CAZENOVIA, NY – Poet Maya Angelou shared that “Lavender’s scent is a gentle reminder that beauty often whispers.”
There were few whisperers as capacity crowds learned, danced, harvested, sat among the rows, ate and celebrated a bounty of purple at the 2025 Cazenovia Lavender Festival on Monica Cody’s Farmstead 1868, which was recently named the 2025 Madison County Small Business of the Year.
“Our festival is a love letter to Central New York,” said Cody who strongly supports women-owned businesses in her region. “It’s about cultivating joy – through plants, people, this very special place and the partnerships that make our region so vibrant. We’re honored to open our family’s farm to the community and grateful to everyone who helps bring this vision to life.”
And what a journey it has been. Farmstead 1868 is more than just a farm – it’s a story of family, resilience and a deep-rooted connection to the land which dates back to 1868 when Monica’s husband Bill Cody’s family first started with hops and horses. It also currently operates a 150-cow dairy farm which has the honor of being a Dairy of Distinction farm and Madison County Conservation Farm of the Year in 2022.
“Farmstead 1868 was borne out of my COVID story in 2020,” said Cody. “Like so many farmers, we faced heartbreaking challenges. The supply chain was a mess and we found ourselves in a situation no dairy farmer ever wants to be in: we had to dump milk. I couldn’t let it go to waste. So I got creative,” Cody said.
The former bioengineer turned farmer and mom gathered her five children under the stress of the pandemic and started making cheeses and yogurt and experimenting with soaps and lotions. She said, “I knew from studies that lavender had powerful effects on the brain. There are over 2,000 scientific studies showing that it can help reduce stress and promote relaxation. Some of lavender’s main building blocks have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. It’s also a natural antimicrobial, and its antioxidant properties refresh and neutralize skin, helping to clear bacteria and excess oil.
“That’s when I had an idea precipitated by my forever love of purple to plant lavender,” she said.
What started out as a small garden project with the kids next to their residence, heifer barns and small fields grew into a 4,000 lavender plant crop which needed care and love just like the children.
“The transformation was incredible. Our stress melted away every time we walked through those rows. Then, I invited friends and family to visit, and I saw it happen to them too. The perfectly spaced six-foot rows (ideal for social distancing) became a sanctuary of healing. That’s when I knew we were onto something,” she explained.
Today, Farmstead 1868 is dedicated to producing lavender-based products and hosting community events. The farm offers a variety of lavender-infused items, including creams, sachets, candles, milk baths and soaps. Visitors can explore the flower-filled fields, participate in U-pick sessions and attend seasonal festivals.
The farm also provides a unique retail experience in a converted blue harvester silo, where guests can purchase fresh lavender and related products. The annual “Purple Paradise” festival is an immersive event that features hands-on classes, demonstrations and more than 20 artisan vendors set up around their remodeled timber-frame dairy barn during the July peak lavender season.
“We believe everyone should be able to experience farmer-made, farm fresh products. This means the ingredients in everything we cultivate are inspired by the farm. Grown and harvested from our lavender patch or dairy farm, the ingredients in our products come first from the earth, from our family and to the customer,” she said. “Extra ingredients come from a tight-knit community of farmers, our neighbors and friends. We make our products by supporting farmers, near and far – experienced growers and harvesters.
“I love sitting in the lavender field at the end of a hot, hard day on the farm and hearing the quiet rustle of wind blowing through the stems, scenting the air with a light, clean, calming fragrance while the heifers move out to pasture and the bullfrogs and peepers serenade in concert. The bugs don’t bite in the lavender patch (because it’s a natural insect repellent for most of the ‘biters’ in our area!) so we can stay out well into the golden hour.
“I’ve come to realize some of those initial pulls was actually fate knocking, planting seeds for the future you are growing. For me, it was that color purple,” said Cody. “As life went on, reminders of purple were sprinkled through time: a gift, a smell, a memory of lavender odors and matching hues.
“And finally, in a ‘eureka!’ moment, my lavender dreams have been realized.”
To learn more about the events at the farm, visit Farmstead1868.com.
by Troy Bishopp
