Karl Vahrmeyer Jr.
Green Park Nurseries
Green Park Nurseries started out in 1980 by Karl Sr. primarily as a wholesale nursery growing trees and shrubs for Garden Centres and Landscaping companies.
In the late 90’s the company started a few woodie ornamental shrubs for the floral industry to keep workers busy over the winter months. Through the early 2000’s the company made a 5 year transition to discontinue growing for the nursery sector and made the focus to transition completely into woodie ornamentals and flowering shrubs for the floral industry. Since the early 2000’s the company has expanded to have over 30 varieties in production spread over multiple farms, while still continuing the small family farm atmosphere as employees, teenagers, nephews, nieces, siblings, and parents try to make the world a more beautiful place one flower at a time.
Show Notes
I noticed that many of the crops Green Park Nurseries grows are harvested on current years growth, reducing the number of fields required to rotate like with Ilex that he mentioned.
There are many benefits to using grass between the rows rather than landscape fabric and mulch. You might want to consider this when working with woody ornamentals for erosion and other easier field access.
Focus on what you do best. Karl’s business has developed relationships with other companies to help with logistics and distribution of their products.
It’s always better to work harder and put money in the bank before making large purchases and capital investments into your business.
When investing in your business, buy the best you can afford and if you need to you can upgrade later.
And lastly, I love what Karl Sr. shared with his family. It’s better to have short term pain for long term gain.
