Come rain or come shine, the family of Benson Bounty is always as busy as bees! Michelle and Mark Brannen have owned and operated Benson Bounty, LLC since 2015. On their 1.5 acre farm in the Benson neighborhood of Omaha, NE, they grow a wide variety of pollinator plants and bulk culinary and medicinal herbs. Rhubarb, Sunchokes, various fruit trees, garlic beds, and their favorite vegetables also grace the space, and the list of plants just keeps growing! "We are a small family-run business. It's just us, our three wonderful kids, and a whole lot of food and pollinators in the garden!", Michelle chimes.
She continues, "In 2019, we installed a large pollinator garden which would feed and shelter wildlife while giving us a wide variety of native plants for flower bouquets and creating products." The day before the pollinator garden was installed, when the garden beds were freshly prepped and ready, a big gust of wind blew through and it seemed like all of the Silver Maple seeds in the neighborhood plunged into that soil. "It's something we can laugh about now! With farming, there are so many things in constant motion. Seeing the positive and finding the humor in things helps us adapt to the ever-changing environment."
Since then, they have continued to add more varieties of native plants each year. Currently, about half of their growing spaces are dedicated to culinary herbs, medicinal herbs, and native plants. Some of the most recent changes Michelle and Mark have made have been to provide more space at their farm for community-building events, educational opportunities, and partnering with other local, small businesses.
We recently asked Michelle what her favorite herb is...in true farmer/herbalist nature, she answered, "I love them all!" She adds that her favorite herbs are in the unique products they create such as dried potpourri, herb blend spice jars, and in the unscented Nebraska Wildflower product line that includes herbal teas, candles and soaps. Be sure to check out their blog at BensonBounty.com entitled "Preserving Scents From the Garden" to learn their process for making potpourri.
To their already amazing array of natural products, they recently added flower buckets for purchase. Brimming with fresh-cut local blooms, these fragrant buckets are perfect for arranging your own bouquets! Visit their online shop to see all of the beautiful bounty they offer. "Flowers, herbs, and fruits are all harvested with love at the peak of their season, and our handcrafted products are made fresh, year after year. At Benson Bounty, we know it's important to use organic practices, build soil health, support wildlife, and grow pesticide-free."
PSB loves Benson Bounty...they are wonderful folks who are dedicated to providing the community with a place to gather, learn, and grow. We also love the fresh plants they provide for us to process in our lab for making tinctures that, in turn, are made available to the public, our valued customers. Please see more about our friends of Benson Bounty at www.BensonBounty.com and on Instagram. We think you'll love them too!
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