Mike's Backyard Nursery

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Starting a Plant Business

92 Comments

Starting a plant business is much easier than you think.  It requires a lot less of a commitment than you think.  Getting started growing and selling small plants from home is as simple as this;

Start propagating some plants from cuttings, get some pots and potting soil, start selling some plants.  Not a lot, but some plants in your local area.  Selling plants is the easy part because unlike most other things that people sell, plants don’t have to be sold.  All you have to do is let people know that you have them and that they are for sale.

Mike McGroarty

Mike McGroarty

When it comes to plants, people act in completely irrational ways!  And they do it all the time!  I don’t even know if I understand the psychology of people and plants well enough to explain it.  But it is an interesting thing to watch.  We constantly see people traveling 25 or 40 miles if not farther to buy small plants.

Plant lovers have an insatiable appetite for plants.  There’s no other way to explain it.

Check Out Small Plants, Big Profits from Home Here.

When you grow and sell small plants people have a very high regard for you and what you do.  They are in awe of what you do in your backyard.  They want to be you!  Not because of the money, but because of what you have the ability to do with your hands.

Crazy?  I don’t think so.  I’ve been a witness to this for too long to thing other wise.  I like to say that; “I grow small plants that make others happy.”  Because . . . that’s what I do!

So what about you?

Are you sorta, kinda thinking about starting a plant business.

I get comments from people all the time that start out like this;

“I’d like to start my own plant business but . . .”

There it is!  The great big but!

These are just some of the reason that people play the “but” card on me;.

“I don’t know if anybody will buy my plants.”

“I have other large nurseries in my town.”

“We have a big box store right down the road from my house.”

“How can a little person like me possibly compete with the big box stores?”

“I can’t right now because my life is so busy.”

“mike, i’d love to buy your system but i just don’t have the money right now.”, “i’m going to retire in 3 years and i’d like to do it then.”.

Allow me to answer these concerns for you.

Will people buy your plants if you grow them?

The answer is yes.  If you grow a nice looking plant that people want, they will buy your plants.  Why?  Because they love to buy plants.  That’s what they do.  Landscapers and garden centers buy plants for a living.  They must buy plants on a regular basis just to stay in business.  They have to buy and sell plants in order to provide for their family.

Landscapers and garden centers do not grow plants.  Some garden centers grow hanging baskets and annual flowers, but all of the other plants on the lot they buy from a wholesale grower.  Why would they buy from you?  Because you can sell really nice plants at a lower price than a wholesale grower.  Your over head expenses are almost nothing compared to any wholesale grower they are currently buying from.  In my book; “Small Plants, Big Profits from Home” I tell you exactly how to get landscapers and garden centers to buy from you.  They’d love to do busienss with you because the big growers make it really hard for them.

“I have other nurseries in my town. How can I compete with these established businesses?”

The answer to that is easy.  I live in a really small town.  We have two traffic lights because a main highway passes through here.  Yet, we have no downtown business area at all, we have no fast food restaurants, no doctor in our town, but we have three garden centers and 85 large wholesale nurseries.  Read that again!  85 large wholesale nurseries that report a combined sales of 85 million dollars!  85 million bucks!

And what did I do?  I started my little plant business two years ago, sandwiched right between two other nurseries.  Really.  My property goes really deep, but it’s only 114 feet wide.  My neighbor to the west has a nursery.  The only thing that separates my nursery from Richard’s is a one lane dirt lane that we share.  Our plants can talk to one another they are so close!  My neighbor to the east is, you guessed it, a nursery.  A really large nursery!  They farm just a tad over 1,000 acres, all packed full of nursery stock.  The only thing that divides my nursery from their’s is, you guessed it, a dirt lane that we share.  My plants and their plants are less than 30′ apart.

It’s funny really.  You know how you wave to your neighbor when you see him or her driving down the road?  All my neighbors pass by on tractors!  Really.  One Saturday I was out working in the nursery and I hear a tractor coming so I look up.  It was my friend Kenny Brown just putzing along on a tractor.  Kenny was taking a short cut on our dirt lane from his dad’s nursery down to his house about a mile north of my nursery.  His dad’s nursery actually butts up to the back of my property.

So there you have it.  My little plant business is surrounded on three sides by other nurseries.  Mr. Brown’s nursery is also very large.  We toured it this summer when I had a bunch of my customers at my place for our annual “Shindig at Mike’s Plant Farm”.  It took us almost an hour to take the tour riding on wagons pulled by tractors.

