Creating a Farm to Table Wedding

Photo Camille Wilson Photography

If you are dreaming of a unique wedding full of character and flavor that emphasizes community, a Farm to Table wedding may be perfect for you.  We offer a great Farm to Table wedding package you can see here.
Farm to Table weddings emphasize what is local and in season to create a wedding that flows perfectly with your location and wedding date.  Imagine a Fall wedding surrounded by changing leaves, autumn flowers such as dahlias and crysanthemums highlighting the tones of nature, a family style meal highlighted by roasted autumn vegetables, seasonal greens and crisp apple cider in the cool air.  It all flows perfectly and adds character to your wedding that no one else will have.  The flowers featured in your bouquet are what is blooming that week and the produce was picked just for you.
We love hosting Farm to Table weddings at our farm in North Georgia.  It's a perfect way to tie in our love of farming with the weddings we host.  There are many ways to incorporate Farm to Table in your wedding and create the character that reflects you as a couple.

Photo Kaptured Photography

Choose seasonal items in your menu.
Talk with your caterer about what produce is fresh for your wedding date and what they might be able to get locally.  Carrots and leafy greens are great in both Spring and Fall and easy to work into your side dishes.  Fresh tomatoes and corn will be the highlight of Summer weddings.  
Appetizers are a great opportunity to highlight seasonal fare - goat cheese tarts with apples and pickled red onions were a hit at one of our September weddings.  Keep it simple with cheese and fruit or crudite trays featuring seasonal produce.
Local, in season produce is picked ripe and used at it's peak which means it's full of flavor that your guests will be delighted with!

Photo Camille Wilson Photography

Use in season flowers for your bouquet.
If you are struggling with what colors you should use for your wedding or wanting to do something different than the last 10 weddings you've attended, using local, seasonal flowers is a great place to start.  Nature drives our color palettes even if we don't realize it - that's why you see soft, romantic tones more in Spring weddings and rich, jewel hues in Fall.  If you look around at what is blooming each season, you find it reflected in color palettes.  Using in season flowers will provide you with a palette that blends perfectly with the season.  The flowers you use are also conditioned to grow in that season, so they will hold up better in arrangements.
Using local flowers gives you access to items that don't ship well and guarantees a unique look.  One of the reasons you see roses, hydrangeas, and other similar flowers in most weddings is they ship easily and are available to anyone year round.  Field grown flowers like dahlias, zinnias, snapdragons, cosmos and more are best delivered within driving distance and provide unique arrangements.

Photo Hillary Leah Photography

Consider local vineyards or breweries for your bar.
Take a day to do some wine tasting at local vineyards as part of your wedding planning!  In our area of North Georgia, there are several vineyards throughout Ellijay, Blueridge and Dahlonega.  Highlight one or two selections in your bar menu for local flavor.
Signature cocktails are also a great way to highlight seasonal flavor.  Fresh herbs add lots of flavor to mixed drinks.  Pinterest is great for finding great cocktail recipes featuring in season fruit - blackberries, blueberries, peaches, etc. (Blueberry Belini anyone?)

Photo Kaptured Photography

Highlight seasonal fruit in your cake or dessert.
Top your wedding cake with ripe strawberries, peaches, or figs for beautiful decoration and flavor.  You can get more creative and add on pies, cobblers, tarts and more that really highlight the flavor of the fruit.  Hand out local fried apple pies to guests as they are dancing the night away in the Fall.  During the summer, cool off guests during cocktail hour with fresh fruit popsicles or homemade strawberry ice cream.

Photo by Hillary Leah Photography
Gift Farm Fresh favors to your guests.
Soap, lotion, jams, honey, syrup - there are so many options to be found at local farms and Farmer's Markets that will highlight what the community can offer to your guests.  Unique items that guests can use or eat are the least likely favors to be forgotten.  Share mini jars of local honey in the summer, apple butter in the fall or handmade goat milk soap year round.  Add a customized label or stamp, stack them up in crates or place at each setting to fill out your tablescape.

Creating a Farm to Table wedding is a great way to welcome your guests to your wedding and highlight the importance of community.  We love to build on the warmth a Farm to Table wedding inspires by serving a portion of the meal family style to start conversations as guests share food.  There are so many ways to build on the intimate feeling of a Farm to Table wedding like sharing seeds with guests to start their own garden, using a tree planting as part of your ceremony, highlighting an illustrated map of where the local produce came from at the sign in table and more.
We would love to hear about any ideas you incorporate in your wedding or share some thought starters with you - just leave a comment below!
- Becky
​Find out more about our Farm to Table weddings here.

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