EXPANDED REGIONAL COVERAGE
Bowie County man’s greenhouse is expanding, along with plant varieties
They come from Texarkana, Shreveport, Little Rock, Dallas, across Bowie County and all points in between. Why? Because he has the best little greenhouse in Northeast Texas.
Even though his greenhouse is on the side of a two-lane road in the middle of the countryside, people find him.
It’s a paved road, which helps, and he’s only a couple of miles north of New Boston. But there is no interstate access.
“They get ‘me’ when they come here,” said Bruce Pardue, owner of Little Country Greenhouse and neighborly humorist. “I water the plants.
I’m the chief fertilizer. I’m the head cashier. I’m going to load it all up for you, and I’m going to sit down with you and we’re going to discuss your yard.”
It’s that personalized service that keeps his customers coming back to the nursery in the middle of nowhere. That, and the seemingly unlimited amount of knowledge he has to dispense. Plus, the wide variety of common and uncommon plants he offers. And the humor. Don’t forget the humor.
Pardue slips jokes into conversation so effortlessly that one may laugh during a lesson on something as tame as watering cycles.
But he does have a serious side. Pardue’s knowledge covers a vast array of information on soil, perennials, annuals, vegetables, roses, organic fertilizers, ferns, fruit and shade trees, succulents, shrubs, fish, chickens, ducks, dogs and trains.
His big sell is education. He not only educates his customers, but is also involved with local schools and teaching young students the art of gardening. You see, Pardue has passions. And those passions include his interest in organic gardening, his love for educating people, his devotion to his family and friends and lastly, but by no means of any less importance, his passion for his fiancé, Patria (pronounced PAY-tree-ah)
Louis.
Louis works as a pharmacist for Walmart in Texarkana, Ark. Her love of gardening fits right in with Pardue’s attention to the details of gardening.
“I have learned so much from him,” she said. “I’ve always loved gardening, and I’ve always wanted to garden.”
Having been together less than a year and having found each other later in life, these two are practically over the moon at the prospect of finding their one true love. The little things prove they made the right choice.
“And see? This is what happens when two dog lovers get together. We’ve got seven dogs, a cat, tropical fish in the house, a Koi pond outside, our ducks, and then our chickens will be here late February.”
And they couldn’t be happier. Pardue collects axioms like he collects petunias. “Everything in life is an adventure,” he said. “And that’s what I want to continue out here, an adventure in learning.
“I’ve done educational tours through special needs, HeadStart, and pre-K. Now we’re wanting to step it up a little bit and get more involved with the science classes that are for the third-, fourth- and fifth-graders—show them more of what’s going on outside their environment.”
This constant desire to teach has led him to New Boston’s Crestview Elementary School and their bird sanctuary project.
“It’s a butterfly and bird garden that they are creating as an outdoor classroom for the kids,” he said.
And if all that wasn’t enough for most people, he recently announced that he is venturing into the beekeeping and honey industry this year to coincide with his new raised-bed vegetable garden. The hives are stored in his backyard, just waiting to be constructed and painted. His bees should arrive the first of April.
The vegetable garden, named Victoria Organic Garden, consists of 23 raised beds and has eaten up what little was left of his front yard. But that doesn’t seem to be a problem. In fact, it actually looks right at home there.
The majority of the harvest is for the family, with the exception of the Porter tomatoes, which are donated. However, if his yield turns out to be better than expected, it’s quite possible he will have vegetables for sale to his customers.
Pardue is pretty particular and wants to ensure that his customers are buying plants that will do well in the local climate and soil.
“I don’t buy any plants that come from probably over 100 miles out,” he said.
“Everything’s locally grown, locally produced in this environment, so the adaptation from them (his local wholesalers) to me to your yard, they’re already home.
“When you come in and ask me for a peach tree, I make sure that the five varieties that I’ve got sitting here are going to make peaches here. Why would I bring something that grows in California to here?” he said.
