A local flower farm you won’t forget

Sometimes dreams really do come true. At age 12, when her dad nudged her out of the house and into their garden to pull weeds and clean up vines, Erin Cech didn’t yet know it would be the first of many small but steady steps toward owning the magical flower farm on which she now spends her days.

She often rises before the sun and spends dewy mornings among rows of beautiful blooms. Sometimes she prepares bouquets for events, neighbors, and all her customers. On other days, she labors over the dirty work of planting bulbs, pulling weeds, and plucking pests from flowers to avoid spraying pesticides on her colorful crops.

This hard work, with the help of family and friends, brings to life the vision Erin cultivated over many years to combine her loves of flowers, farming, crafting, and restoring into a community space she could share with others.

Meet Renegade Flower Farm.

In 2009, Erin and her husband, Keegan Rodkey, and their newborn baby moved into a home tucked in the woods behind an old farmhouse in Garnet Valley. Over many years, they became close friends with the aging couple who lived in the farmhouse. When the husband and wife both passed away, the farmers’ daughters set out to sell the quaint farmhouse and the large plot of land on which it stood.

After over a year of passing the beloved but empty house, Erin caught wind that a developer had placed a bid on the property and planned to replace the farmhouse with a housing subdivision. “Not on our watch,” she thought. She couldn’t fathom seeing the farmhouse and field succumb to demolition.

With a dash of love, a dollop of hope, and every penny to their name, Erin and Keegan submitted a bid to buy the 11-acre property. They weren’t the highest bidder. But they wrote a letter to the daughters to accompany their bid that laid out their plans for the future of the property, and that letter proved compelling enough to give them the chance to pursue their dream.

After many months of arduous labor turning a 2-acre portion of the land into a flower farm, they transformed the space into a pollinator paradise that also scatters seeds of joy for anyone who visits. From You Pick events to bouquet subscriptions to Books and Blooms for the kiddos, there are so many ways to enjoy the beauty and support the farm.

Maintaining the farm is no small feat; it’s a family affair. While Erin leads the endeavor, her husband and three daughters, Gray, Prue, and Desy, get their hands dirty too. Around his full-time job, Keegan was integral in preparing the land for planting. When they aren’t in school, the three girls weed the fields, pick flowers, arrange bouquets, and bring plenty of young energy to the farm.

More than grocery store flowers

Renegade Flower Farm is more than a place to find your standard fare flowers. Bouquets are spunky and fresh, using local flowers grown right here in our neighborhood (unlike many grocery store bouquets shipped across oceans with hefty carbon footprints).

Local farmers and makers return significantly more money into our local economy than their big box store competitors. They build community, create connections, support other small businesses, and hire our neighbors. Local companies like Renegade Flower Farm are worth investing in.

Renegade offers seasonal subscriptions, one-off bouquet orders, and a 10 Stem Thursday special. You can get Party Buckets to make bouquets at your own events.

They host a variety of events, from Books and Blooms for kids to You Pick events. Alternatively, you can rent the farm to host your own events. A field of colorful blooms makes for a seriously gorgeous backdrop to whatever you’re hosting.

Some neighbors even have family photos taken at the farm. If you’re hiring a professional photographer, you can’t beat butterflies and blooms in the background of your annual family photo session.

Private citizens protecting open space

Beyond the flowers, a local flower farm using sustainable practices like Renegade is also preserving open space and protecting the health of our community. Many of us value more green space and fewer strip malls in our area, but maintaining those spaces is expensive.

If we truly value open space, those of us who can afford it need to open our wallets to support the farmers and conservationists doing the heavy lifting. There are lots of ways to do that, but choosing local flowers over grocery store variety, hosting events at places like Renegade, and sharing about the farm with friends help ensure Erin and her family can continue to protect the precious open space that makes our community special.

You might think you’re snagging a deal at the grocery store for cheaper flowers, but those come at a cost to the planet and our local community. Paying a bit more for local flowers from a hyperlocal farmer offers a much better return on our investment.

Small shifts support big dreams

Erin and her family took a leap of faith to pursue a passion and fulfill a dream. Right now, they’re in the trenches of sprouting seeds and nurturing new beginnings. Stem by stem, they’re crafting into reality the vibrant and thriving community gem they envision. If you haven’t seen it yet, be sure to take a ride down Garnet Mine Road in Garnet Valley and look for Renegade Flower Farm. You can’t miss it.

And if you’ve got an extra glass jar or two that would rather be home to a floral bouquet than relegated to your recycling bin, bring it along with you and drop it in their upcycling bucket. Erin and her daughters will fill it with flowers for a lucky neighbor, one of their many bouquet orders, or the weekend flower sales.

With every bouquet Erin sends out into the wild, Renegade Flower Farm plants another root on its journey to being a flourishing home of creativity, community, and connection in the Brandywine Valley. To learn more about Renegade Flower Farm, check out their website and. You can also visit the farm at 3597 Garnet Mine Road in Garnet Valley or find them at the Concord Farmer’s Market!

Best of all, Renegade makes lots of bouquets to order, so don’t hesitate to email Erin at [email protected] and request a custom, handpicked bouquet for yourself or a friend.