A wealthy man already, Daniel Turnbull had his choice of terrain for a new cotton plantation in South Louisiana. He settled on three thousand-plus acres of hills, valleys, and especially alluvial soil in St. Francisville. Cotton fields rose up and sloped down to the Mississippi River and Turnbull, with his wife Martha, spent their increased riches on fine things to fill the 8,000-square-foot home. Today, Rosedown Plantation Historic Site is much the same as it was in the mid-nineteenth century. The house remains luxuriously furnished and, thanks to Martha Turnbull’s diaries, the 28-acre formal gardens bloom as she intended.
But in recent years, beyond the formal gardens and general lawn maintenance, no one has cherished the fertile fields as Turnbull once did (or worked them like the extensive unpaid labor he kept). The state sensed an opportunity for agritourism—defined by working farms that serve as interactive attractions—and called in the Lucketts.
On thirty acres in nearby Pride, Louisiana, Derek and Kacie Luckett have spent the past decade growing their own crops and developing a grateful audience with weekly boxes of fresh vegetables in a community-supported agriculture (CSA) program. Now, they lease 120 acres of Rosedown as well. “It’s exciting for people to drive up and see crops. The land hasn’t been farmed in a really long time,” said Kacie Luckett, who’s thrilled to expand their operation as well as their opportunity to educate people about farming. “I hope families can come and create experiences, but I hope they come away with knowledge too, even if it’s just a tidbit—like how important bees are or that ladybugs eat aphids—something that they didn’t know before.”
Luckett Farms held their grand opening at Rosedown on September 22, with an enchanting corn maze and pumpkin patch set to stay all fall. We hear winter and spring will offer new attractions, but let diverting roadside beauty and a subsequent visit with the Lucketts tell you what in particular those attractions are—and how you might cook them at home. luckettfarmstours.com.
