Introducing Ashland Greenhouses, your source for 100% locally grown plant starts. Ashland Greenhouses is your one-stop shop for annuals, vegetables & edibles, herbs, perennials, color bowls, hanging baskets, poinsettias, pollinators, and drought-tolerant plants. In today’s interview I spoke with the retail manager Rona Jackson to learn all about the current availability and inventory on hand. We also discussed local tips and planting ideas for spring 2024! Get your gardening gloves out and head on down with me now to Ashland Greenhouses.
Rona, thanks so much for taking the time to speak with us today and congratulations on another great year in business!
Thank you! 2023 was an incredible season for us at Ashland Greenhouses and we anticipate 2024 to be even better. Our many loyal and repeat customers, and our amazing staff, are what make our seasons such a success. Myself and my staff really strive to make your experience at Ashland Greenhouses fun and educational while shopping. We are more than happy to help you curate your plants according to your location and gardening needs as well as sharing tips and tricks to help you have a successful growing season. Our production team works hard from the freezing cold days of January through the hottest days of the season getting soil, planting our beautiful plants, and getting them ready for our amazing Wholesale department and our store. It’s all a labor of love and I feel like it really shows in the quality of our plants and how long Ashland Greenhouses has been here. Bringing in new varieties every season, colorful fun metal art, and lots of fertilizers and pest control options keep our customers happy and excited for every season.
Moving into spring 2024, what have been some of the most exciting developments and best reflections of the past year?
Our 2024 season is going to ROCK! I can feel it. We set the bar high with an amazing season in 2023 and our customers are really excited to see what happens this season. They won’t be disappointed. We pay attention to your questions, requests, and concerns to make every season great. We grew some new varieties of flowers, grasses, vegetables, and brought in more hardgoods to help and enhance all your garden spaces. Our availability list grows every week as we add more incredible choices. We are excited to be bringing back our relaxing and fun “Ladies Night” this season and of course our classes that we hold throughout the season will be happening. It’s amazing to come back in January and watch as the greenhouses start to fill up, the baskets get planted and hung, deliveries of seeds and pots arrive, and seasonal staff come on. It’s a time of new growth, new ideas, and lots of anticipation.
I would also say that our Poinsettia Festival is top on my list of best reflections of 2023! We were unable to have this beautiful event for a few years and by the response and turnout we had I would say our customers missed it. We start our Poinsettias in July and lovingly care for them until their debut. We grow so many different varieties of Poinsettias in a wide range of sizes from 4.5 inches to our amazing hanging baskets. My favorite is Burgundy. It’s a very rich color variety that reminds me of a Victorian-era Christmas. Some of our customers’ favorites are the “Glitter” and our beautiful velvety traditional Red. Our Poinsettia festival was attended by approximately 700 people throughout the day and was magical. We had some wonderful local vendors and Santa came by to take photos and pass out gifts to the children. We provided beverages and snacks as well as a wonderful food truck, “Tacos Libertad,“ where customers could get delicious hot food. We hold drawings, play festive music, and welcome winter with beautiful Poinsettias.
Rona, let’s talk about spring planting and gardening tips. What’s at the top of your list?
At the top of my spring planting are perennials! Early spring is the perfect time to plant perennials. They get the benefit of spring showers and will be well established by the time your garden spaces start to wake up. Having perennials in your garden will save you not only money but also time as they come back every year. You can always add pops of color and variety in your perennial garden by adding annuals throughout the season. In early spring I will fill my spaces with Pansies and Violas for a bright and cheerful start as I wait for the ground to be warmed by the spring sun. Herbs are an awesome way to incorporate perennials. You can plant a separate kitchen herb garden, or I love to mix herbs into my vegetable garden beds and even in my flower beds. They help with pest control and are an easy plant to care for that will give you years of fresh herbs. We carry a large variety of herbs and perennials here. My favorite herb last season was the “Goodwin Creek” Lavender, with its silver soft foliage and long stems, it is a clean growing Lavender that really holds up in the heat and cold. Another herb I grow in my beds that I love is Thyme. Lemon Thyme, Lime Thyme, French Thyme, there are so many great varieties that are fast growing and aromatic. A few great perennials that we have in stock right now are Erigeron, Gaura, Lamium, Shasta Daisies, and ‘Hot Lips’ Salvia, with more being added every week.
