Planning a Plant Nursery? Sit In on This Conversation

[@annacoventry5054]

I sow wildflower seeds (perennials) in large trays and sell them. The customer can lift the plants out in one piece as the roots have intertwined. It's similar to laying sod and is very popular.

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

That's a neat way to do it Anna!

[@lorip2109]

I’ve never seen this kind of video before. Really interesting! Thank you Jason and Shelley.

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

My pleasure. Thanks for watching!

[@KatesGarden]

Thanks for sharing, I hope you both find success!

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

Thanks so much Kate! How's your cottage garden coping with this heat?

[@KatesGarden]

@@FraserValleyRoseFarm So far so good here. This week is our first heat warning of the summer which is really nice that we haven’t been fried yet. (And the bindweed doesn’t mind either 😝). I need to do another update video/ mini tour or something

[@crystalruth3733]

Thank you for sharing. I too have started that type of plan just on a way smaller scale. Still growing and getting my small business, Garden Jem, up and running!! Love all the encouragement!! Working towards leaving the corporate life!!!

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

Wonderful!

[@MsBingham22]

This is fantastic…as is all of your content! I have been selling plants and roses out of my tiny nursery and cut flower farm, for about 3 years now. My heart belongs to roses, so we are shifting our model to creating a 1,000 rose destination garden, plus expand the rose nursery for plant sales. I am very excited to get my 1,000 potted roses into the ground this Fall! I really appreciate all of your content and generous sharing of your knowledge Jason! Thank you!

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

Wow - how exciting! I'm still in the range below 500 roses, but the collecting is on its own momentum now, so who knows where it will stop? It'd be interesting to see what you come up with!

[@pandora9015]

Thank you for sharing! Shelley seems so lovely and genuine~

[@asaliden4584]

I have a big smile nodding hysterically at this video. It’s exactly what I’m creating!! An experience seeing my garden beds, getting inspiration and seeing perennials in different stages and an experience. I have the little more unusual, little special plants also and by having them in my garden beds I know they survive here. When I advertise online, I only have a few varieties at the time, with nice pictures bc I know when customers come here they buy a lot more. When they see my plants they want more. I’ve had customers buying so much more plants. It is a side hustle sort of, but I can use my time as I want and building it slowly instead of taking big loans or investing a lot at once. I have plants but I also have other garden related things like cut flower garden and bouquet bars and selling seeds in winter time. That way I get an income from annuals too, mostly using that money to provide me with more perennials for next season. Seed starting, cuttings, anything I see and like and I will try to grow it. 😁 After only two seasons I have 100 square meters of garden beds, built rock walls and so called wooden rosetowers I built (and sell too). And this season I’m expanding with additional 200 square meters of garden beds. I’m completely on my own, only had a tractor here initially, the rest by hand and wheel barrow. It’s a lot of hard work but I get to do the thing I like most, I have an income from it and many of my costumers have become good friends.

[@shelleyhood228]

Best of luck! I do love the camaraderie with the customers. Being so busy it’s hard to get out so it’s so nice to engage with people that come to you!

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

That's great. I love that you're taking it at your own pace without overextending. Too many (even large nurseries) bite off more than they can chew, so to speak.

[@lorindachristine3291]

I have no plans for a nursery but this was still super interesting and informative. Thanks to you both!

[@camicri4263]

Great video! Thank you both 🤗💕🤗

[@ripleymccauley3071]

I can’t tell you how much this video means to me and all your videos. I’ll start selling my first plants in the spring. Thank you so much for sharing everything both of you! ❤

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

So exciting! Best wishes with your plant business

[@ASMRisnice2020]

Just started!! I have a couple hundred trees I propagated from cuttings. They’re 1-3 ft tall. Right now I’m in the process of researching more about growing perennials from seed.

