Roughly a year ago, I took my current
position as Nursery Manager at Arrowhead Alpines. It has been quite
an experience – a wonderful, exciting, mind-expanding experience.
Here are some of the things I've learned:
1. I don't know anything about plants
Or rather, I don't know even a tiny
percentage of what I wish I knew. As a home gardener, all I really
needed to know was how different plants performed in my garden. Just
one climate, one soil type. And from an aesthetic point of view, all
I needed to know was if I thought a plant was pretty. In the mail
order nursery business, I need to know how a plant grows in the
ground, how it grows in a pot, how well is ships, how it can be
propagated, and how it will perform anywhere in the contiguous United
States. I find myself saying “I don't know” a lot more these
days. Will this grow in deep south? Is this hardy in zone 3? I don't
know! I've only gardened in zone 5! I'm also learning a huge amount,
and wonderfully, often when I have to say “I don't know” to
people, they go off, find the answer, and then send me an e-mail
sharing what they have learned. Which brings me to the next lesson:
2. Most people are awesome
We've got a lot of great customers. I
love checking my e-mail and finding notes from people who are happy
with the plants they got or sharing information we can use, offering
to give us a bit of something super cool and rare. People recommend
us to their friends, write about us on their blogs, want to know how
Brigitta is coping with Bob's death, and want to help. It is amazing.
I love you people. That being said, however....
3. A few people are CRAZY
There was the guy
last spring who drove through the nursery and off past all the buildings into the middle of
the back field looking for the main office, who then, when Brigitta
chased him down and got him back to the actual nursery, accused us of
false advertising because we didn't carry all the plants mentioned in
some random article in Fine Gardening magazine that we did not
write. O_o Or the folks that order the miniature rock garden
plants we specialize in and then complain that they too small (sort
of the point, people...) It can be a little
maddening. But mostly, I just have to laugh. And luckily, 99% of our
customers are, as I said, absolutely wonderful.
4. I still like
plants. And gardening.
There is always
that fear that when your hobby becomes your job, it will suck the joy
out of it. I'm very happy to say that hasn't happened. Quite the
contrary, I think I'm even more plant obsessed than I was before, if
that is possible.
Those are the
things that come to mind... Anything you are wondering about the life
of a nursery person? Ask in the comments and I'll try to give you an
answer.