“I’ve been on a pretty aggressive expansion the last couple of years, starting with putting up our own growing greenhouses. That enables me to step outside the box and have all these different varieties that I haven’t been able to get before. Because I’m growing them, right here.
“Did you know that in petunias alone, there’s 23 different colors? With my greenhouses, it gives me the chance to experiment more.
“I brought the black petunia in for the first time in this area last year. It did very, very well. Night Sky is the new one this year. It’s a dark blue with spots of white on it. No two blooms are alike.”
He’s not afraid to try something different. In fact, he lives for it. He loves being able to offer his customers new and exciting plants they may never have in their yards had he not grown them.
“I can do 100, or 50 or 25 and try it. And if I pull it off, customers are looking at new things they’ve never seen.”
“This year alone, I figure we’ll have about 2,200-2,400 perennials between what I’m growing and what I’m bringing in. Next year, with this new perennial greenhouse I’m building, we plan to grow about 7,000 and bring in another 2,000-3,000 on top of that. I can’t grow it all.
I’m going to grow the oddball stuff, the wild stuff,” he said with a grin.
Pardue has expanded his supply of fertilizer and repellants by taking on the Ferti-lome brand of 100 percent organic items. The organic line, called Natural Guard, offers spinosad soap, neem, copper soap fungicide, dipel dust, diatomaceous earth, and slug and snail bait.
“Growing organic is just a part of who I am, as far as an environmentalist. It’s just putting good, healthy food your mouth. It’s something the customers have been asking me about because they can’t find the products. I not only found it, but signed an exclusive right to it. And here’s the kicker, it’s not any more, pricewise, than the (chemical brands).
“And it’s 100 percent safe for pets, children and adults. If you want to go organic, let me give you a few educational steps to do that.”
“We will also seriously expand our organic USDA-approved herb and vegetable plants this year. … They have met the highest standards possible for being grown organically.”
As much as he believes in organic gardening, he still carries the other chemical-based products for those customers who prefer the ones they already have experience with.
“I believe in giving my customers choices,” he said.
Instead of having a winter shutdown like he has in the past, Pardue is planning on being open year round, starting this year. He’ll have a fall setup, as usual, but this Christmas will
see flocked live Scotch Pines at the Little Country Greenhouse.
“They will be 100 percent fire retardant, no needles will fall off, and yet you’ll have the scent of Scotch pine throughout your house.”
He will also offer florist-quality poinsettias for his customers’ decorating. The ducks and chickens won’t be for sale— they’re considered pets. The handicapped-accessible boardwalk will feature platforms where guests can get a little closer to the birds’ unusual markings.
“Every variety we’ve chosen from Meyer’s Hatchery in Ohio,” Louis said. “We wanted either endangered or ones that have a long heirloom history that maybe people don’t produce anymore.”
The ducks are Carolina Wood Ducks and have already been named Drake and Henrietta.
Pardue’s friend, Walt Davis, designed and painted all the creative signs for the chickens’ and ducks’ enclosures, which Pardue built.
Small treasures can certainly bring a smile to people’s faces. In this case, Pardue is proud to announce he has the new geranium color this year—the Raspberry Twizzle. This is the color’s first release, and Little Country Greenhouse has it.
“I have a new motto this year. It’s called Little Country Greenhouse pricing. We’re more about working harder at bringing the price down and not going up. Geraniums, my No. 1 selling item, will be down this year. Perennials will come down.”
Pardue originally opened as a florist all those years ago. When he found that wasn’t what the customers really wanted, he switched things around bit. He built his little shop next to his house and started slowly expanding his inventory to include bedding plants, roses, shrubs, trees, vegetables, annuals and perennials.
Now, 27 years later, his makeshift wooden slatted tables are gone, and he’s building his fifth greenhouse. His business has grown so much that he had to give up his front yard to house the many specimens he now carries.
He hasn’t completely left his florist days behind, though. He recently began arranging houseplants for special occasions, including funeral services. It makes sense—he’s growing the plants anyway, so it’s a small step to offer them in arrangements for his customers.