[@judymckerrow6720]

Thank you Jason. I’m not planning on starting a garden center but it was interesting listening to both of your perspectives on starting a garden center. 🌺💚🙃

[@michaelheyward7668]

Excellent video! I'm having the same issue and haven't even opened yet. Trying to grow as much product from cuttings and seed. Looking forward to next spring. Keep up with the informational videos...

[@loislangley2975]

Very nice informative video. Thank you both.

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

Our pleasure!

[@AraceaeFanatics]

Love this!!

[@denisebalog994]

Thank you Jason and Shelly. Very timely and informative video. I obtained my Growers and Dealers license this week. Wednesday I head to a nearby 47 years of gardening and making high tunnels to make arrangements to purchase one to have up by October/winter. I have the property and once a full time florist owner bavk East. Recently retired 🤗 Thinking about the experience shopping trip to the garden nursery. Working on the bones too. I do know from experience, takez minimum of 2 years to even get everything on the must have list of basic items😅 Very much appreciate this video and your wisdom. After listening I feel I am in line and on the right path for a successful backyard/garden nursery/nursey come and enjoy the space and experience place 🌱🌻 😎

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

Thanks so much Denise

[@SindySchneck]

This was such a great conversation - more of these please!! There are so many different ways to run a 'backyard nursery', and I get really inspired from conversations like these. I'm really intrigued by the 'dig days'!! I just may have to take a vacation to Shelley's place and find out for myself first-hand how they work. Great content, keep it up!

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

Thanks - I'm glad you enjoyed! I'm sure it would be worth a trip.

[@katherinespencer2073]

Ahhh, my families' cottage country. Makes me want to go to Flynn's store for an icecream cone for the rest of the long drive. A very interesting episode.

[@bbsaid218]

I started this year with some foxglove seeds, and mullein seeds of all things. I only have a small garden, and have experimented with various perennials. The slugs ate a lot and we had a heat wave in May that wiped out several trays of seeds, and I’ve grown loads of things that nobody wants, but since I sold my first foxglove on the 2nd July, I have sold over £2500 worth of seedlings and plugs. (Eebay took 1/3 and P&P was another 1/3) but still…😊. Next year I will start much earlier, concentrate on things I know I can grow and sell and try to extend the growing season as much as possible. I think I could do what I have done on a really small area of ground, even a roof terrace could make a decent side hustle. My most successful plants were the mulleins, then foxgloves (various varieties) aubretias, lavender (a bit slow turnover) verbenas and lupins. Thanks for this video, it has really struck a chord. 😊

[@shelleyhood228]

I hadn’t thought of selling my volunteer mullein!

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

Thanks so much for sharing about your efforts and results. Regional markets can vary so much in plant demand, so it's good to hear what others are selling well. Lavender was a hit for me for local sales, but it may have had something to do with our rose specialty. They theme well together. Lupins sold well early and I'll be adding more of those and the hybrid foxgloves next spring.

[@soulgirlktf]

This was very interesting Jason & Shelley. I know that area really well I used to live in the Kawartha Lakes - Bobcaygeon ! Cottage Country. The agritourism idea is a fabulous one, tourists would love that 'stay in the wild experience' and with the extra land Shelley could set up glamping pods.

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

Lol. Nice. I've been trying to sell Lisa on the idea of a yurt, but no success so far!

[@shelleyhood228]

Yes,the glamping idea is interesting. If only we could solve the mosquito problem!

[@soulgirlktf]

@@shelleyhood228 Yes the mosquito bites are something I don't miss being back in the UK !

[@prayerfullea8474]

Y'all are awesome! Have you thought of having a 'pumpkin patch' in the fall? Or Poinsettias for the Christmas season?

[@shelleyhood228]

Yes! We had such an amazing pumpkin patch last year, but couldn’t get it in this year. I’m definitely going back to it, next season because it is so much fun - and a rare October product. Here in Ontario I have been thinking of wreath greens - with dried flowers as an Xmas season extender.

[@iwiltalacy9619]

Thank you both for sharing

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

Most welcome!

