08/25/2026
The Woman Behind the Mums at Horsmon Farm
Today would have been my mom’s 79th birthday.
Happy Heavenly Birthday, Mom — Phyllis Horsmon, August 25, 1947 – October 2, 2015. ❤️
Horsmon Farm was founded by my great-grandfather on my dad’s side, and for generations, the farm was the retirement plan. Each generation had to purchase the farm from the generation before them. In those early years, farming was profitable enough to support the entire family, with previous and future generations often working together on the farm. It even provided opportunities for tenant farmers in the surrounding community.
But by the 1980s, things were changing.
When I was in elementary school, Mom and Dad realized the farm could no longer financially support our family. They literally flipped a coin to decide who would take a job off the farm.
Dad won—or maybe Mom did. 😉 Dad went to work managing the farm at Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant, while Mom stayed home and continued farming full-time. And although Dad had an off-farm job, he was still very much a part of the farming operation.
That was when I learned one of the most important lessons of my life.
Women can do anything.
I watched my mom, along with my two sisters and me, work on the farm. I watched her tackle challenges, solve problems, and keep going when things weren't easy. She taught me that with determination, hard work, and women working together, there really isn't much we can't accomplish.
But she also taught me something else:
Change is good.
Then, in the mid-1980s, Mom decided she wanted to try something different.
She planted an experimental crop of chrysanthemums.
Dad gave her what he considered the poorest piece of land on the farm. Apparently, he didn't think those mums were going anywhere. 😂
Mom proved him wrong.
Those mums weren't just successful—they became a huge success. Because of Mom's determination and willingness to try something new, she became the first and only large-scale mum grower in Southern Maryland.
And her dream is still growing today.
I continue to raise mums here at Horsmon Farm, although I've made some changes to accommodate the way we farm today. Mom grew hers directly in the field. I grow mine in pots, which allows us greater environmental control and produces a more uniform, beautiful product.
And Mom's lesson about change has stayed with me far beyond the mums.
She never got to see our Summer Subscription Program in action. She passed away in 2015, long before we started it. But I know that the willingness to try something different—the willingness to pivot and make changes when circumstances demand it—is something I learned from her.
When farming changed, Mom changed with it.
And I've had to do the same.
The Summer Subscription Program, agritourism, events, direct meat sales, and the other things we've added over the years have all been part of finding new ways to keep our little family farm operational.
That's the thing about farming. You don't just grow crops. Sometimes you're growing dreams and continuing a legacy, too. And sometimes, keeping those dreams alive means being willing to change.
Every time I see our mums begin to bloom, I think of her.
What started as an experimental crop on the “poorest” piece of land on the farm became a legacy that continues nearly 40 years later.
Come see Mom's legacy for yourself beginning September 19, when mum sales officially begin at Horsmon Farm.
Happy Birthday in Heaven, Mom.
I hope I've made you proud. ❤️🌼
