A Blooming Success: Winchester's Three Toads Farm

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A version of this story appeared in our sister publication,Business Lexington, in 2015.

With a focus on unique varietals, the Martha Stewart-approved flower farm Three Toads has found its farm-to-vase niche in Winchester

In 1998, Charlie Hendricks was on the cusp of retirement from the Lexington Fire Department and was looking for something to do in his spare time. Meanwhile, his longtime friend Val Schirmer owned a farm in Clark County where she had been experimenting with growing flowers.

It was over bourbon on the front porch one night that the two friends put their heads together and the idea for Three Toads Farm was born.

“I always wanted to do something with flowers,” said Schirmer, adding that their goal that first year was to each make $1,500.

After years of hard work, Schirmer, Hendricks and his daughter, Elizabeth Montgomery, have become well known as farmer-florists, earning a top-10 mention in a Martha Stewart Weddings feature last year and receiving requests from brides all over the country.

But getting there took a lot of work. Schirmer said the first two years were extremely difficult, without a lot to show for their efforts – they lost thousands of blooms to disease. Then Hendricks suggested involving another longtime friend of his, Bob Early. The two had grown a vegetable garden together, and Hendricks thought he could add a different perspective to the mix.

“You just have to keep experimenting; that’s how you create something beautiful,” Schirmer said.

Eventually, the three found a successful formula and became known for selling cut and potted flowers at the Lexington Farmers’ Market, where they have had a booth since 1998. Two greenhouses and a cooler were added to Early’s Colby Road property, where most of the growing now takes place, and Montgomery, who was a child when the business began, started taking on more of an active role. Schirmer had a few years of inactivity because of work commitments, and Early has now stepped aside because of health concerns.

Three years ago, though, Three Toads undertook its biggest challenge. Montgomery recently had finished school and was spending more time at the farm, so it seemed like a good time to try providing wedding floral services.

“People had been asking for years, ‘Do you do weddings?’ We had the design part down, and we had the flowers,” said Montgomery.

The challenge was in planning and execution, since Three Toads grows all the flowers it uses. Montgomery said that if brides book a year in advance they can request that specific flowers or colors be grown.

“There is a lot of meticulous timing – planning, holding back,” she said. “It’s a whole different ballgame.”

Three Toads relies on greenhouses and coolers to extend growing seasons and provide blooms that may be difficult to find in the area; specialty blooms include unique varietals of dahlias, lilies and zinnias. Each year, they tweak the process to include more flowers or a new flower out of season.

“They [brides] tell me what they want, and we make it happen,” Montgomery said. While there are limits to what can be grown in Kentucky – and a successful season of crops can never be guaranteed – Montgomery said they do their best to meet the requests of brides.

“Instead of a florist that gets things shipped in from thousands of miles away and different countries, we grow every single bloom. We offer things you can’t find at florists or wholesalers. We have the freshest, most unique blooms,” Montgomery said.

She also enjoys working with brides and helping them plan for the big day. Three Toads averages a little over a dozen weddings each year.

“Elizabeth is just so good at working with brides, working with event planners, and her design is just fabulous,” Schirmer said.

Montgomery is self-taught and said she developed her artistic ability from spending so much time around the farm growing up. Within the past several years, she left an outside job and moved back from Louisville to work at Three Toads full-time and give the event-planning side of the business the time and attention it requires.

To stay current on trends and get new ideas, Schirmer travels around the country to conferences and to meet other growers. The three constantly are looking for new flowers or designs for customers, Schirmer said.

“I always like something new and different,” Schirmer said.

She and Montgomery described the business as a passion, and Schirmer said she loves creating something that can evoke so much emotion from customers.

“Our theme has always been to grow flowers that would stop people in their tracks,” Schirmer said.

For more information on Three Toads Farm, visit www.threetoadsfarm.com, or look for them at the Lexington Farmers’ Market. ss

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