Pride And Plants
Photos by Larry Pfarr, courtesy of Wagner’s Greenhouses
Wagner’s Greenhouses and Garden Center has had to change to adhere to COVID-19 restrictions, but that hasn’t stopped them from delivering beautiful plants to their diverse clientele.
I’m a plant person. I have rows and rows of plants lining my living room, enjoying the sunlight from one of the many bright West-facing windows. I think of my plants as family members (yes, they all have names, so what?) because I care for them, and they care for me. Especially during the dark winter months, nothing cheers me up like my borderline-greenhouse living room.
I genuinely believe that plants make us happier people, and in a year as terrible as this one, during which I spend all of my time at home, minus short walks with my dog around the block and trips to the grocery store—plants are even more of a necessity now than ever before.
Luckily, plant stores and garden centers have been able to safely reopen during the coronavirus pandemic. At Wagner’s Greenhouses and Garden Center, many precautions have been taken to keep customers safe while also providing the very best greenery.
“We are adhering to the Minnesota Department of Agriculture guidelines (most customers think I am joking when I tell them we are mandated to do these procedures), which include one-way traffic flow in our stores, disinfecting registers after every customer/reducing in-person payment transactions (we currently are not accepting cash), shortened store hours, limiting the number of customers at peak times, spreading out the checkout lines to allow for six-foot spacing, less customer service staff on the sales floor to eliminate extra people in a smaller space, and introducing a new online web store to offer everything at your fingertips—without coming into the garden center,” says Julie Wagner, store manager of the Minneapolis location.
In a normal, non-coronavirus year, Wagner says they offer custom container planting, transplanting of houseplants purchased that day, and repotting (sizing up containers) of houseplants that customers have brought in. They also offer design advice and delivery of everything in the store.
Wagner’s main, year-round store is located in South Minneapolis at 6024 Penn Ave S. This location is also home to their growing range and wholesale offices, and it serves as a shipping facility for their wholesale products business, which is located in Hugo, MN.
“We grow all of our own annuals and vegetables that we sell in our stores. We also grow a large amount of our perennials as well,” Wagner says. “We have a very large selection of indoor containers and plants, perfect for sprucing up new or drab areas of place that need a little something extra. We take pride in that we are able to grow our own plants right here in Minneapolis. With the exclusion of tropical plants and green foliage plants that grow all winter in much warmer places than here, we grow 95 percent of the annuals we sell. You’re literally buying ‘direct from the farm.'”
As Wagner pointed out, Minnesota offers a very short window of time for growing outdoor or tropical plants. But indoor plants and vegetables are always a welcome sight in any home.
“Indoor plants are a massive growing category and have been on the rise for a few years. This year more than ever, we’ve been forced to distance ourselves and shelter at home, which leads to finally have time to redo the areas of the house you’ve always wanted to do but never have had the time,” Wagner says. “That freshen-up is instantly linked to plants, many of which have air purifying qualities as well!”
Whether you’re a landscaper, gardening professional, or simply want to add some color to your home to liven up your days in quarantine, Wagner’s Greenhouses and Garden Center is ready to help with whatever you might need.
For more information about Wagner’s, visit wagnergreenhouses.com.
