At Bushel & Peck Backyard Blooms, stopping to smell the roses is not just encouraged–it’s the whole point. 

Owner Kathleen Linville and her husband Tyler said in a world that rarely slows down, their local flower farm offers a quiet escape from the daily hustle and bustle. 

“The second you cross the bridge into the farm, we want you to be able to feel like you’ve left the world behind,” Tyler said. “It’s like its own separate piece of West Virginia.”

Kathleen said the farm’s dreamy aesthetic was the result of a long-held vision close to her heart, stemming from her great-grandfather. 

“He taught me to garden since I was in diapers,” Kathleen said. “Once I got old enough, it just took over starting with vegetables and then I realized how important flowers are for vegetables and it went from there.”

With a love for putting her hands in the dirt, Kathleen said for her, the ambition to flower farm was less about business and more about building something beautiful from the ground up.

“I didn’t want it to look super commercial,” Kathleen said. “I want it to be an experience as you walk through the path.”

Likewise, she said Bushel & Peck is not just a stroll on the grounds but an experience surrounded by a variety of blooms–many of which visitors can pick themselves. 

“You get to pick the flowers that make you happy,” Kathleen said. “You can pick all big blooms or all your favorite flowers instead of an already mixed arrangement. You’re in control.”

Beyond the joy of picking a personalized bouquet, Kathleen said Bushel & Peck aims to return the love Huntington has shown their business. 

“Community is everything to me. That is what has created this business,” Kathleen said. “It’s really important that we show that community support back.”

Looking forward, the flower farm plans to give back through a partnership with Healing Appalachia, an organization that produces events that raise funds and awareness to combat opioid addiction. This year’s event will feature performances from Tyler Childers and Chris Stapleton at the Boyd County Fairgrounds in Ashland, Kentucky.

“We are actually giving back a lot for Healing Appalachia,” Kathleen said. “We are going to have a booth and give the proceeds back.”

In addition to Healing Appalachia, Kathleen said the flower farm is looking to continue and expand flower services on and off the farm. 

“We do weddings out on the farm, but I’ll also do arrangements for weddings that are elsewhere or a ‘Build your own Bouquet Bar’ other places,” Kathleen said. 

In navigating the balance between business and creativity, Tyler said he and Kathleen rely on what each of them does best. 

“I don’t have the green thumb and creative vision that she has. I’m more of a type-A, numbers person,” Tyer said. “It’s easy for her to give me the receipts, I file them and figure out what I need to do to make the farm happen.”

Kathleen said she is content crafting her vision for the farm and finds fulfillment in curating Bushel & Peck’s creative vision. 

“We took a picture of the field prior to any development, it was such a blank canvas,” Kathleen said. “I look back and I’m still in the ‘pinch me, I’m dreaming’ stage because I don’t feel like everything I’ve dreamed it could be is real.”

As their farm grows, so does their mission: to remind people of the beauty in choosing local.

“I want to eventually provide the flowers to Huntington florists,” Kathleen said. “I want them to be fresh, homegrown and affordable so then everybody can be able to enjoy them.”

Tyler said continuing to foster their Huntington oasis remains a top priority as well. 

“Our slogan in West Virginia is ‘Wild and Wonderful’ but being a Huntington native, you don’t always get that feeling here, and you have to go somewhere else,” Tyler said. “To be able to do something in our backyard and to provide that for our residents is emotionally rewarding for us.”

Bushel & Peck is located at 2845 Harvey Rd., Huntington, WV.

Kaitlyn Fleming can be contacted at [email protected].