[@GlenravenFarm]

So thrilled when I heard you mention Free Spirit Nursery, Lambert is mentoring us and has supplied stock plants as we venture into the nursery business here on the island. Great content, Jason, I love listening to your stories and advice 😊

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

Wonderful to hear you're picking up some of the collection - and I'm sure many other gardeners share the sentiment! On Salt Spring? I've been itching to get over there and do some shopping from Fraser's Thimble Farm

[@GlenravenFarm]

Richard and Nancy are great, they’ve been our go-to since moving to the island. A lot of incredible natives, including some from the Free Spirit collection… I believe they picked up the woodland plants!

[@ScottFairley-sv4yg]

Great advice, as always. Also interesting to hear contrasting views from two professionals.

[@teresaminnick2252]

I am in SW Florida and I enjoyed this!

[@Growing-Our-Retirement]

Great video, don’t think I have seen this one before.

[@debragraff4649]

We had a small backyard nursery in less than 1,000 square feet, and specialized in native and pollinator plants. Being in a residential town neighborhood, we weren’t allowed to sell on our property and had to haul our plants and sales equipment elsewhere. We held 3-hour sales on Sat and Sun in a nearby mall parking lot, and averaged $2,500 each weekend in May. Sold about 1,400 plants this year. But we closed our business this year, because we’re in our 60’s and hauling a half ton of material both days every weekend was just too much work for us to handle. We also used fabric pots. In general, we really liked how well our plants grew in them, though there were a few minor issues.

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

Thanks for sharing your experience - kinda silly IMO that local regulations caused such logistical difficulty. But great results for a 3-hour plant sale!

[@shelleyhood228]

Sounds like you built up a nice business. I’d be interested to hear more about your experience with the fabric bags - good and bad!

[@debragraff4649]

@@shelleyhood228 Good: fabric bags take up very little space in storage; they drain well in wet weather; they stay cooler in hot weather; plants survived overwintering better; and they air prune root systems instead of becoming pot bound. Plants often grew better in fabric pots. They were also easier to obtain during the supply chain shortages of plastic pots. Bad: plants roots often grew through the fabric into the ground or into other fabric pots pushed up against them (needed more spacing between pots); pots that grew plants for several months in crowded nursery spaces in our moist climate often developed ugly slimy algae on their sides; if your potting soil grows any small mushrooms, they can sprout through the pot sides by the dozens; and fabric pots can dry out more quickly in hot or windy weather. Ours were also single season containers and not reusable, though they were made from 100% recycled plastic and natural fibers. Also, you have to educate your customers VERY carefully about the differences with these pots - such as don’t plant our pots into the ground (our pots had a percentage of recycled plastic that wouldn’t biodegrade); and PLEASE cut the pots off the rootballs. During air pruning, the root tips become embedded into the fabric, and the root ball is resistant from being pulled out of the pot. So, they definitely have both strong pros and cons.

[@shelleyhood228]

@@debragraff4649 thank-you for sharing that. Yes, I would agree on both sides - and great tip on the spacing! To me the pros outweigh the cons but the need to water more is definitely the biggest down side for me.

[@debragraff4649]

@@shelleyhood228 Drying out can be slowed when pots are clustered together (but still spaced a bit apart). The plants can provide some shade and windbreak to each other. Might be worth experimenting with both plastic and fabric pots. Same soil, plants, and growing conditions- and see how they compare. Good luck!

[@a444mo]

You mentioned Geoseed. This is my seed provider. They're just back on after the hurricane last week.

[@juliknapp9270]

Wonderful video!!

[@Crypto.Vantage]

00:04 Discussing how to turn a small plant business into a full-time endeavor 02:02 Creating a unique plant nursery experience for customers 06:04 Lower cost and lower labor in field nursery 08:10 Discussing the struggle of deciding when to open the plant nursery for business. 12:21 Discussing various seed suppliers in the U.S and Canada 14:30 Focus on agritourism to enhance customer experience 18:17 Exploring market opportunities for farm products 20:01 Importance of prioritizing and working on the foundational aspects of the business 23:32 Valuable insights from collaborative problem-solving Crafted by Merlin AI.

