End the summer in flowers | The Press

(Saint-Anicet) At the end of summer, thousands of multicolored dahlias steal the show in the fields of Au beau pré, in Saint-Anicet in Montérégie. Every weekend, they attract hundreds of pickers who come to cut beautiful bouquets… and take their picture in the middle of the flowers. What if a new tradition was being born?

Simon Chabot
The Press

“We had a huge success! In the summer of 2020, pickers invaded the flower fields of Au beau pré. On social networks, bucolic photos taken at dusk in a deluge of dahlias have multiplied, giving the flower farm unexpected publicity.

“We weren’t ready for that! says Sarah Beaupré, owner of the flower farm, which grows about 50 annuals and nearly 300 varieties of dahlias on a few acres of family land.

The ride was repeated last year. “But this time, we were organized, continues Sarah. We could receive up to 500 people a day. We also brought in food trucks to feed them. »

On Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays until the end of September, visitors will once again be able to dive into the flowers, in addition to having a bite to eat and a drink. The menu varies each week, but there will be wood-fired pizzas, as well as poutines and wild boar sandwiches from Domaine Herdman, with beers from the Barabas brewery or gins from the Distillerie 3 Lacs. Cook Jim le Cook will also be there on some weekends and will prepare an outdoor dinner on September 10th.

Will the crowds be back? “It’s going to be a test now that people have resumed their usual life, but it’s okay if it’s a little quieter,” says Sarah Beaupré.

Anyway, the flowers are already there. As for annuals, with knapweed, foxglove, zinnia, craspédia (looking like pompoms) and other celosias (with their flamboyant spikes). As with dahlias, with multiform flowers, sometimes very simple, sometimes as big as a soccer ball, often with an impressive number of petals of almost every color.

The U-pick operation is simple: all adults pay $5 for the entrance fee, and then we pay for each stem cut. The first stems cost $1.75 each, regardless of the flower, and the price goes down to $1 each for 30 stems and more. Some prepared bouquets are also on sale. Everyone takes their time (and their photos), and can picnic on the spot.

Hatching projects

“U-pick is an activity that we love, so we would like to set up shady corners, create atmospheres, adds Sarah. We want to put a flower meadow, to block the view of the corn. I would like to do guided tours to explain the ecological culture…”

And plant hazelnut trees, and build new greenhouses to stretch out the season, and test other varieties. At 32, Sarah has her mind full of projects. And the belly: she is due to give birth in November to a second daughter.

Even though she grew up in Saint-Anicet, between Lake Saint-François where chalets are piled up and large fertile lands mainly planted with corn or soybeans, Sarah did not see herself living off the family farm. “Me, cucumbers or squash, I was not passionate about it”, loose the one who had rather chosen to make a career in communications.

But when her farming parents became interested in dahlias, her interest began to germinate. She decided to devote herself full-time to flowers in January 2020, after a year of experimenting with annuals with Caroline Boyce, of Floralia, who cultivates a plot here. “I started even though I didn’t know much about it,” she recalls.

Her parents supported her. “I am a natural caregiver,” jokes his father Roger, who passes by in a breeze.

In any case, to see the enthusiasm generated by U-pick (but also the subscriptions of bouquets, dried flowers and the sale of dahlia tubers to plant at home), we say to ourselves that Sarah made a good choice.

And while admiring the profusion of dahlias in the field of Au beau pré, we also think that picking flowers is a great way to enjoy the last beautiful days of summer.

Where to pick flowers?

There are flower farms all over southern Quebec and many offer pick-your-own activities at the end of summer. Here are four suggestions.

The Beauty of Coteau-du-Lac, Coteau-du-Lac, Montérégie

Sunflowers bring the crowds to La Belle de Coteau-du-Lac on weekends, until Labor Day. There are about 60 varieties, some with red, orange or creamy white flowers, which create beautiful backdrops for photos. U-pick is permitted on a parcel. Count $18.50 per adult and $12 per child to access the site, and between $6 and $25 for a bouquet of sunflowers. There is also a corn maze, mobile kitchen and picnic tables on site.

Garlic Lys ecological flower farm, Saint-Édouard-de-Napierville, Montérégie

Open Wednesday to Sunday until the end of September, the Garlic Farm offers pickers the opportunity to fill a pitcher or bucket with flowers, for $30 or $80. Access to the site, where visitors can picnic while enjoying the scenery, costs $5. The farm also organizes yoga classes or meditation workshops in the flowers on Fridays (and some Saturdays), until September 16. The place has adopted a zero waste policy. Pickers are therefore invited to provide a container to bring back their flowers.

Florae Farm, Shawinigan, Mauricie

The Florae farm welcomes visitors to its fields of zinnias, gladioli, echinacea, cosmos, sunflowers and flowers to be dried, among others. The entrance fee is set at $8 per adult and $5 per child, and the price of the bouquets varies according to the flowers chosen. Chairs and picnic tables are on site. Visitors can also bring a blanket to eat in the field. You must call 819 913-9244 to reserve your place.

Libella Flower Farm, Bury, Estrie

The Libella flower farm opens its fields to pickers from Thursday to Sunday. Everyone chooses a container to fill with stems, at $10, $20 or $60. In addition to cultivated flowers (including sunflowers, cosmos and snapdragons), visitors have access to wildflowers along 2 km of trail. The farm will be open until the first frosts, and maybe even beyond, because sunflowers, for example, resist the cold quite well. The farm’s Facebook page will be updated.