Who Are We?
We are Naomi Boswell & Steve Wickenkamp. Naomi was born and raised in Chase City, Virginia where we are now building our farm. Steve is originally from Iowa. We met and married while living in Alaska, where we both lived for over a decade. While in Alaska, we each spent time working on organic vegetable farms and started developing a dream of building a farm of our own.
When COVID hit, Alaska started to feel very far from our families, so we took the leap, looked for jobs in Virginia, and made the move. Next thing we knew, we were turning an old carport frame into a small greenhouse, filling every planter with tulips, and rebuilding the deer fences which now guard our gardens! 2023 was our first full growing season and we learned a lot! (We still are, constantly).
In the time since Steady Porch Farm was officially established, we have been expanding our infrastructure and increasing our flower production. We have also made countless mistakes and learned many lessons! The constant learning and the power of fresh flowers’ beauty are what keep us farming.
We are excited to grow and are doing our best to cultivate something beautiful!
Why local flowers?
The cut flower industry is a big one—Americans spend over $7 billion on cut flowers every year. Not that many decades ago, most US flowers were produced domestically. Now about 80% of cut flowers are imported, largely from South America. This is due in part to trade agreements intended to discourage narcotics production.
Local flowers look better, smell better, and last far longer than imported flowers. Imported flowers have already spent a good bit of time on planes and trucks before they get into your hands; they have an outsized carbon footprint and cannot be truly fresh. Furthermore, flowers grown overseas are not subject to the same labor and environmental standards and their production historically involves dangerous chemicals and exploitative labor practices.
Buying local flowers supports the local economy and is the sensible, sustainable choice.
Our Growing Practices
We farm on land that has belonged to the family for multiple generations. We make every effort to use sustainable and regenerative practices—it’s the only way we’d ever farm.
We do not use any conventional pesticides or fertilizers. We have only ever worked on organic farms and our growing practices are informed by our experience and our interest in sustainable organic methods.