Our gallon area is filling up fast with Bleeding Hearts, Hosta’s, Grasses, and so much more.
For absolute beginners, where do we start?
For absolute beginners I always recommend walking in your neighborhood. Notice what is planted and thriving in the area you live in. Avid gardeners are more than happy to talk to you about their gardens. Talking to friends and family about what they grow in their garden can help as well. Your local library will have amazing resource books or going on something like YouTube is another good option. There are a wealth of videos and websites to help and inspire all levels of gardeners. If you are unsure where to start, what to buy, what seeds to start… come see us. We can help you from the soil up.
How about for the veterans, what are tried and true classics to come and stock up on at Ashland Greenhouses?
Veteran gardeners will be thrilled to see the new varieties we have brought in as well as their favorites. ‘Silver Falls’ Dichondra, Creeping Jenny, Sun Impatiens, and our many different varieties of Zinnias, Marigolds, Verbena, and Petunias. Some of our most popular classics here are our incredible Geraniums, the beautiful fast-growing Thunbergia (more commonly called Black-Eyed Susan Vine) and of course our Fuchsia are hugely popular. But honestly everything we grow here from our Ageratum to our Zinnias are tried and true classics that would all look amazing in everyone’s spaces. It’s a matter of knowing your sun requirements and what you enjoy growing.
Can you please talk about drought-tolerant plants and what you have in stock at the moment?
Some of our drought-tolerant and heat-loving plants that are available now include all of our wonderful herbs as well as Yarrow, Artemisia, Rudbeckia, and Penstemon to name just a few. If you are looking for drought-tolerant ground cover types of plants, we have those as well. Creeping Thyme, Creeping Phlox, or Delosperma are great options for that. In the store we have free handouts for customers. Drought-tolerant, evergreen, deer-resistant, ground cover, and cut flower handouts are available at the register. Our staff can also help you find plants that would thrive in your environment. We have options for full-shade, part-shade, drought-tolerant, and plants that like a bit wetter soil. We can help you find plants for erosion control, plant between stepping stones, or to add height and texture. I’ve brought in some reference material that our customers can read through and even borrow to help plan out their spaces. We may not have ALL the answers to your garden questions, but we will be more than happy to talk with you, share ideas, tips, tricks, and learn as well.
Rona, I´d love for you to take us on a quick tour of the greenhouses. Please walk us around and tell us about what you have going on.
I would love to! As you first arrive here the first thing you will see are our beautiful hanging baskets and tables filled with blooming, colorful annuals and perennials. You will also notice that I have brought in some large metal sunflower spinners for sale…hurry in because they are going fast. As we welcome you inside, the first tables have our fun succulents.
Throughout the area there are displays incorporating our metal garden art. My staff love to display it in a way that shows our customers that garden art can really add an element of fun as well as texture and height to any garden space. All three rooms of our store area are filled with tables of healthy, happy plants, as well as hanging baskets that we have been planting and tending to since we returned from our winter break. Your stroll will include a stop at our various shelves filled with options for pest control, fertilizing, seeds, and even our new galvanized watering cans that are for purchase. The middle greenhouse room is where we grow shade to part-shade plants such as our stunning Begonias, Fuchsias, Sun Impatiens and shade loving baskets. The furthest room in our store you will find our popular heat-loving plants such as Lantana, Thunbergia, Salvias, such as our incredible and quick selling “Black and Blue” Salvia, and different varieties of Ipomoea more commonly known as Potato Vine. As you’re walking and enjoying the smell of fresh soil and beautiful flowers you will be greeted by a helpful staff member who is happy to help you, or we also make sure that if you are here to wander that we give you your space. The environment I really strive for is one of joy, relaxation, and happiness.
Ashland Greenhouses is actually one the oldest businesses in Ashland. What do you think has helped it to stand the test of time?
