Profiles
GREEN VALLEY GARDEN
Quality and affordability cornerstones for Green Valley Garden Centre
M aintaining a Grunthal area tradition of offering the best plants for the best possible price is continuing and owners of Green Valley Garden Centre say there is nothing they’d rather do. Sheldon and Carrie Enns operate the garden centre which they purchased in 2009. It operated as Reimer’s Greenhouse for 22 years and before that was Driedger’s Greenhouse then located south of Grunthal. For the Enns family, operating and expanding the greenhouse from the 7,400 sq. ft. facility it was in 2009 to the 14,000 sq. ft. facility it is now has been a dream, one that comes with a lot of hard work and diligence. Taking on the responsibility of operating the greenhouse was a big one. Sheldon was working in downtown Winnipeg at the time, while Carrie was a teacher (and still is) in Grunthal. But as they considered the purchase, they realized they made a great team. “I like the business end of things and she likes the creative part of things,” Sheldon said. “She can envision what all the plants are going to look like when they’re fully grown.” A commitment to quality sets this greenhouse apart. More than 80 percent of their stock is planted from seed in their greenhouse. That gives them the opportunity to include more varieties. That selection coupled with exceptional service helps continue the longstanding tradition set by previous owners. “We’re both quieter more shy people inside but we deeply care about people and so when we first came to visit the Reimers here what was really neat was that they knew all the customers,” Carrie said. They’ve quickly felt like family and Carrie said their customers have watched their family grow. Their oldest was a baby when they started and now works the till and helps customers. “He’s grown up in here and they’re all his aunties and grandmas, uncles and grandpas,” she said. “They know the kids by name. It’s really special.” Customers will often drop by even when they’re not purchasing anything. “They come to visit, and they come to breathe the air and see which flowers are blooming,” Carrie said. “It’s a really uplifting place to be. It’s become a very special place, far more than just a business. Customers typically come from the Grunthal, St Malo, St Pierre, Kleefeld, Steinbach, and Vita areas, but the pair say they also get people who come from as far as Winnipeg. Every year the couple starts by planting up to 500 seeds in a tray, all of which are carefully transplanted into communal packs. They still use the open style of packing, which allows the roots to grow into each other and encourages growth when those plants are put into the garden.
They also use coco-fibre and peat moss pots whenever possible, despite the price difference. A plastic container costs as little as four cents while the higher quality fibre pots ring in at closer to 25 cents. “It’s easier for us because they retain water,” Carrie said. “They’ll absorb some water and give it back when the plants need it.” Those pots are compostable and come from renewable resources, but even then, they are often used for several seasons. Plastic packs are single use and not recyclable, though the greenhouse does wash and reuse plastic trays and pots. “We reuse everything we can,” Carrie said. “This is partly to keep costs down but also our feeling of responsibility.” Even the boxes that arrive with greenhouse supplies are reused, cut down to work as trays for customers loading up on plants. The greenhouse carries a wide variety of flowers, bedding plants, perennials, shrubs and fruit trees. All shrubs and trees are grown in Manitoba which Carrie said increased the likelihood they’ll thrive in our climate. They are also one of the few greenhouses that offers plants in nine and 12-packs, which brings down the cost per plant. In fact, they said a supplier told them the cheapest six-pack he’d seen was $4.69. Green Valley Garden Centre offers 12-packs for $5.19. The 140 new annuals this year include some new spicy peppers, grasses that grow in shade, and petunias in a vast array of new colours. They also carry Heirloom tomatoes that are unique to their greenhouse because they’ve been harvesting seed and planting them every year for generations. They even have a “no name” tomato that is very popular. “Somebody had brought the previous owner tomato seeds and said they really liked the tomato but didn’t know what it’s called, so we just called it the no name tomato,” Sheldon said of the large, low acid tomato. Green Valley Garden Centre also maintains a website which has photos of products with light requirements. People can order online, but many use it as research tool before coming into the greenhouse. While they take pride in the product they produce, both Sheldon and Carrie said running the greenhouse is about far more than that. “We sell plants, but we develop relationships,” Sheldon said. “We’re in it to serve our community and surrounding communities and to make a positive impact on the area.” “Our heart is to help people and care about them and meet their needs,” Carrie added.
Get the garden of your dreams by stopping in store at 28061 PR 216 or call 204-434-6347
10 Profiles
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