Wall alpaca farm to get new neighbor: fields of soothing lavender
Michael L. DiamondWALL - The owner of Edel Haus Farm, an alpaca farm on Allaire Road, has sold six acres to the owners of Princeton Lavender Farm in a move that the farmers hope will attract more visitors and protect the land as open space.
The sale brings together two businesses that could appeal to consumers who are at their wits' end as the pandemic continues: alpacas and all things lavender.
"I just thought it was a good idea, a good synergy,' said John Edelhauser, owner of Edel Haus Farm. "This is kind of a place where people find a reprieve, get away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life and experience the animals, check out some lavender. It's an escape, you know?"
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Edel Haus has operated the alpaca farm on 14 acres since 2010, offering tours each Saturday and selling apparel made from alpaca fleece.
The addition is designed to capitalize on the popularity of lavender, a flowering plant that has been used to reduce anxiety and help with sleep. And it could lend a hand to Monmouth County's agritourism industry.
"I think it would be a wonderful asset to the community," said Grace Hanlon, executive director of the Jersey Shore Partnership, an environmental advocacy group. "You have to continue to expand the different opportunities you're giving to a tourist, and to have this as a supplemental attraction, I think it's wonderful."
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The farm, called Allaire Lavender Farm, is expected to open next spring. It will include lavender that should flower by the summer and lavender-infused products such as honey, coffee and lemonade.
The farm also will be home to animals such as goats for people to feed and pet.
Owners Brad and Beth Smith said the expansion is the next step in a journey that started in 2016 when they opened Princeton Lavender Farm in Lawrenceville.
They thought the lavender field would simply be a hobby, but they slowly expanded to include not only lavender, but a farmstand, beehives and animals.
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It appeared to fill a need by suburbanites to embrace outdoors; when the pandemic hit, business quadrupled, Brad Smith said.
Smith said they decided to expand closer to the Jersey Shore, where the sandy soil is more conducive to growing lavender.
The Smiths' two adult children, Chad, 28, and Sophia, 26, will join the family business. They will continue to operate their Lawrenceville farm. And they plan to build a home on the Wall farm.
"We'd love to have a business there for 25 years," said Brad Smith, 58.
The lavender farm will join at least two others in Monmouth County — Pleasant Valley Lavender in Marlboro and Happy Day Farm in Manalapan.
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The family-owned business marks a twist for Wall, whose residents in recent years have watched as landmarks such as the Circus Drive-In restaurant, the Lanes at Sea Girt bowling alley and Atlantic Farms closed.
But there still appears to be demand for the solitude of the country. Atlantic Farms was purchased. It re-opened as Atlantic Farm Market. And it soon will have company two miles up the road.
The lavender farm "preserves the land and it brings people into the town to view the animals," Wall Mayor Timothy Farrell said. "It really beautifies the open space. The township encourages it."
Edelhauser said the addition of the lavender farm would help him achieve what he set out to do when he started the alpaca farm in 2010: create open space where the community could gather.
"I'm a simple guy," he said. "I just (offered) the alpacas. This will be nicer for people because it will give them more diversity and more to see."
Michael L. Diamond is a business reporter who has been writing about the New Jersey economy and health care industry for more than 20 years. He can be reached at mdiamond@gannettnj.com.