Right next to Mr. Brown’s nursery to the west is my friend Craig’s nursery.  Not as big, but man oh man does he have an impressive collection of Japanese maples.  To the east of Mr. Brown’s nursery is another super large wholesale nursery.  They have over 2,000 huge hoop houses and their own electricity generating windmill.

To give you an idea of how big their operation is I’ll share this with you.  During the winter on warm days they open up the doors on each end of the hoop houses to keep the plants from getting too hot. Then when it gets back down into the thirties they close the doors.  It takes a crew of ten men about a half a day just to open the doors!  That’s a lot of doors to open and close.  Each one of those hoop houses contains thousands and thousands of plants.  On the tour this summer we watched their potting team pot up 60 plants a minute and they do that everyday, all summer long.  60 plants a minute!

I don’t have any hoop houses and probably never will have.  I keep things really simple.

So obviously, my little tiny plant growing business is surrounded by giant nurseries.  Doesn’t faze me a bit.  I will sell my plants to a different group of customer than they serve.  That’s how big the market for plants is.

Yeah, me too.  Walmart, right down the road.  I’ve also got three full service garden centers, a Home Depot, a Lowes Store and another Walmart.  Not to mention a Sears Garden Center.   Here’s the deal.  They cannot compete with me!  I have something they don’t have and no matter how deep their pockets are or how badly they want it, they just can’t have it.  I have me.  I’m the guy with the little nursery that grows his own plants.  I’m the one who answers their questions, helps them select their plants, puts the plants in their car.  I am me.  All of those so called competitors of mine don’t have a me.  They have employees who care, who try hard to help the people, but at the end of the day they are not me.  People know that this is what I do.  They quickly figure out that I am extremely passionate about the plants that I grow and sell.  A big box store or garden center can never have that, and people see it.  They sense it.  They like buying from people like you and I.

Few people are busier than I am.  For 25 years I worked a full time job and built multiple businesses while working full time.  Today I’m crazy busy with my Internet business, my family, Duston and I travel many times a year to learn more about our business, we constantly create and invent new products to sell, and I started a plant nursery right in the middle of all of that craziness.

The nursery is the glue that makes it all make sense.  I love the solitude of working in the nursery by myself.  Just me and the plants.  My advice to you is to get started.  Start small.  You’ll enjoy it more than you can imagine.

My system is about the same price as a meal in a nice restaurant.  If you really, really want it, you’ll find the money.  People always find the money for the things that they really want.  If you think about it you only have to grow and sell 10 small plants to pay for my system.  And having my system will save you a ton of mistakes and mis-steps.  And there is a great deal of information in my system that I don’t share here and I never can share here.  Selling my system is how I get compensated for all of the time I spend giving out free information here and in my newsletter.

Don’t wait.  Start your plant business now.  In three years when you retire you will be so far ahead and you will already be selling plants.  Don’t let procrastination steal your dream of extra retirement income doing something that you will love and enjoy.

Check Out Small Plants, Big Profits from Home Here. 

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February 17, 2022 at 12:33 pm

Hello Mike! After years of daydreaming about owing a plant farm I’ve decided to stop daydreaming and just do it already! One question that I have is this: we live in an area where owning a house is beyond our reach. We are renting a large apartment and enjoy patio gardening and our plants spill over onto the common areas of our community. Any advice how to begin now while we are renters? Thanks and we love your advice and inspiration!

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February 18, 2022 at 8:15 am

Starting out you do not have to go really big. All you need is a small area to get started and start selling things as soon as possible. There are all kinds of commercial property around that have room behind the building that nobody is using, just mowing. Find a property owner that will allow you to use some of that space in exchange for mowing or other chores. Don’t call it a nursery, just grow some small plants.

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September 23, 2021 at 3:44 am

Did you have to get a nursery license to grow and sell? Not sure if this is required if I want to start as a hobby to grow and sell native plants and trees.

September 23, 2021 at 8:00 am

It’s state by state but you have to be licensed in all states as a means of controlling nursery pests.

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September 9, 2019 at 4:03 pm

Thank you for your tips and encouragement. I recently started a plant delivery business and sometimes it can be overwhelming trying to figure out how to run the business.

