A Flower Lover's Guide to Visiting Tanglebloom: What's Blooming and Where to Go
From peony season through the cutting garden's last dahlias, here's how to plan a stay around the most beautiful time on the farm — and a few floral detours worth making.
There's a window in Vermont, roughly late May through September, where the whole landscape seems to be trying to get your attention. Roadsides smattered with wildflowers, farm stands stacked with sunflowers, farmers markets carrying small-batch edibles made from violet blossoms. If you've ever wanted to slow down and actually notice it — this is the itinerary.
Tanglebloom Cabin sits on a working flower farm, which means your stay already comes with a front-row seat to the bloom season. But venture out a little, and there's a whole constellation of floral experiences scattered across southern Vermont and the Brattleboro area that most visitors overlook. We've been collecting them for years. Here's the best of what we know.
On the Farm: What's Blooming When
Late May through mid-June: Peony Season
photo Jess Amrich
This is the one guests plan around, and for good reason. Our peony fields are one of the most stunning things that happens on this farm all year — soft blush, deep crimson, and even mint-scented blooms that feel almost impossible — “that’s a peony?!” is something we hear often. They're fleeting (that's the thing about peonies — you have to be there), and peak bloom can shift by a week or two depending on the season. If peonies are your reason for coming, aim for early to mid-June and keep an eye on our Instagram (@tanglebloom_cabin) as the season approaches — we’ll share updates on any last-minute openings.
Mid-June through July: Wildflowers
Lupine, daisy, coreopsis, and poppy are just some of the wildflowers you’ll find in Tanglebloom’s meadows each summer
When the peonies wind down, something wilder takes over. The farm meadows shift into a different kind of beautiful — lupine, black-eyed Susans, native milkweed for the monarchs, and a rotating cast of volunteers that even we can't always name. This is a wonderful time to arrive if you want to enjoy the pollinators, birds, and fireflies that feast in the field.
Through mid-September: The Cutting Garden
photo Krystina Olsen Studio
Our cutting garden blooms from midsummer well into early fall, and guests are welcome to snip a bouquet during their stay. Zinnias in colors you probably haven’t seen, dahlias, and all manner of unusual and heirloom varieties we've been growing for years. You'll find a pair of snips and a glass jar to cut your own bouquet. Take your time. Bring something beautiful home.
Off the Farm: A Floral Detour Worth Taking
☕️ Start in Brattleboro: Duchess Coffee Co.
Before anything else, a rose latte—with or without espresso— from Duchess. It's the kind of drink that makes you stop mid-sip and just feel happy. Duchess Coffee Co. is a gem of a coffee shop and curated bookstore in downtown Brattleboro — the kind of place that understands that a beverage can be intentional. Get it iced if the sun is out.
🍫 Tavernier Chocolates
A short walk from most of downtown Brattleboro, Tavernier makes chocolate that takes ingredients seriously, and creativity to the bliss zone. Their Botanical Bar is a dark chocolate tablet embedded with lavender, rose, calendula, and hibiscus petals — it's both beautiful to look at and delicious. The shop itself is worth a slow browse. Pick up a few bon bons for around the fire later, and one to eat immediately (you can thank me later).
🧺 Saturday Mornings: Brattleboro Area Farmers Market → Halifax Hollow
If you're in town on a Saturday, the Brattleboro Area Farmers Market is always worth the trip. And if you go, look for Halifax Hollow — a vendor whose entire thing is crafting edibles like jams and syrups from foraged and grown floral and botanical ingredients. Think wild violet, lilac, beach rose, and even our peonies! We're not exaggerating when we say it can be hard to choose. The violet is subtle and perfect for making pink lemonade; the beach rose is made for a simple gin or seltzer drink on a warm evening. Stock up: they make great gifts.
🪴 A Gardener’s Mecca: Walker Farm in Dummerston
Operated by the same family since 1770, Walker Farm is a New England horticultural destination. This award-winning nursery specializes in unique choice annuals and container plants, plus a dazzling array of perennials (organized by color!), trees, shrubs, tropical house plants, herbs, plus organic vegetable starts. You can also shop the farm’s own organic produce inside their cute black-and-white tiled farm stand (pro tip: they grow the best sweet corn around).
🌼 South Newfane: Olallie Daylily Garden
This one takes a little intention to get to, but it's the kind of place that stays with you. Olallie Daylily Garden in South Newfane is a working daylily nursery spread across six acres, and during peak bloom — late July through August — it's one of the more quietly spectacular things you can do in this region. Thousands of varieties, in every color you can imagine and some you can't. You can walk the rows, take photos, and leave with a few plants if you'd like.
🥾 June Hiking: Black Mountain for Mountain Laurel
If your visit lands in June, Black Mountain is worth the hike for reasons beyond the view. The mountain laurel blooms in early summer along the trail, and there's something moving about coming around a bend and finding the hillside covered in those pale pink and white clusters. The Nature Conservancy protects the property.
A Note on Timing
One of the best things about building a stay around the farm's bloom calendar is that there's something happening from the moment we open for the season until we close in the fall. You don't have to hit peony season to experience the flowers — you just get a different floral experience depending on when you come.
If you want help thinking through timing, we're always happy to answer questions over email, or you can review this month-by-month guide. We know this farm, we know this region, and we love helping guests land on the dates that fit what they're hoping to find.
Ready to plan your stay? Explore available dates and book at vermontcabin.co/visit — or reach out if you have questions. We'd love to have you here during bloom season.
