Alchemy Farms in the Maple City area is a unconventional farm full of plants grown with the intention of delighting the palate, body and eyes. The farm started a little over three years ago, though owner Naomi Call says she has been focused on herbalism and holistic wellness for most of her life.

Among other things, Call’s intention is to reintroduce an array of nutrients and minerals into foods through plants and flowers, many of which she grows herself.

She also says she wants to focus on increasing awareness of flowers as medicine, food, and pollinators.

Call says that the plants’ and flowers’ nutrients are key to what modern diet has lost.

“There are so many key nutrients that our diets have lost,” she says, “and these plants and flowers provide key nourishment that our bodies crave.”

Some of the products use plants not often found on the shelves, like edible flower bouquets using oregano and parsley blossoms, sunflower, bee balm and bachelor’s button.

One thing that Call emphasizes is the use of the entire plant rather than just some parts. Stems, petals and leaves are all used in her edible creations, bringing with them a host of beneficial nutrients that aren’t consumed when only part of the plant is eaten, she says. 

Call and her son, Loghan Call, work together to put on events through Loghan’s company, Planted Cuisine. They curate plant-based meals that contain a vibrant array of flowers and plants.

“One of our favorite things is when someone calls us a few days later and tells us how amazing they felt after eating one of our dinners,” Loghan says. “I think we get a lot of repeat customers for that reason.”

Naomi agrees, saying that she finds a lot of people to react positively to her edible bouquets, tisanes and other offerings.

All of the blooms used in her edible arrangements are entirely consumable by design, she says.

“You notice a difference when you finally give your body what it’s asking for,” she says. 

The duo use a mixture of growing techniques with a focus on permaculture and biodynamic styles and hope to soon add greenhouses and extend their growing season into the colder months.

Sustainable growing practices without pesticides, additives and other chemicals allow them to cultivate a whole host of plant life that is not only beneficial to those consuming it, but good for the soil as well.

In addition to the edible bouquets, Alchemy Farms also has a range of herbal tisanes, culinary flower blossom salts, perfumed essential oils, dried pressed culinary blossoms, hydrosols, floral bath salts, and compostable plant straws. Find out more about Alchemy Farms’ bestsellers in a feature written by Rachel Pasche in this week’s issue of our sister publication, Northern Express.