U-pick flowers are a growing trend in southwestern Ontario as farmers open up their operations to tourists looking for novel experiences and stunning photo opportunities.

Farms in Chatham-Kent offer visitors the opportunity to stroll among rows of peonies, sunflowers and tulips, taking photographs and cutting flowers to purchase.

"We just thought, 'We don't see the joy that the peonies bring when we sell it wholesale,'" said Valérie Chort, one of the owners of Fleur de Roy near Mitchell's Bay, Ont.

Fleur de Roy grows 17 varieties of peonies over 10 acres, making for about 150,000 stems.

But until now, it had been shipping them off to market in Toronto.

Now, after four years of commercial operations, the owners have partnered with local vendors and florists to display art and offer wor

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