Warmer weather always brings with it a spark of excitement for green thumbs here in the Friendly City, and Moose Jaw’s greenhouses and garden centres are more than prepared to get this year’s growing season underway.
Although some public health orders will still be in place this year — like physical distancing recommendations and face mask rules — Moose Jaw’s biggest greenhouses are excited to welcome customers back into their spaces as early as this week.
Since last year’s season introduced lots of changes to how greenhouses operated, the Moose Jaw Express / Moose Jaw Today reached out to collect some of this spring’s most important information for plant enthusiasts to know before they dig into the dirt.
Cornell Design and Landscaping
Located just 11 kilometres south of Moose Jaw on Highway 2, owner Leslie Cornell has already opened her greenhouse space at Cornell Design & Landscaping.
Cornell Design opened for the season on March 1 and for the rest of the month, the greenhouse is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Mondays to Fridays, and from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays. Hours are likely going to expand further into the summer.
This year, customers are able to walk through all three greenhouses and the tree nursery, including a new greenhouse section just for tropicals.
Cornell Design will have all of its usual plants and items in stock, including a colourful annual and perennial flower selection, plenty of seeds and a bigger selection of tropicals and succulents. More trees and shrubs will also be arriving in the nursery a little later in the season.
“Annuals, succulents and tropicals are the first things people will be after, [and] first thing in the spring, there will be lots of our good old standbys with annuals, lots of colours of flowers which will be fun to come in and see,” said Cornell.
Tropicals and houseplants are already proving very popular this year, said Cornell, and she expects to keep seeing high-interest levels in these types of plants.
Cornell Design will be keeping its online shopping portal available this year to help shoppers, but Cornell warned customers that the online store may not be regularly updated with new products as they come in.
Instead, she encourages gardeners and houseplant lovers to take a trip out to the greenhouse to shop in person or keep up with Cornell’s news via social media.
Cornell said that this March has already been the busiest she’s ever seen, and advises customers to be quick in buying the plants that catch their eye as she expects things to continue to stay busy.
Cornell Design & Landscape can be found online at cornelltrees.com or contacted by phone at 1 (306) 693-8733. They also post updates regularly on their Facebook page.
Keon Garden Centre
Tucked out on Thatcher Drive at 1645 Stadacona St W, Keon Garden Centre has also opened its doors to the public already this March, to an enthusiastic response.
Keon’s opened for the season on March 15, and owner Marcy Duffey is already getting excited to see customers in and around the aisles.
For right now, Keon’s is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Mondays to Fridays, and Duffey expects to add Saturday hours in April before expanding to be open seven days a week through the summer.
As a prime stop for green thumbs in Moose Jaw for over 40 years, Keon’s will once again be carrying all the things customers are used to seeing — yard decorations, soils and fertilizer, gardening necessities and, of course, plants, flowers and seeds.
A big selection of perennials will be available later in April, all of which are grown in Keon’s greenhouses, and new shipments of Saskatchewan-grown annuals and other plants will be arriving regularly all season.
This year, Keon’s will be also stocking a new line of decorative fire pits and bowls, as well as a healthy selection of tropicals and houseplants in the next few weeks.
Seeds are already proving popular, said Duffey, as last year appears to have sparked a big interest in growing vegetables that has carried over to this spring. She advised gardeners to hit the stands early to stock up, in case seed supplies run low later this spring.
Duffy also shared that customers will still have the option to phone or email the garden centre and place an order for curbside pick-up this year, although the online store will likely not be continuing.
She encouraged customers to bring their plant-related interests and questions into Keon’s, as she and her staff take great care of the greenery in their possession and can offer expert advice on how to do the same at home.
“Buying your plants here means you’re getting a really good quality, locally-grown plant and the free advice to go along with it,” said Duffey. “And we’re really looking forward [to this year], people have been phenomenal with shopping local and we really appreciate the support.”
Keon Garden Centre is online at keongardencentre.ca and can be contacted by phone at 1 (306) 693-6771. They also post regularly on their Facebook page.
Windmill Greenhouses
Located at 1640 Ominica Street East, Windmill Greenhouses is also getting ready to welcome gardeners into their space later this spring.
The greenhouse is not open yet and owner Sandy Couture was not available for comment prior to publishing, but updates are usually shared via Windmill’s social media throughout the season.
Last year, the unique greenhouse had a wide selection of vegetables, herbs, flowers and tropicals, as well as a great corner filled with giftwares, plant pots and gardening accessories.
Windmill Greenhouses can be contacted at 1 (306) 692-1663, and post regularly on their Facebook page.
