Pick-your-own farm will come to Cottage Grove 

Francis Wisniewski, a Chicago transplant who previously began Fort Atkinson’s Warm Belly Farm, has received approval as of May 9 for a second pick-your-own farm on Vilas Hope Road in Cottage Grove, the McFarland Thistle reports. 

The farm site is 34 acres, and plans are in the works for a new, 2,000-square-foot storage building and a 6,000-square-foot farm store. 

Wisniewski and his crew intend to plant pumpkins and a corn maze in anticipation of a fall festival. Plans also include pick-your-own hydroponic strawberries grown in greenhouses, a feature already established at the Fort Atkinson location. 

The conditional use permit allows for up to 10 agricultural events each year. Wisniewski estimates the need for around 12 summer employees and up to 40 for certain events.