[@achnix3167]

Step one: have a huuuuge backyard

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

Not always, but in Shelley's case absolutely!

[@shelleyhood228]

Yes, my property is huge - 50 acres of forest and 40 acres of working farmland (farmed by a farmer). I work on the 10 acres remaining and still have only taken over a fraction of it. I’d say, if you wanted to include agritourism, 2-5 acres would be a good size. Interested to hear Jason’s view on that.

[@gardenimperfectplants]

@@shelleyhood228I wish I could have that, I would create a botanic garden.

[@DirtWhisper]

You don’t need huge land, I’m currently building a nursery in my backyard on less then a half acre property

[@j.c.linden]

From a customer's perspective, seeing plants at a small place that is really the lawn of someone's home can be intimidating. Not only do you feel as if you are disturbing their day, but much too often it is not at ALL clear, how much items cost or even where you are allowed to walk. When I go to a big nursery or box store there just is none of that social uncertainty or awkwardness or pressure to buy in exchange for taking up their time. When prices are clearly marked, when plants are in pots ready to go, and when the public area is clearly delineated, customers will feel better about shopping at your place.

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

Thanks. I won't argue the point: there are definite advantages to the more conventional setup of retail garden centers. Visitors already know what to expect from that format. It can also be pretty capital & staffing intensive, so there are downsides too. Every small business is going to have to tackle the issues around how to communicate their pricing, hours, parking, payment & policies. I guess the only other point I'd make is this: I wouldn't necessarily expect a veggie stall at the farmers market to present themselves the same way as the produce department at a supermarket. It's a different venue, so they'll just be different, and that's not necessarily better or worse. I try to make everyone comfortable to visit the farm, but honestly we're a little different too - and I guess I'll have to let visitors sort themselves into those who can and can't cope with it.

[@johngrady1755]

I heard your guest mention watching lots of videos on propagation. I suggest you check out "Mike McGroartys backyard nursery" channel. For propogation the trick seems to be taking the cutting at the right time, different for hard / softwood, and then he plants into sad with an automatic mister sprinkler that sprays very fine droplets. Seems to work very well for him and I recently bought his little Ebook after following him for years. (I just inherited some property to start on)

[@popandbob]

A neat conversation but I gotta say those prices are crazy low compared to my part of Canada lol Near Calgary AB your lucky to find a 1gal perennial for under $16, 2gal you can forget the idea of anything under $30. For example, a 2 gallon potted rose this year was $37-$45 for basic varieties, anything specialized is $70+ The idea of growing in ground intrigues me but I hesitate to try it because my topsoil is very shallow (4-6”) and its sandy clay under that (read - concrete when dry lol) so I would need mechanized digging available & it would have to be custom built for that size… but maybe one day! Have either of you given any thought into the wholesale market? Self propagating and keeping costs low could lend itself well to the wholesale market… plus it would allow you to enter some of the bigger markets via partnering with small retailers in the big cities.

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

Totally. It's why I mentioned it'll vary from your own regional pricing. When I did work wholesale perennial growing, we shipped a lot into Calgary with pre-pricing, and it was generally much higher than the local retailer pricing. But yes, even for the local market a $10 (CAD) gallon is quite low. Roses here this year were pretty close to the same as you quoted - but I note that the market is a bit more competitive in Ontario (from what I've seen shared on the Canada Rose Exchange). I personally don't have any plans of getting back into wholesale - I know some of the challenges of that scale of business. But never say never.

[@shelleyhood228]

I hear you on the soil. We did have to heavily amend because we’re pure sand, and being on a well, daily watering isn’t an option. We use lots of composted manure! On wholesale, like Jason says never say never, but for now I love the engagement with the customer, sharing my knowledge etc. Wholesale seems to be more transactional and would move us more towards “industrialized” gardening. But I do have room to do both, so something we may look at in the future.

