The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
SPRING FEVER
Garden centers prepare for planting obstacles inspired by pandemic
Local garden center owners said they are preparing for a spring like no other due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Fears of COVID-19 have caused many people to follow state and national directives to stay-athome to slow the spread of the disease.
Now, sheltering in place, time off work and some nice weather days have inspired people to begin their outdoor spring cleaning, said leaders at three garden centers who supply residents around Lorain County.
So, demand is solid, but safety is a concern.
The garden center leaders said they want to keep their workers and customers healthy, so shoppers should not get too close.
The outdoor stores, like all other businesses, are waiting to see if COVID-19 conditions get better.
If so, people can go out more freely, or worse, which could mean more shelter-inplace orders.
“It’s kind of like we’re starting a new business and a whole new way of doing things,” said J.R. Pandy, coowner of Pandy’s Premier Garden Center, 41600 Griswold Road in Elyria. “Every day is a new adventure.”
Busy season
Spring is the busy season for growers and suppliers of products that people use to prepare their lawns and gardens for warm weather.
The Rock Pile, 900 Nagel Road in Avon, does 60 percent of its annual volume from April to June.
“So, this is like our Christmas,” said Jenny Keener, who coordinates marketing for The Rock Pile, a familyowned company.
Pandy and Keener both said they have slowed their annual spring drives to hire seasonal workers.
Pandy’s usual spring crew of up to 40 people is down to 10 this year, Pandy said.
Pandy’s has 14 acres with 29 greenhouses, so some workers are stationed at one per greenhouse to avoid close contact with each other, he said.
“It’s a lot bigger burden on us to pull everything together, but my staff’s doing an incredible job,” Pandy said.
The Rock Pile scaled back hours and seasonal staff to remain open with a core group of workers, Keener said.
“Everybody that’s there feels comfortable coming to work,” she said. “We’ll stay at those limited hours as long as it is the safe thing to do.”
The store has closed to shoppers, who usually come from the area spanning Bay
Village to Sheffield Lake.
It may be an inconvenience for some, but that move lowered the stress level for staff and customers who want to keep a safe distance apart, Keener said.
“We have not had any complaints since we closed it off and just did curbside pickups,” she said. “People have been understanding and it’s been really good.”
For years, the company has trucked specialty soil and gravel across northern Ohio.
Deliveries continue and that part of the business has not suffered as much, Keener said.
Carryout mulch
Workers are managing telephone and online orders from customers and carrying out curbside deliveries.
Pettiti Garden Centers are offering curbside service at centers across the region, including the Avon store, 33777 Chester Road.
They allow in-person
visits because the open-air greenhouses have enough square footage for shoppers to spread out, said Annie Dorsey, Pettiti’s director of marketing.
The garden centers also are ramping up their websites to create online catalogs of available products.
Even before the threat of COVID-19, gardening was a great way to get exercise and satisfaction at home, Dorsey said.
Now, more people are realizing that, while keeping a safe social distance due to coronavirus.
“There’s so much pride and joy that comes along with nurturing plants,” Dorsey said. “It’s a healthy way to stay physically active while everyone is staying at home.
“It’s a positive way to spend time, so it really is benefiting the physical and emotional wellness.”
Growing fruits, vegetables and herbs is practical as well.
Pettiti’s already has devoted part of its website to new 2020 Victory Gardens to grow food at home.
At Pandy’s, seeds are selling fast, as are peat moss, vermiculite and compost.
Those items are the soil recipe created for raised beds popularized by author Mel Bartholomew, creator of the “Square Foot Gardening” approach.
Bartholomew’s instruction manual has become a hot seller, Pandy said.
“Seed sales have gone, just ridiculous,” he said. “It’s just incredible how many people are buying seeds.”
April showers
The experts said budding green thumbs should know that timing and weather are important factors in gardening.
Now is a good time to blend in soil fertilizers and additives to improve the garden beds where plants will grow, Dorsey said.
If the soil is workable, people can plant hardy trees and shrubs.
Despite their small sizes, pansies and violets can withstand cooler spring conditions, Dorsey said.
For edibles, lettuce and kale varieties will grow in cool temperatures, she added.
But many other plants must go in the ground once the soil is warmer, Keener said.
The Rock Pile usually sets Mother’s Day in May as a target time to get out hanging baskets and annual flowers, she said.
Pandy agreed shoppers may be eager, but one sunny day in the 60s does not mean northern Ohio is about to blossom.
Tomato and pepper plants are not ready yet, he said.
“There is this four-letter word called snow,” Pandy said with a laugh. “There is this other four-letter word called cold.”