MILL HALL — Dotterer Grown, a flower farm which specializes in growing sunflowers, is offering a new community event on Saturday, Aug. 10.
Located on the Dotterer Grown farm at 6658 Nittany Valley Drive, Mill Hall, Sunflower Bouquet Day will allow people to learn how to create their own bouquets. The event is $30 and includes a mason jar, painting supplies to create your own design on the jar and, of course, sunflowers.
“This event is taking a large mason jar, painting it in a rustic way and then guests are welcome to pick as many flowers as they can fit in their jar,” said Courtney Dotterer, who assists in putting together the farm’s annual sunflower maze.
The farm, which started off as a sweet corn wagon, has grown over the years, adding a sunflower maze which people can wander through.
This year’s sunflower maze design is a thank you to those who work in the medical field. The farm’s Facebook page explained that the theme was chosen because members of the family have relied closely on people in the medical field recently.
The outline of the maze is a zig-zag pattern like the lines that appear on a heart monitor. In the middle is a caduceus, the right of the maze has a cross similar to the Red Cross logo and the left of the maze has an awareness ribbon.
This year, the sunflower maze will open in early August. The sweet corn wagon reopens during the late summer, and popcorn is sold in the fall after it is harvested.
“We have always wanted to do a fall event but with the farm, the fall is our busiest season,” Dotterer said. “We saw a place in Kentucky put on a sunflower maze and thought it was a great idea and decided to go for it in our area.”
Many events are hosted throughout the year for the community at the farm, one of which is a glow night, which will happen Friday, Aug. 9. The farm also offers farm tours during the weekends after the sunflower maze opens.
“We love seeing the community have as much fun as we do at the maze,” Dotterer said. “We are very passionate about promoting agriculture. It is a fun way to incorporate both.”
Dotterer Farm also prides itself on being a family-oriented business, ensuring that each event allows for fun for families with children of all ages.
“We are very family-oriented and want other families to be able to make memories at our maze,” Dotterer said.
To RSVP to Sunflower Bouquet Day, send a message to Dotterer Grown on the farm’s Facebook page by Saturday, July 20.
“Come enjoy a relaxing afternoon making a fresh bouquet at a beautiful sunflower field,” the Facebook noted.