September 10, 2019 at 8:44 am

That’s why we have a members area, http://backyardgrowers.com/join , so you can get daily advice on the issues that you struggle with the most. At the very least take the test drive, membership should be opening soon.

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June 6, 2019 at 1:35 pm

It makes sense how you said that people can be kind of irrational when it comes to buying plants and will travel long distances to be sure to get what they want. Having access to wholesale plants would probably be really great if you were planning on starting a business and selling them to people. That way they can travel that great distance and find exactly what it is that they are looking for.

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October 16, 2018 at 4:17 pm

I was potting up some aloe this afternoon when it struck me- I’ve always wanted to own a plant shop! Duh! After a few google searches I came across this article and it makes me smile – and even gave me a boost of motivation.

October 16, 2018 at 5:49 pm

Make sure you join the email list at https://mikesbackyardnursery.com/ and follow along with all that we have going on with the plant business.

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October 1, 2018 at 11:14 am

I have always wanted to own my own Houseplant business. I have always dreamed about it. I turned 50 years old this year and this Morning I woke up really ready to do this. Right now I’m working two jobs in the medical field but I’m ready to do something I love. Word gets around at work how I love dealing with houseplants and I make houseplant arrangements for co workers. I constantly order plants from different states for myself.. I want to order and sell plants and exotic plants from all over. Any advice will be appreciated.

October 2, 2018 at 7:39 am

You can test drive our members area, http://backyardgrowers.com/join , for $7 in just a few weeks. I highly recommend it, you can bounce your ideas off the members. House plants are a little different than most of us do but I’m sure you could sell them on facebook. Many of us sell tens of thousands of dollars worth of plants on facebook right now. We discuss that all the time.

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March 20, 2018 at 2:00 pm

How do you find Growers or nursery for Air Plants? The only thing I find is online. I am looking into having a side business.

March 20, 2018 at 6:28 pm

Air plants? You want to grow just one kind of plant? Not being familiar with them this would be a better question for our members. http://backyardgrowers.com/join

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February 23, 2018 at 12:38 pm

I just wanted to say thanks Mike for all the inspiration and hope you deliver to those of us willing to listen. I just decided to dive in last year. A few, short years ago, I purchased a small 6 acre plot of farmland to retire on. We’ve decided to work it now and move onto it as soon as we can. We’re almost done building a little house and I’ve already started growing starters in my basement where I currently live. My starters are doing splendid. I’ll be setting up shop at a couple of farmers markets this year to jump start my networking and the next step is contacting local retail businesses about selling my plants wholesale to them as well as Craigslist, eBay, ETSY, and eventually Amazon. Where there is a will, there is a way. We want this soooo baaaad! Folks, you just have to want it bad enough and you can achieve this, but you have to get started somewhere…just start. Once you start, you’ll probably kill a few plants and make quite a few mistakes, but you will learn from them in a way that reading can never teach. Sure, I buy books and download purchased instruction all the time, but you still need to just do it. What I buy to read often times just ends up being information I already learned with mistakes, but it’s nice to re-inforce your confidence by reading that you ARE doing it right after all…it really helps to boost your confidence and morale which is really important when you’re starting on an entrepreneurial path.

February 23, 2018 at 6:18 pm

Thanks Marilyn, I appreciate that.

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March 10, 2018 at 10:08 pm

I am farely new in indoor modern plant bussines, and I love it, but it s not easy or I don t know how to find the market to sell them? Any advice would be very appreciated! Thank You!

March 11, 2018 at 9:21 am

Learning where and how to sell the plants that you grow is something that we discuss on a nearly daily basis in the members area, http://backyardgrowers.com/join , the 30 day test drive is only $7.00 and we’ll begin accepting new members soon.

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August 12, 2018 at 1:13 pm

I like that you are looking at selling your plants online, but what about the regulations from each state.? Are you going to certify your stock for just your state, or others? Curious, because I would like to do this, too. The USDA keeps a lot of invasive pests out of our farmlands, so I am not against them on this one!

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February 10, 2018 at 10:12 pm

Hey I am all for making money. If you are making good money why not offer your knowledge for free. I do it all the time. I have a nursery in Maryland. Here is some free advice. In Maryland the nursery license is 110 dollars a year. Buy seeds {vegetable,, herb and flower} in bulk cheap. Sell plants a foot tall for 2 bucks. Make money. Far better prices than garden centers or box stores. Buy 1000 seeds for 10 bucks. Grow 700 plants and sell them 2 bucks. 1400 bucks.. Get the idea.

