Dollie’s Farm | A Lavender & U-Pick Flower Farm

Have you ever ventured into acres of lavender and flowers of all kinds and cut a few stems right from the field? A u-pick flower outing not only produces some beautiful blooms for your home, it also provides the unique experience of standing amongst hundreds of blooms. I must admit I am a huge flower fan and so are my boys.

Dollie’s U-Pick Flower Farm

When I heard about a new u-pick lavender and flower farm nearby, I knew I wanted to take my boys to explore and learn about the unique experience of a lavender and flower field. Located about 30 minutes south of downtown Indianapolis in Franklin is Dollie’s Lavender and U-pick Flower Farm.  The farm boasts rows of mature lavender and a variety of flowers to choose from.

Visiting Dollie’s Farm

As you enter the Lavender farm; I was immediately in love with the beautiful welcoming wagon donning the farms name “Dollie’s” along with inviting fresh flowers. Once on the gravel road, a gentleman will greet you and direct your vehicle to a designated open field for parking. If you happen to need handicap parking, there are designated handicap parking spaces in front of the Flower shed for easier access to all the amenities. There is also a small ramp on the back of the Flower shed that allows easy wheelchair and stroller access to the store. The overall accessibility to the farm with a jogging stroller will be easier than a lightweight stroller. Near the Flower shed is a gray port a potty for restroom access.

As you walk up to the lavender and flower area, you will be greeted by the owner of the farm at a small flower wrapping station. There, you will be given a basket and cutting sheers per person. The owner will share information about lavender farms in Indiana and a small briefing on how to cut the flowers and lavender.

The area is an open field with lots of sunshine and you can view all the different activities and flowers that the farm offers. There are rows of fragrant Lavender flowers and rows of a variety of gorgeous flowers that can be freshly cut and made into beautiful bouquets. There’s ample seating throughout the farm, along with a cute patio pergola area that houses two long picnic tables for a snack or an area to relax from the sun after picking flowers.

Dollie’s U-pick Flower Farm would be an incredible date night idea, a beautiful setting for a moms night out, a wedding or baby shower or other special occasion.

U-Pick Lavender and Fresh Flowers

At the flower stand, after the information was given to our family about Lavenders and how to cut them properly. Each of my boys had his own bucket and scissors to cut and collect Lavender. With the help of grandma, my boys set on their mission to find the “purpliest” lavender flowers to cut and take home. The field was beautiful with perfect rows of purple lavenders. My oldest son is seven years old and because he has experience with scissors, we allowed him to cut his own stems; as for my four-year-old, grandma assisted him with the cutting. As we were walking through the field, we could smell the fresh aromatic lavender fragrance. At our briefing before heading out, the owner had advised us to rub the lavender between our hands and that action allows the lavender to give off a stronger fragrance.

Photo Credit: Ashley Toler

There are also a variety of U-pick flowers, from a field of poppies to a mint match, there is something beautiful and colorful for each person to choose from and to make their very own flower bouquet. We were given a tall bucket with water to fill with fresh cut flowers. Once we had collected various flowers, my boys took their bucket to the flower stand and they were wrapped up into a bouquet.

Chicken feeding

Next to the poppy field on the farm, you will find a large chicken coop with various chickens and rooster. You can purchase chicken feed for $.25 to feed the chickens.  The farm fresh eggs from the chickens are sold at the farm shed.

Games and Swings

In the middle of the farm there was a nice pergola that provided shade from the sun and large picnic tables which were perfect for us to cool down and get a quick snack and drink. There were lots of fun games in the area as well that appeal to all ages and abilities, such as twister on the grass, large Jenga and large dominos. There are also large swings that we all loved swinging and relaxing on.

Photo Credit: Ashley Toler

Farm Shed & Market

At the end of our farm experience, we stepped into the farm shed and market where we were greeted by wonderful ladies. The shop features lots of great products using the lavender from the farm and learned that everything is made locally. The shop had lavender essential oil, soaps, lotions, lavender spray, tea and so much more products using their very own lavender. We also bought honey that is locally made on the farm along with eggs that come from the chicken coop.

Lavender at Home

Once you have your lavender at home, there are lots of great options to put your lavender to use, one idea that my youngest son had was to make playdough. With previous experience of making playdough and sensory bins, I knew that I wanted to use part of the lavender my boys picked for a calming lavender sensory dough. Also, another great idea is to get the kids in the kitchen and make lavender lemonade that can be enjoyed on these hot summer days.

Dollie’s Farm

3961 N 425 East
Franklin, Indiana 46131
https://dolliesfarm.com/