Self-Serve Sunflower Stand Becomes an Oxford Staple

By Talbert Toole
Lifestyles Editor
talbert.toole@hottytoddy.com

Growing a flower farm started out as a fun project for Katherine Sharp in the summer of 2016. Now, she has turned the project into a full-time career and business—Farmstead Florals.

Sharp raises her flowers on The Farmstead on Woodson Ridge, which serves as an event space and venue, among other accommodations.
She graduated from Sewanee: The University of the South in May 2017. During the summer of her senior year, she decided to travel back to Oxford to dig her hands into the soil of the farm.
“I started farming the flowers [on the farmstead] just as a jobette to see if I liked farming,” Sharp said.
She said with the help of florists in Oxford, Memphis and Birmingham she learned how to become a better flower farmer. Now, with Farmstead Floral covering 4-acres, Sharp supplies several florists within a three hour radius. 

Sharp has been in the flower farming business for a full year. She has now added an additional project to her agenda—a self-serve flower stand.
Located in the courtyard of North Oxford Square, Sharp has assembled a flower stand that is “completely based on the honor system,” she said.
The concept for the FarmStead Floral stand originally came from Sharp’s father. She said one rainy afternoon they spent the day building a “glorified lemonade stand” into a self-serve flower stand.
The flower stand has been in the courtyard for nearly three weeks. Filled with sunflowers, hydrangeas and mason jar bouquets, the concept is centered around a cash box and Venmo pay system.
“Everybody has been really enthusiastic about [the flower stand]. I feel like when a town is really excited about something, they take care of it.”
Sharp said she plans to keep the flower stand running until the first frost in winter. Currently, she keeps the stand stocked with seasonal flowers.
Find Farmstead Florals’ variety of flowers at the flower stand, Oxford Floral and Saturday’s farmers market in the Midtown Shopping Center.

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