Home Gardener Goes on the Road

So between planting tomatoes, zinnias, strawflowers and even more lettuce I took a break and snuck off with two friends to a gardener's paradise a bit off the beaten track, as it were.  We traveled over the Delaware River on Route 22 and through Phillipsburg into Warren County to Well-Sweep Herb Farm in Port Murray.  It was about 20 minutes into New Jersey from the bridge to this bucolic location for a family business, open 44 years!   I imagine several generations are hard at work keeping the farm beautiful.  We did see a young baby being tended outdoors by someone in the family...a future gardener!

We got there about 11:30ish. You park in a grassy field marked into neat rows.  Nearby a small flock of sheep was being herded by a black and white sheepdog circling them energetically.  This was a demonstration of sheep herding, free to all bystanders.  But we pressed on to examine the specimen gardens.  There were gardens full of succulents, one just of scented geraniums, of spring perennial herbs used from antiquity to heal, of utilitarian plants like coffee bushes and of butterfly friendly flowers. 

We saw a bay leaf tree growing right in the ground, defying the local winters for many years.  There was a fascinating display of carnivorous plants like Venus fly traps and pitcher plants.  Some were shown in tall glass terrariums with thick clear bases.  Incredible and exotic….  I had to have a pitcher plant!

There was a table of free herbal flavored baked goods (which I was unable to eat but my friends said were tasty) and fruity flavored lemonade which was very thirst quenching and utterly delightful on my thirsty tongue.

A picnic area is nearby for those who bring lunch to enjoy at the Herb Farm.  We did just that and enjoyed a rustic interlude of freshly made potato salad and baked beans along with some Greek yogurt and tasty GF tortilla chips full of interesting seeds.

The gift shop has lots of neat items you can put in your garden for decoration or around the house including small flat sided hanging vases for flowers or rooting slips and floral print tea cozies.... I saw lovely dried flower wreathes and whimsical froggies in yoga poses shaped into bronze statues.

There are beds and beds of herb babies available to buy – literally dozens of kinds of basil plants, of thymes, of sages.  Lots of flower babies are there too and some veggie plants to round out your garden. As one who loves fresh herbs I was overwhelmed by the incredible selection of what could be purchased and by the pristine displays full of choice specimens, too many to describe here.

So make a day of it; wear your straw hat and sunscreen, comfy shoes and bring lunch.  Go with a friend who gardens or just someone who will enjoy the amazing displays of lovely plants and flowers.  

They are open Sundays until the end of June so you have seven days a week to go explore this family run herb farm.  Find them at 205 Mount Bethel Road in Port Murray, NJ, (908-852-5390) or on the web at www.wellsweep.com.  They are open all summer from Monday to Saturday 9-5 and Sundays 11 to 4 just until June 30th.  Even if you are not a huge herb gardener you will enjoy this lovely family run herb farm not far from the Lehigh Valley.