You can now reserve your M R Gardens seedlings online! With
this system, the Pre-Season Prep Service is user-friendly with easy click forms
and photos so you can see the differences between varieties. When you order,
you put down a deposit for half the price of the plant, and then pay the
remaining when you pick up the plants.
Go to the online store by clicking here.
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| squareup.com/store/m-r-gardens/ |
M R Gardens is fully committed to delivering you the
healthiest plants possible. You will have a chance to inspect the plants and
address any concerns before paying the remaining bill and taking your plants
home. Those who have been using my order ahead service since 2012 can attest that I love
handing off beautiful plants and wouldn't think of doing otherwise.
Since M R Gardens seedlings are grown
on a small scale, they are given individual attention and are exceptional
quality. The goal of the business is "as sustainable as possible," which means not
only growing organically but also using nearly all renewable resources in our passive solar greenhouse, as well as
reusing nonrenewable resources.
I'm now taking orders for early spring seedlings
(lettuce, kale, collards, Brussels sprouts, spinach, pak choi, Chinese cabbage,
dill and parsley). Reserve your plants
by February 20, and they will be ready for pickup at the farm in
early April. Selections for summer crop starts, herbs, native wildflowers and
other beneficial plants will be posted soon, with ordering deadlines in March
and April.
If you'd like to try a variety that is not listed, please don't
hesitate to ask!
I also continue to offer a Recycled
Pots Discount—50 cents off each plant for every returned container! Bring
all the pots you have to receive 50 cents off each plant you purchase and
accumulate credits toward the purchase of next season's plants. I prefer 3-inch
to 5-inch pots and gallon containers.
The only way I can take them is if you wash your pots so they are free of dirt before bringing them to the nursery. While I sanitize containers
before I reuse them, it's important that I take every precaution to minimize
the chance of disease spreading to my nursery since I only use organic
practices. If you have a hard time prioritizing pot washing, pretend that pile
of containers in the corner of your garage are just dishes after a big dinner party.
While you spray the dirt off, think about how much you enjoyed last year's
garden and the fun you'll have next time you bring home a tray of plants!
If cost is the only barrier stopping you from ordering plants, let me know and I’ll help with a solution. I gladly consider work-trade offers.
Why order ahead?
I've described the multitude
of benefits for customers who use Pre-Season Prep Service in past articles. But
the main inspiration for the service is sustainability, the core mission of my
business. It affects every single choice I make, from the way I design
my greenhouse, to the potting soil I choose, to the way I market and
communicate.
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| Italian Giant parsley |
Growers of vegetable starts have a very short window of time
to get their products to customers before the plants become too big for their
pots. Depending on the amount of heat and sunny days, we might have two weeks
at the minimum, or a month if we're lucky.
Businesses that are not addressing sustainability as deeply as me just grow or buy extra and discard any mature plants that are too leggy
or yellowing to sell. I can't bring myself to do this—the natural resources used
to produce plants are precious, and so is my time! I think, I could have used
those hours to teach someone to garden or help them design their edible and
native landscape instead of growing a plant that had no home.
A key to a sustainable community is that we all have the
opportunity to use our talents in ways that most benefit the community. That
means prioritizing our time and sharing simple monotonous duties so not any one
person is tasked with them. I continually think of this belief when operating my business, whether I'm capping the size of my nursery, creating a pot washing
discount, or making sure I'm varying types of activities when working with
volunteers.
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| Brussels sprouts - Catskills variety |
The other variable in determining plant selection is
customers' tastes, which change year to year. One variety might sell like
hot cakes one season, so a grower is tempted to produce a ton of them the
following year. But tastes change—while we have our favorites, we also like to
try something new. So what does well one year might not the next.
My intention is to communicate with my customers up front
about their gardening plans so that little is wasted. Furthermore, I can give
you the plants when they are at their most beautiful—just the right size for
transplanting.
If you have any questions about my ordering system, please
feel free to contact me at megan@mrgardens.net or
828.333.4151.
