A big, bloomin’ Valentine’s Day in Lal Lal

VALENTINE’S Day is a chance to hit the road and pick the perfect flowers straight from the paddock, says one Lal Lal grower.

The Paddock Lal Lal is offering the chance for residents to walk through the colourful rows and gather bunches of flowers for loved ones.

Owner Melissa Mortimer said it was excellent that they could open the dahlia farm on Saturday and offer an enjoyable day out.

“We’re lucky because it falls on a weekend,” she said. “We’ve been able to put together some really good packages that people can come on to the farm and actually celebrate and spend a bit of time here.”

Ms Mortimer said those in need of a heartfelt gift can come to the farm and pick their own flowers.

The Paddock Lal Lal will offer a range of dahlias and mixed bunches for purchase.

“We’ve got a Valentine’s Day picnic that’s also available,” she said. “So I think for people like us where we have our open farms, it’s great it’s on the Saturday.”

Ms Mortimer said Valentine’s Day was the biggest time of the year for her business.

She said a great deal of preparation had gone into getting her crop ready despite inconsistent weather.

“Planting for Valentine’s Day happened three or four months ago,” Ms Mortimer said.

“It takes significant time for flowers to actually produce. And this year with the weather being very topsy turvy, we had some really hot days there.

“So there’s a considerable amount of effort and time and resources that goes into making sure that there’s enough flowers to go around for Valentine’s Day.”

Flowers can be purchased at the farm and thepaddocklallal.com.au. Those flowers bought online can be collected at the farm gate.