“I’m all about trying to save the customer money and at the same time, educate. The smarter they become, the more informed they become. One thing I’m not afraid to tell customers is ‘no, you can’t have it.’”
If a customer wants to purchase impatiens for a sunny flower bed, he’s not afraid to tell them that won’t work, he explains. Impatiens are shade-loving plants.
“I have to tell them, ‘No, you can’t do that. But let me show you what you can do. Let me give you choices.’”
Among all the neat ideas he comes up with for his customers, one in particular stands out. He has decided to make petunia baskets in school colors. Who’d have thought? And now that the Black Magic petunia is available, that will help him cover a great many more schools.
“Don’t let him fool you,” Louis said. “He runs this place. It’s open during the season seven days a week. He works 12-14 hours a day every day. I have never seen anybody with a worth ethic like that. Ever.”
With this being the time of year that nurseries are bustling, Pardue still attempts to get some ‘me’ time for himself. His favorite pastime, his secret passion, is the wonderland of miniature trains.
“It will eventually be open to the public. It’s already part of the show when we have the kids come through. They love to see the trains run.”
When it’s up and running, it will take six grown men to run it.
“We’ll run between 12 and 18 trains at one time,” he said. “Passenger and freight. This is what I do in the evenings. I close the door, no music, nothing being played, no TV—I just go into a whole different world.”
Pardue’s selection of roses covers a wide range. He stocks David Austins, Kolorscape, Knockouts, Rio Samba, tea roses and many others. One thing he’s proud to show is his collection of disease-resistant roses that don’t require spraying for black spot.
Pardue recently received a call from one of Texarkana’s magnet schools, which has arranged a field trip for some of their students in a few weeks. It’s the perfect opportunity for him to teach children about the fun and fine art of gardening.
Pardue has an eclectic and extensive background in learning, field experience, working in florists, wholesale growers, retail organizations and running landscaping crews, along with his four years of college at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.
“Then I ventured off to Walmart on my mass marketing. I ran small businesses. Everything I have done has been a learning experience and tool to get me into the love of life. And you’re in it. This is it.”
In appreciation of all his good fortune throughout his life, Pardue believes in giving back to the community. One way he returns his favors is by donating to Manna Kitchen in New Boston.
“The older people are the ones being fed by Manna Kitchen. They gardened when they were growing up. I want to give them a taste of what they were used to getting. The main thing we’re going to grow for them is tomatoes. And there’s a particular variety I want to grow for them called the Porter tomato. It’s a smaller one, very plump, juicy, regular acid, but it’s just right for Manna to put into baggies for them. That’s what it’s all about, just giving back.”
A visit to Little Country Greenhouse, 1442 Daniels Chapel Road, New Boston, will have all your questions answered about your yard, flower beds, vegetable gardens, rose bushes or fruit trees. You ask it, he’ll know the answer. Pardue holds just one sale a year, on the third Saturday of April.
It’s right smack dab in the middle of springtime for all the excited gardeners in the area.
It’s all buy one, get one free— and they don’t raise the prices to do that, he said.
Last year, his sale saw more than 1,000 people in a day. The year before, more than 1,500 came for the 25th anniversary sale.
His hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday, staying open until 6 p.m. when Daylight Savings Time arrives. On Sundays, he opens from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Pardue’s brother, John, works the nursery with him by lending a hand when he needs it. Linda Woodward is affectionately called the “water girl,” and another lady, Gail, also helps out.
Pardue raised four daughters: Elizabeth Pardue, 29; Tiffany Pardue, 27; Kristy Orr, 26; and Kayla Pardue, 22.
“It’s going to be an adventure to come out here,” he said.
With the old-fashioned outhouse, chickens and ducks, Koi fish, an alligator, the boardwalk, Fern Alley, the vast selection, the knowledge he has to bestow on us and the time he takes with each of his customers, it’s sure to be a wonderful experience. Oh, and the humor—don’t forget the humor.