Today we’d like to introduce you to Aliza Anderson.
Hi Aliza, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – To start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers.
I am Aliza, and I own and operate Virna Farm with my husband. We have 3 children in the young adult and teen stages. We grew up in the Barnum and Denham area we left for 11 years, and in 2021, we moved back. One thing I felt called to do was open our farm for others to enjoy the peaceful setting. We are located 4 miles west of Sturgeon Lake on Farm to Market Rd. Isn’t that the best road name?
We raise both flowers and pigs. I enjoy raising the pigs more than the flowers. I think it’s because they each have such unique personalities. The flowers were an afterthought, and I really am still learning about them, too, as last year was my first year truly growing them from seed. We have a you-pick flower farm that has yard games and other family activities. I teach classes and have events out on the farm.
We hope the farm is a place where you come to take some time away from the busy life and just take in the peaceful setting as we do have seating areas around for just that reason. We can’t wait to see you again or meet you for the first time soon. May you harvest your blessings, big or small, no matter where you are!
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
This road to building this farm has been very intriguing not at all what we pictured for our life. I grew up on a farm and never wanted to be held down by caring for animals and the fields. In 2018, we decided to look into our family’s health and my husband’s neurologist suggested making the switch to no corn or soy feed meats. With that, we started to raise pigs. When we moved back to Sturgeon Lake we found a beautiful farm that led me to want to bring people to the farm to meet the pigs.
My question was how do I get people out to learn the ways of our generations before us and how can we teach others to look at how food and being outdoors help our health? I decided flowers would be something to carry my mother-in-law down memory lane with her battle with dementia. It has some but not as much as we hoped. She still lights up at her favorite flowers but is unable to join me on the farm. Now my heart is to carry on the love she had for flowers.
The name Virna Farm comes from the Ukrainian way of pronouncing faithful.
I had the privilege of spending 14 days in a little village split between 2 trips and my host always had a beautiful bouquet waiting for me on her self-sufficient farm. We now wait for her to travel to stay with us through the United for Ukraine. I am hoping to continue to teach others how to go back to our roots. We are growing on a cash basis so it’s a slower process than some others around us.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I would say the thing I am most proud of is the fact that I have grown so much in the knowledge of not having any background in floral design or growing or pig farming I am now able to help others learn how to do both.
What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
I would say I am very adventurous and willing to try new things. This has helped me step out of the box and do new things.
Pricing:
- U-pick $35
- Half hog $4/#
- Whole hog $3.5/#
- Bouquets vary by size
- Classes vary by style
Contact Info:
- Website: www.virnafarm.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/virnafarm?utm_source=qr&igshid=MzNlNGNkZWQ4Mg%3D%3D
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Virnafarm?mibextid=D4KYlr
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@virnaflowerfarm
