Hubby and I took a drive to check out a place called Charley’s Greenhouse, it’s a bit south of us in Mount Vernon, about a 45-minute drive from home.

I was excited to visit their store because it looked like a great place to find information about the new hobby I am going to dive into; a place to investigate prices, and explore the different growing supplies that I’m going to need.  I was also hoping to have a person to connect with and learn from – which is rare to find these days!  Needless to say, I was a bit excited to explore a new resource and learn more!

The lady who helped me was super kind, pointed me in the direction of seedling starter packs, flats, lights and heaters.  She answered my questions patiently, politely and professionally.

I had mentioned Floret Farms, hoping to spark some sort of conversation, but she had never heard of it (which is odd, considering it is down in their neck of the woods).

She showed me some lighting, which was what I was looking for, but it had 8 bulbs in it, with the option of only using 4.  I asked how many lights I really needed, she really didn’t have an answer for me, which was kind of how all of my questions were answered – kind of like talking to a politician – non-committal, and vague.

I understand everyone has different needs, and each situation is different, and it is difficult to give someone advice on something as complicated as growing flowers in an area that is unfamiliar.

I also asked about fertilizer, thinking I needed to fertilize right away at which time she did get rather animated and explain that I do not need to fertilize when I put my seeds in.  She told me about a website that would explain it all for me.  She printed off the particular article she was talking about and gave it to me at the time we checked out.

I’ve looked at prices at several different stores for many of the items I need to get started, they all seem to be in the same ball park as Amazon.  Give or take a few dollars here or there, which Amazon beats every time.  Charley’s had seedling starter trays, but they were 30 cents more expensive than Amazon’s – which over time will add up, and I have to drive 45 minutes to get down there.  Charley’s also had warming mats, but not the size I wanted – but could drop ship them to me, they were a bit more than Amazon’s prices.

All in all, they were helpful.  They do have beautiful greenhouses on display that you could purchase and put together yourself, the one I really liked was $4,700, which is a bit more than I want to spend on my hobby considering Joe can build one for half the price!

It certainly wasn’t a wasted trip, it’s always helpful to check out new places and explore options, you never know what you will find.  It’s not a place that I will make a habit of going to, but they did give me their catalog just in case something comes up that I might need sooner than later.

Here’s the link to their store:  http://www.charleysgreenhouse.com/