I believe that providing healthy plants that are LOVINGLY cared for is the key to the success of Ashland Greenhouses. It comes down to how we grow and care for them and the fact that our employees from the production team, wholesale crew, and store staff all have a love of gardening. We all take great pride in providing beautiful healthy plants that we can feel proud of sending home with our customers or providing to local businesses. We strive to provide a unique, informative, and fun environment for not just our customers but our management and seasonal staff as well. If you are a seasoned gardener or new to this hobby, you want to shop where the staff are helpful, knowledgeable, and just as happy being around plants as you are. Having pride in your job, in the product you provide is absolutely key to a successful business. Our wholesale and store customers have kept Ashland Greenhouses going strong. And we are thankful for the opportunity to continue to provide beautiful, healthy plants locally and beyond.
In your day-to-day work at Ashland Greenhouses, what do you enjoy most about what you do?
That’s a hard one only because I love my job and every aspect of it. The customers are always so kind, we have customers that have been coming to Ashland Greenhouses for 20-30 years, some even longer than that, and I enjoy talking with them and hearing their stories about playing on the grounds at the original location. We have customers that just found us for the first time, and I love watching the reaction they have when entering our store. I have customers that stop in sometimes to just visit and say hello. I’ve learned so much from our customers and appreciate their kindness and willingness to share their knowledge. Working at Ashland Greenhouses I am blessed to see some of the most incredible views, the birds are always singing, I get to interact with our amazing customers, work with a great team, and tend to beautiful plants.
Happy plants, happy customers… Please share some recent customer testimonials with us.
“Plants that are out are correct for the planting time. All are healthy and ready to go into pots. Excellent customer service.” – Leanne Moon
“This was my very first visit. My plants are gorgeous, Rona was incredibly helpful and I will be back very soon!!” – Virginia Berner
“It’s always a pleasure for Spring to arrive and a visit to Ashland Greenhouses. A great place!” – Mary Knoke
Rona, please tell us about any special events you have upcoming.
Our next event is right around the corner. We will have our Showcase and Open House on April 6th. We will be open from 9:00am to 5:00pm. Come see what’s new and upcoming for spring, enjoy some refreshments and snacks while you shop, and view new varieties as well as the beautiful plants you know us for. There will be a free tour at 12:00 pm and “Tacos Libertad” will be here selling some yummy food!
Looking ahead we have our super popular basket and container class taught by owner Kelly Brainard, this class has several dates and fills up fast so be sure to call soon to get details and sign up. In May we have our heat lovers’ class where you will learn about combining fun and colorful choices to get amazing color through the hottest season. And back by popular demand is Ladies Night! Refreshments, music and evening shopping hours. Special sales exclusive to ladies’ night. A great night to talk to other female gardeners and share your favorite plants, tips and tricks. Intro to Fall Perennials will be our final class of the season. This class will go over the benefits of planting perennials in the fall. Come learn how to keep your colorful perennial beds looking great all season long. Before we close our doors for winter break, we will hold our Poinsettia Festival on November 30th. Last year’s event was a huge success, and we are looking forward to this year’s festival as well. As always all of our events and classes can be found on our website at www.ashlandgreenhouses.com.
Where exactly are you located?
Ashland Greenhouses is located at 650 East Ashland Lane, just off of Butler Creek Rd. Across I-5 from the beautiful city of Ashland! If you are having a hard time locating us for any reason, just give us a call and one of our staff can assist you.
Thanks again for speaking with us today. Do you have any last thoughts you would like to share with us today?
Yes…. Try not to take gardening too seriously. It should be a joy, an escape from the noise and fast-paced world we live in. It should be FUN. Yes, you will have times when you are frustrated because of pests, too much sun, not enough sun, too much watering, not enough watering… it can really be a chore if you let it. Come at it from a different way. Walk barefoot (if you can) in your garden, listen to the birds, enjoy the soreness after a good day of deadheading, harvesting, and being outside! Include your children and friends in your adventure. Your gardens, your containers, your baskets, are just that, yours.
Garden your way, if you’re more of a wilder gardener than a structured gardener then go wild. Grow what you love. Grow herbs, even if you don’t always use them, they are hardy, forgiving and aromatic. Want to grow only vegetables? Grow only vegetables. Your garden is your sanctuary, it’s where you can be yourself, get dirty, laugh or cry, dance, just do what your heart tells you to do. We are here to help you have a happy and beautiful garden space no matter your type of gardening.
Learn More:
Ashland Greenhouses
650 East Ashland Lane, Ashland
541-482-2866
grow@ashlandgreenhouses.com
www.AshlandGreenhouses.com
