Kathryn DeLadurantey grew up in Tennessee, where her love for flowers blossomed. Her childhood on the family farm nurtured a desire to someday start her own flower farm. Now living on a ranch in Central Texas, she is an accomplished flower farmer growing fresh-cut flowers for her community. Kathryn sells her flowers at local markets and at a roadside flower stand. She opens her Sunny Hill Flower Farm to the public so visitors can come and wander among the blooms to pick their own flowers. She teaches floral design classes, arranges bouquets for weddings and other special occasions, and hosts seasonal events on the farm. She also offers homeschool field trips, where she educates children about flowers. Here is her story…
I am a homeschool graduate and am passionate about this subject. My Mom raised me along with 10 of my siblings, was a stay-at-home Mom, and homeschooled us all. Some of my siblings are lawyers, nurses, and many own their own businesses, including me.
I started my small business right after graduating, building it by knocking door to door. In the meantime, I met some incredible people, and so now I write monthly for our local newspaper. Just stories told by local people… ordinary people doing extraordinary things. I have also written for the Authentic Texas magazine.
The flower aspect in my life has led me to being on TV, radio, in magazines, podcasts, and to host large events drawing hundreds of people each spring. I am 22 and have such a huge love to encourage other young adults that nothing is too difficult as long as we have determination and a spirit to learn.
I am a Christian and firmly believe that God is in complete control of all that takes place. But He has all given us talent, and how they are used is up to us.
Who we are and what we become in life is set by a series of times and events that we will never know in places we will never visit.
On our wall in the living room, there hangs a picture. I can’t tell you exactly how or who this lovely lady standing in a cotton peach dress on a gravel road by drooping bushy mounds of rose bushes is…..But I know somewhere in the course of time and family events she is related to my grandmother, Dorthy, who was born in 1922…..Whether gardening was a venture she was taught by generations before her. Or one made and traveled by her own…..I cannot tell you.
But her love for flowers and gardening was something that ignited in my Mother’s heart!
And something that my Mother carried into her daily task as she raised her 11 children in the country, creating a home built on pure hard work and love for her family.
I was homeschooled and mainly raised in what as a child I thought was….a castle! But to be honest a 1840s Victorian Farmhouse.
I think one thing I can truly say by those years living there is that they were days of sweaty magical moments.
The house had been let go….and no one really ever lived there for many years. But little by little, we immersed ourselves in the community and brought the once-thriving farmhouse back to its former glory. From stripping all the paint off with heat guns and repainting. Replacing trim work, fencing, and cleaning. But it also meant building up and cleaning the gardens all around.
We planted cascading roses on the rock wall. And herbs off of the kitchen porch. Built up a family garden, and dug in deep with the berry bushes.
As I now close my eyes…. I can still see myself standing beside my Mother as we both slipped strawberry cuttings into rooting powder….and then tucked them into dirt. I can still hear those very same words…..”We could make a business doing this Mom!!!”
And to be sure 10 years later those words ring true!
Not without many hardships of rejection, redirection, and evaluation.
I believe the best groundwork for life is laid by parents who know the very lifeblood their children need.
Those years with my Mom teaching us to work hard and bear hard truths gave me the courage to fight the trenches of starting something brand new.
Kathryn DeLadurantey is the visionary founder and CEO of Sunny Hill Flower Farm, where her Christian faith, joyful creativity, and love for nature come together to brighten the lives of others with the beauty of creation. Sunny Hill Flower Farm is located on Pasture Road between Lockhart and Luling, Texas. For more information, visit her website at www.sunny-hill-flower-farm.com and check out her social media.
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@sunnyhillflowerfarm6997/featured
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sunnyhillflowerfarm2023/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100091954042512
