The Green Light: Alchemy Farms

Maple City grower pairs regenerative farming with medicinal plants and flowers

By Rachel Pasche | Oct. 2, 2021

Somewhere in the Maple City area lies a farm full of plants grown with the intention of delighting the palate, body and eyes.

Alchemy Farms started a little over three years ago, though owner Naomi Call says she has been focused on herbalism and holistic wellness for most of her life.

Among other things, Call’s intention is to reintroduce an array of nutrients and minerals into foods through plants and flowers, many of which she grows herself.

She also says she wants to focus on increasing awareness of flowers as medicine, food, and pollinators.

Alchemy Farms is only one small component of a larger vision that Call holds.

“As we bring that vision to life, we will be able to truly showcase how regenerative farming and working with plants as medicine is the path toward a healthier, more equitable future for all beings,” she says. 

Call says that the plants’ and flowers’ nutrients are key to what modern diet has lost.

“There are so many key nutrients that our diets have lost,” she says, “and these plants and flowers provide key nourishment that our bodies crave.”

Some of the products use plants not often found on the shelves, like edible flower bouquets using oregano and parsley blossoms, sunflower, bee balm and bachelor’s button.

One thing that Call emphasizes is the use of the entire plant rather than just some parts. Stems, petals and leaves are all used in her edible creations, bringing with them a host of beneficial nutrients that aren’t consumed when only part of the plant is eaten, she says. 

Call and her son, Loghan Call, work together to put on events through Loghan’s company, Planted Cuisine. They curate plant-based meals that contain a vibrant array of flowers and plants.

“One of our favorite things is when someone calls us a few days later and tells us how amazing they felt after eating one of our dinners,” Loghan says. “I think we get a lot of repeat customers for that reason.”

Naomi agrees, saying that she finds a lot of people to react positively to her edible bouquets, tisanes and other offerings.

All of the blooms used in her edible arrangements are entirely consumable by design, she says.

“There are a lot of minerals we just aren’t getting that our bodies crave, and you notice a difference when you finally give your body what it’s asking for,” she says. 

The duo use a mixture of growing techniques with a focus on permaculture and biodynamic styles and hope to soon add greenhouses and extend their growing season into the colder months

Sustainable growing practices without pesticides, additives and other chemicals allow them to cultivate a whole host of plant life that is not only beneficial to those consuming it, but good for the soil as well.

Their flowers also support pollinators like bees to flourish, spreading pollen that is free of chemicals. 

In addition to the edible bouquets, Alchemy Farms also has a range of herbal tisanes, culinary flower blossom salts, perfumed essential oils, dried pressed culinary blossoms, hydrosols, floral bath salts, and compostable plant straws.

Some of their products are intended to nourish people’s immune systems by supplying powerful and critically important antioxidants, while others focus more on the spiritual and well-being of people. You can find their products at the Sara Hardy Farmer’s Market in Traverse City, Farm Club, Oryana, at a Planted Cuisine event, or at their Alchemy Farms Etsy shop. 

Alchemy Farms’ Best-Sellers
One of the products that Naomi Call recommends is the Plant Broth, a mixture of dried herbs including nettles, chive stems, oregano stems and leaves, horsetail, oat straw, and more.

Creating a stock out of these plants is a simple way to get nutrients without much work, she says.

The amber rose perfumed oil is another big hit, Naomi says.

Made with fractionated coconut oil, rose petals, rose quartz, and essentials oils of amber and rose otto, these bottles smell incredible and look even better. They’re a perfect natural floral scent for anyone who wants a true rose essence, or someone who is bothered by traditional perfumes. 

Alchemy Farms also makes a variety of herbal tisanes, described as “nourishing and elevating for your body, mind, and spirit.”

Each of these tisanes is labeled with an affirmation on the package. Some of the tisanes include Radiant, a blend of berries and blossoms; Divine, a mixture of tulsi and peppermint; and Grateful, with mineral-rich herbs, rose petals and goji berries.