Locally, Sustainably Grown Tulips Bloom At Somerset County's Bare Flower Farm

BRANCHBURG, NJ — With a little education and practice, Jessie Babbitt of Neshanic Station in Branchburg turned her "black thumb" into a "green thumb" and a thriving flower farming business.

Babbitt along with her husband Eric and 4-year-old pitbull rescue Chance took a leap of faith in 2019 when they uprooted their lives from Mount Olive and bought two acres in Neshanic Station.

Now they run B.A.R.E. Flower Farm which has a mission to offer a "local alternative for blooms while creating a community that centers around living a more sustainable lifestyle."

As a relatively inexperienced grower/gardener, this was not something Babbitt was familiar with at first. She always had an interest in sustainability and had initially delved into vegetable gardening to reduce her carbon footprint on the planet.

She struggled at first.

"My mom could put anything into the soil and it would grow," said Babbit.

"I always thought I had a 'black thumb' and then one day I had an 'Ah ha' moment. There is no such thing as a green or black thumb. It is based on knowledge," said Babbitt.

She learned that vegetables needed flowers to boost productivity. She slowly became that "townhouse person that looked like they had a jungle in the front and the back of their yard," said Babbitt.

Babbitt then found the property in Branchburg and she and Eric got to work. They converted a 30x90-foot plot, lifted and removed the sod, added truckloads of compost and went from there.

Prior to Bare Flower Farm, Babbitt also had a soap company called b.a.r.e. soaps. This is where she got the name for her farm as b.a.r.e. stands for "bringing antiseptic resources to everyone."

Through her soap business she realized her passion for living and sharing what a sustainable lifestyle means to her. She expanded this into her flower business and eventually into tulips.

For holidays such as Valentine's Day, Babbitt said the majority of the flowers sold in the US have to be internationally flown in. In early 2022, she took a Tulip Workshop and learned how to force tulips in her basement throughout the winter.

"It's kind of been a science experiment. The nerdy part of me loves to control the pace of how tulips grow. To slow them down or speed them up," said Babbitt , who currently uses LED lights. She plans to switch to solar.

Now she is able to force more than 200,000 tulips each winter season.

"Local flowers travel fewer miles and are better quality," said Babbitt She is hoping to triple her flower goal for next year.

Her tulips are available through early April sometimes closer to Mother's Day depending on the weather. They have a 10- to 14-day base life, which she says is hard to get from a grocery store.

Previously her flowers were available at the Duke Farms Farmer's Market but right now she is offering pickups at her residential location or delivery.

"Flowers convey so much emotion," said Babbitt. "A bouquet of really well-grown flowers stands out."

To learn more about B.A.R.E. Flower Farm or to order flowers visit bareflowerfarm.com or Instagram or Facebook or YouTube.

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