Richard and Eileen Bergmann

Richard and Eileen Bergmann exemplify Lake Elmo’s proud farming heritage.  Both have farmed in the area all their lives and come from local farming families.  They have farmed at the site of what is now known as “Country Sun Farm” in Lake Elmo since 1972.  Along the way, they raised three boys, Chad, Keith and Troy.  Now grown, all three work for the farm, aided by some of their own children.

Hard work and wise business decisions have served the Bergmanns well for nearly four decades.  But like most farmers, they have also benefitted enormously from free trade with farmers and businesses in other states.

In addition to selling plants and flowers Country Sun Farm grows in its greenhouses, each October the farm sells pumpkins grown on land the Bergmanns own just a few miles away in Wisconsin.  In addition, the farm offers fall activities, such as hay rides, a corn maze, a petting zoo and even a haunted house.  When bad weather and disease harm their pumpkin crop, the Bergmanns buy pumpkins from other farmers, often in other states.  And every December, they sell Christmas trees grown in North Carolina.