Owners reflect as they approach 50th anniversary
Even after almost 50 years of business, Lee Weakland still feels a sense of happiness when she walks through the door at The Flower Bin Garden Center & Nurser y.
“It lifts my spirits and makes me feel so proud of (my husband) and ever ybody here,” Lee Weakland said. “Ever ything here is so alive. It smells good.”
Husband and wife duo Don and Lee Weakland have co-owned the gardening center since they opened it in 1971. This March will mark the business’s 50th anniversar y.
“It’s pretty amazing,” Don Weakland said. “We’re just happy that we had success and that the city has suppor ted us.”
Lee Weakland echoed this. “I’m so proud,” she said. Stepping into The Flower Bin on a winter day in February is a reprieve from a gray world of dormant trees and plants outside. Inside, people can find flowers blooming and herbs and succulents growing in an oasis of warmth and sunshine. On the shelves, there are plant seeds, gardening tools and hundreds of varieties of perennials and annuals from rose bushes and citrus trees to cacti.
What started as a small familyrun operation in two greenhouses has since blossomed into nearly 80,000 square feet of indoor growing space, 5 acres of land in Longmont and a 20-acre farm in Platteville.
“We would build more greenhouses and buy more land, build more greenhouses and buy more land, just as we could,” Don Weakland said. “We’ve grown ever y year for 50 years.”
The business today has roughly 18 full-time employees and seven part-time staff. In the spring, there are up to 70 workers who will help out seasonally.
Roots in the flower business
Don Weakland, a Colorado native, grew up in the garden industry. His father, the late Gill Weakland, operated a greenhouse business that grew carnations in Denver.
Don Weakland went on to open his own business growing carnations with his wife in Englewood. The couple ran the operation for about 14 years, before moving to Longmont.
When Don and Lee Weakland first opened The Flower Bin in 1971, the location at 1805 Nelson Road was out in the Longmont countr yside.
“It was a destination to come out here,” Don Weakland said. “Now we are kind of in the middle of town almost.”
Nurturing a garden center
Don Weakland said part of what’s kept the business thriving is its employees, who are able to share their knowledge of plants and gardening with customers. Weakland said many of his employees have worked for the business for more than a decade. Some have done so for 30 years.
“We’re just so good,” Weakland said with a laugh, when asked how the business has managed to stick around for 50 years. “We want to thank the city of Longmont for helping us be successful.”
Lee Weakland said the business has improved every year, from adding new products to increasing its space. On its website, The Flower Bin says a key par t of sur viving for 50 years has been its ability to adapt and of fer the “latest and greatest varieties” for customers.
“We keep looking for new things and we have prices for ever ybody,” she said.
Don and Lee Weakland have helped to create a new generation of garden centers across the Front Range.
Each of the couple’s five sons works in the industry. The couple’s oldest son, Mike Weakland, is the nursery manager at The Flower Bin, while Darren Weakland runs the business’s growing range in Platteville. Kevin Weakland owns the Loveland Garden Center & Nursery and Brian Weakland helps out at the business. Pat Weakland owns The Windsor Gardener.
When they’re not working to cultivate the plants at The Flower Bin, Don and Lee Weakland grow different-colored Zinnias at their Longmont home.
As to what’s ahead for the Flower Bin, Don Weakland said: “We’re just trying to be the best garden center we can be.”
Lee Weakland added:
“It’s just a happy place.”