A couple of foodies, we’d had our own vegetable garden for years in Manitoba. One day, during a particularly long Manitoba winter, we were lamenting the state of grocery store produce, and began dreaming out loud about a life where we could grow almost anything we wanted, and maybe even share our passion with others. And while we were dreaming, wouldn’t it be great if we could live near an ocean? It was a dream that would not be silenced.
We made our first scouting trip to Nova Scotia in September 2013. In one week, we put 2500 kilometres on our rental car checking out nearly every community from Halifax to Digby. We went home from that trip, and between getting our home in Manitoba ready to sell, we scoured blogs, message boards, and real estate sites. And finally, after two more scouting trips, and almost exactly three years after that first trip, on Sept. 11th, 2016, we headed east with a small U-haul trailer, and our two dogs, Ocean and Theo.
We started building our greenhouse in December of 2016–thank goodness we had a couple of mild months! The initial plan was to grow greenhouse produce, in soil, using only natural fertilizers. We would sell our produce at farmers markets, and hopefully have our own farm store one day. Given Brian’s more than 35 years of experience in the retail greenhouse and wholesale nursery industries, we hoped to eventually expand to having our own nursery.
By May of 2017 we were harvesting for our first farmers market in Kentville, and while our produce was everything we hoped it would be, one thing became abundantly clear–we didn’t have nearly enough produce to fill our booth. Out of desperation we decided to take our surplus tomato, pepper, and strawberry transplants, and some spruce seedlings we’d planned on planting out in our field. As it turned out, our plants became more than just table filler–they made up half our sales. After a couple of weeks we managed to get in to the Wolfville Farmers Market. Now we had two market booths a week to fill! Brian began seeding herbs and transplanting perennials and shrubs we’d started in Manitoba. We planted herb bowls and salad bowls and sold annual planters we’d started for ourselves–anything to keep our booth looking abundant. By the end of that first season, as rewarding as it was to grow and sell beautiful produce, it was obvious that in order to compete 
with the more established growers, we would have to rapidly expand our vegetable production–or shift our focus. It was also by this time that our customers were stopping by to tell us the success they’d had in growing their own produce from our transplants. They raved about how they’d never had such success with tomatoes or peppers, and how their annual baskets had been loaded with blooms. It seemed like our customers were pointing toward a new direction.
When the 2018 market season began we had more product than one booth would hold, so for most of the season we filled two spaces at both the Wolfville and Kentville Farmers Markets. We both get so much pleasure out of meeting customers and helping them pick out plants. Not a week goes by when someone doesn’t stop by the booth to tell us how their plants are doing. Even when we’re not at one of the markets it isn’t unusual for someone to recognize us and share stories from their garden. In July, we opened our Farm Store at the end of our lane. Since opening we have been amazed at all the neighbours who have stopped in to say hello and pick up a little something for their garden. Some of our market customers have made the trip up the valley to visit our Farm Store, and we’re constantly surprised by people who found us by word of mouth or by one of our posts on Facebook. So while we’ve shifted our focus from produce to plants, we’ve still managed to find a way to share that passion for good produce with our customers.
For the upcoming season, we’re switching our tomatoes, peppers, and herbs over to an Eco-Grow pot. It is completely compostable and 
biodegradable when planted in the garden. Along with offering customers the opportunity to return our plastic pots for re-use, this is another step in our attempt to lower our impact on the environment. As we continue to expand our selection of garden ready vegetables and herbs, perennials, small fruits, ornamental trees and shrubs, we looking forward to growing our business with you in 2019.