[@abolitionistsofalabama261]

What would you say are some good examples of perennials you can grow out in one season, and is one season equivalent to one year?

[@JasperKlijndijk]

The Netherlands is the home of plants. garden centers all over europe gets the flowers for here. prices in canada- usa are four (x4) times higher as here all over.

[@JasperKlijndijk]

at my job its 0.26 gallon 1yr old simple perenials 2.56 CAD 0.53 gallon 1.5yr old beauty perenials 7.32 CAD 0.53 gallon 1.5yr old simple bushes 10.25 CAD 1.32 gallon 2 yr old beauty bush 22 CAD 0.53 gallon 1.5yr old grasses 8.8 CAD these prices are normal in Holland

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

Thanks for sharing some examples of your pricing. There doesn't seem to be much reason behind the pricing here except "what will the shopper be willing to pay?", and in some regions (like Alberta for instance) they're fairly price insensitive. If you shop around here on the west coast, you can still find 1 gallon perennials and shrubs in the $10 to $15 range, which isn't too bad in my opinion. A lot of urban garden centers have dropped the smaller perennials in favor of larger pot sizes, and pushed the pricing way up. As a producer and seller I mainly just follow the market pricing, but I have a hard time getting my head around $20 perennial in a 1 gallon pot.

[@wordvendor1]

Hazards are great! Ivy Garth too.

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

Thanks!

[@pamelamercado6902]

If I don't have time to make things or do certain things I find others who perhaps do it for their small farm Like I made a deal with a person that made all kinds of things out of herbes. I supplied to her she worked her wonders I sold them on my property she made good money and so did I . And along with that I sold many more plants so we both made out. If I had your church in my backyard once a month on a Saturday I'd do a ice cream and float day or just ice cream cones. Just letting people walk around see what there is and ask any questions they may have.

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

Thanks so much Pamela - love it!

[@shelleyhood228]

Yes! i do love this idea.

[@mariagillinson8527]

Have you both thought of bringing in volenteers? Airbnb for people would love to be on a working farm. Maybe music evening with students from culinary schools and bbq evening with music. Many artist would live exposure. Hire a doer for admin things like social media takes a lot of pressure off you day to day.

[@shelleyhood228]

Great ideas! Actually I didn’t mention that my brother who does the landscaping is also an artist. We’ve talked about hosting “art in the garden”’events.

[@mariagillinson8527]

@@shelleyhood228 that would be amazing!

[@FraserValleyRoseFarm]

Thanks. We've been fortunate this year to bring on a volunteer to help with some of the propagation. I'm going to have a hard time handing off the social media (a personal hang-up) but Lisa has taken over the customer service, so maybe there's hope for me yet! Great suggestions.

[@mariagillinson8527]

I totally understand. I’ve been a Canadian business owner for 35 years 33 f/t staff and 16 drivers on the road 24/7. It’s hard to hand over our baby was very hard for me. Once I got over myself thinking things would go loopy if I didn’t do it myself I couldn’t understand why I didn’t dedicate sooner, once over that mindset I handed over the billing, accounting and I hired a dispatcher they came onboard full of ideas and excitement and we grew so fast almost got whiplash. Was so much fun! With success come the sharks with very deep pockets snatching up my clients only two options wait and lose everything or sell and preserve jobs of my amazing staff. I sold and miss my staff every single day. Don’t miss 3 shifts and 20 hr work days. Missed out on a lot of my kids growing up!! Some tough choices when you have a small business in Canada. I never went to a bank and nothing for help from government… no protection from mega American companies that decide to move into Canada and buy all our small companies. Now the majority of Veterinary Clinics and hospitals are owner by Mars and so are the veterinary labs. There isn’t even a licensing requirement. No standards!