By Elizabeth Spence.
Lee and Susan have been running Petals and Blooms Nursery on Brule Shore Road, Tatamagouche for well over twenty years now.
Jennifer and I went to visit at the beginning of May, and the first thing that struck us was that this was a nursery based on simplicity, order and beauty. We could tell that, even though Lee and Susan were just in the process of setting up for the season.
The couple make a fantastic team: Susan, originally from Londonderry, is the plant person, Lee is a trained carpenter who can turn his hand to anything. A perfect combination!
Susan was first introduced to gardening by a substitute teacher in elementary school who was so interested in gardening that it was almost all she talked about! Susan won a flower book as a gift at the end of the year. The bug was starting to take hold.
She then got a job at Lowland Gardens in Great Village, and this was basically her apprenticeship into the world of the garden. Eventually, Tony at Lowland encouraged her to start her own plant nursery, so she did. On the Brule Shore. She has never looked back.
As with all new businesses, it takes a while to get the system up and running, to know what works and what doesn’t.
When they started, there were all the nay-sayers who said they were wasting their time and they would never succeed. And then there was Mother Nature who made things difficult from time to time.
The worst was hurricane Dorian in September, 2019. The North Shore got a direct hit.
The greenhouses at Petals and Blooms were wrecked and there was a lot of general damage as well. So what did Lee and Susan do? They recycled what they could of what was left of the greenhouses to make smaller ones, and they thought about how to make everything much, much sturdier.
The solution they came up with saved them from the ravages of hurricane Fiona in 2022.
We noticed that the new main 30” x 100” poly greenhouse has double walls, that is to say, two layers of airtight plastic. Lee explained that he had rigged up a fan that continuously blows air between the plastic sheeting.
This produces an air barrier that not only prevents condensation and provides insulation, but is also extremely strong – strong enough to withstand Fiona as it turned out. Basically, keeping the plastic rigid stopped it from tearing.
Running the nursery for Lee and Susan is a full-time job. They do almost everything themselves – occasionally they will have a half-day helper when things are really busy.
They specialize in annuals, vegetables and herbs, with a few perennials and Susan starts the majority of the plants herself from seed. She has a time-tested system.
First the bagged potting soil is mixed up in a large soil tumbler to break down the clumps.
Then, at the potting bench, the soil is placed in multi-celled trays and the seed is sown.
Plants such as geraniums that need a longer period before they flower and are a bit touchy, are started inside their house. There is then a heated mat in the greenhouse for acclimatizing seedlings, for seeds that are not so picky and for later sowings.
Over the years Susan has developed time-saving techniques and tools. The soil tumbler is one, and another is her favourite seed dispenser. She swears by it, and with it she can sow seed like the wind. It adjusts to the size of the seed.
When the first true leaves have developed, the seedlings are transplanted in to larger pots or trays and placed in the greenhouse to continue growing into the beauties they will become.
Susan also purchases plugs for some things and these are also eventually transplanted into bigger pots. We asked Susan if she propagated more plants by cuttings from the plugs as they grew, and she looked at us in horror.
“Never!” she said.
“Oh,” we replied, “why is that?”
”I’d probably end up in jail!”
“Yikes!” Jennifer and I said, looks of complete astonishment on our faces.
This is when we learned about all the legalities connected with reproducing plants.
Many plants come with a label with the propagation rights on it. The plant police do come around to check from time to time, Susan said, and you can end up with thousands of dollars in fines if they discover you have been multiplying your stock – illegally – from their plants. So it’s not worth it.
This only applies to commercial growers. You and I could do it for our own personal use, but not for sale.
One of the perennial chores in running any greenhouse is, of course the watering. Lee has set up a 1000L tank that collects well water. A long hose with an adjustable nozzle is attached to it, and the water flow is powered by a pump.
They then take the hose and go from area to area through the greenhouses. It is pure hand-watering and can take a whole day. Soluble fertilizer is added if required depending on what is being watered. Using this method they have great control over the whole procedure.
Heating is by an oil furnace set at 5 degrees. And fans are set to cool the greenhouses.
We realized very quickly that Lee and Susan do indeed do everything themselves – growing the plants and setting up all the necessary systems to make the whole business run as smoothly and efficiently as possible. The phrase “hard work” was ringing in our ears!
But it was also clear that Lee and Susan really enjoy what they are doing. For Susan, as with so many of us, there is that great pleasure at seeing little seeds sprout and grow; there is the love of interacting with customers and meeting new people, and there is making sure that everything is accessible and pleasing to the customers as well. She experiments with new plants every year and is constantly learning. She looks for plants that aren’t available anywhere else as well.
Petals and Blooms also provide other services for customers. Not only do they sell seeds and potting mix, they will start seeds for you and do up custom planters as well. How about these for your containers?
They will also take back your used pots, which is a wonderful way of recycling them.
Things are usually sold out after the end of season sale in June, but if anything is left, especially vegetables, they are donated to local food banks.
Work does not end for Lee and Susan when the season ends however. Apart from clearing everything up and cleaning, they have to get their seed and plug orders in by August and September. Then there are the trade shows in the fall. From November to January they can rest.
But then it’s off again, starting geranium seeds in the house and looking forward to another year of hard, hard work, and seeing their wonderful customers again. And it’s all worth it, they say, great smiles on their faces. All this in spite of those who said they would never do it!!
Petals and Blooms is at 662 Brule Shore Road, Tatamagouche, and is now open.
Tuesday – Saturday 10am till 4pm.
Sunday 12 noon till 4pm.
Closed every Monday.
Cash or cheque only.
One Response
We will be over Jack Patriquin Sutherland Lake