to grow,” she said.
She thinks a you-pick flower farm “is an experience. It’s an experience where it’s peaceful and quiet and beautiful.” She also said unlike flowers at the grocery store, the flowers at The Big Gray Barn are locally grown.
Harden said she wants people to enjoy and learn about flowers. She hopes her farm provides a place to come full of quiet, peace and rest.
People pay $1 per stem through cash or Venmo. Hours of operation are Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
