WEEKLY SMILE - Heirloom Living with Three Petals Cove Farm

Sometimes the sweetest smiles grow from the simplest things: a handful of seeds, a family working side by side and a bouquet bright enough to change the mood of a room. This week’s Weekly Smile takes us to Three Petals Cove Farm, where Augusta Jones is growing more than flowers. She is cultivating hard work, family tradition and a love of the land for the next generation.

It stands to reason that if you had three little girls and a flower farm, you just might name your flower farm Three Petals Cove.

“The three petals stand for each of my three little girls,” Augusta Jones said. “We have three lovely girls, each with their own unique personality that keeps us on our toes.”

Jones was raised on her parents’ beef farm. Three Petals Cove Farm is right next door.

If your parents were farmers and you decided to have a flower farm of your own, you just might also plant in your children an heirloom, self-seeding love for growing things, much like the love your parents planted in you.

“I grew up learning how to raise a vegetable garden. However, I loved visiting my grandmother's house as she had a huge row of zinnias and black-eyed Susans, among other flowers,” Jones said. “She would have lovely arrangements inside her home and would often let us take some home, too. I love the beauty and brightness fresh flowers bring to a home, events, and to see them each day in my garden brings me a lot of joy.”

Wife to Kevin and mother to three daughters, Fern, Orry and Isla, Jones explains that farming isn’t the only thing they do.

“My husband is a nurse, and I am a high school chemistry and environmental science teacher.”

Farming, though, keeps them grounded in the things in life they value most.

“Three Petals Cove grows cold-weather loving and hot-weather loving vegetables and flowers. This ranges from broccoli to corn and cool flowers like stock to sunflowers. My favorite cold-weather loving flowers are stock, snapdragons, and sweet peas. For the hot-weather loving ones, I love the classics: sunflowers, zinnias, and cosmos,” Jones said. “I hope my children grow up learning how to be hard workers with their hands and see the beauty in homemade items from canned goods, wood working, needle & thread.”

Her daughter, Fern, helps both on the farm and at the Cookeville Farmers Market.

“Fern does help with most tasks off and on,” Jones said. “Her favorite part is starting seeds and watching/waiting for them germinate.”

Fern draws the line at helping with corn or okra. Jones explained that she has been stung by saddleback caterpillars. If you’ve ever been stung by one, you’ll understand. The caterpillars are also very fond of neighborhood limelight hydrangeas.

For the last three years, the family has set up at the White County TN Farmers Market. This is the first year they have sold their harvest at the Cookeville Farmers Market.

“We were looking for a larger market/customer base as we continue to enjoy expanding our garden,” Jones said. “We have also started taking up smaller events as our customer base grows; which has been so fun to add!”

Be sure to stop by Saturday morning and pick up some green beans, cherry tomatoes, maybe a watermelon, okra (saddleback caterpillars not included), squash, zucchini and a beautiful farm-to-table flower bouquet.

Flowers on the kitchen table, maybe on the porch or even at the desk where you work, are atmosphere changers.

They say, “Welcome” to a friend, “Breathe deep” in a frustrating moment and “Smile and see the joy around you.”

You won’t be disappointed you took a bouquet home with you.