February 11, 2018 at 11:22 am

Apparently I don’t offer free information? And here I thought the one thousand posts on this site and the 85 youtube videos and all of the content on http://japanesemaplelovers.com/ and http://freeplants.com was free for the reading and watching. Apparently I need to do a better job. Thanks for pointing that out.

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February 23, 2018 at 7:26 pm

Question. For a small home business like this what are the laws and how to with getting a licence and selling across state line through mail?

February 24, 2018 at 8:54 am

Getting licensed to grow and sell plants is quite easy. Selling across state lines is also pretty easy unless you want to ship from the east coast to the west. That’s challenging and most just don’t do it, the market in your surrounding states is plenty large enough.

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January 10, 2018 at 8:19 am

You forgot to mention that EVERY state and also the federal government require licensing and permits, fines are steep. It is illegal to send, mail, deliver, and transport plants and soil in many states and its illegal on a federal level to cross state lines with plants, soil without permits.

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September 19, 2017 at 12:28 pm

Was wondering if you knew anything about selling air plants. I am planning on selling homemade air plant holders with the air plant. Do you know if I need a nursery license for this? Any advice is appreciated, thanks!

September 20, 2017 at 7:53 am

Everybody who grows or sells live plants has to be licensed by the state. It’s a means of pest control.

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October 19, 2016 at 1:18 pm

I dug up a couple of crepe myrtle trees last week, I planted the biggest, but I had a lot of roots I didn’t do anything to the roots until today, my question is will the roots survive even after I planted them

October 20, 2016 at 8:29 am

Roots? I don’t think Crape Myrtle will grow from just a root. Most do them as softwood cuttings. https://mikesbackyardnursery.com/2015/01/easy-summertime-plant-propagation-techniques-can-home/

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December 16, 2016 at 5:13 pm

I’m very interested in making a plant business here in this small town and goldsmith Everyone is always eating jalapenos and onions and produce cabbage all of it Tomatoes carrots anything you can think of there’s nothing but dry there’s no produce here

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October 2, 2015 at 3:11 am

Is this website still running? The latest post is from Nov 2014.

October 2, 2015 at 6:30 am

This website is alive and well and updated on a regular basis, https://mikesbackyardnursery.com/ , as a matter of fact I’m doing a new post this morning, we shoot new video on a regular basis and I interact with the members for at least an hour a day answering questions in the private members area.

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November 11, 2014 at 10:59 am

Hi Mike, I love growing trumpet plants and they are so beautiful , I grow tons and give them to friends and family. I really don’t have land I just grow on my patio and any empty spot I can find. I am obsessed with these plants and would love to do this for a living but doubt I can without property, any suggestions. Never thought I would love anything as much as fishing but I love this new hobby.

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August 1, 2014 at 12:49 pm

I have plants I want to sell. Do I need any kind of license, certification or what not? If I do how do I get legal, so I can properly sell them? Thanks, Julia

August 3, 2014 at 10:41 am

All of these questions are answered in the many products that we offer, but the short answer is, yes, you need a license, much like any business. If you order the little booklet offered on this site that will allow you access to other products not openly advertised here.

December 16, 2016 at 5:14 pm

Where do you live I’m very interested in buying plants with their affordable price

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December 26, 2012 at 6:34 pm

Hello Mike. I have been recieving your emails for a few years now and very soon I will be sending you the money for your system. Thank you for all the hope and helpful e mails.

December 27, 2012 at 7:06 am

Trisha, that’s great news! I can’t wait to have you on board growing small plants that make other people happy. -Mike McGroarty http://freeplants.com/wanted.htm

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March 31, 2016 at 7:51 pm

Hi mike thanks for the info.im very intrrested in your program but right now im out of town. I currently have a small worm bussiness and i want to grow plants for profit talk doon. .

April 3, 2016 at 8:45 am

Steve, details about most of our product can be found here. https://mikesbackyardnursery.com/2015/10/backyard-nursery-tools-of-the-trade-things-to-turn-you-into-a-successful-grower/

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December 3, 2012 at 5:52 pm

I probably have evey bit of your information that has been advertised- maybe, not completely sure about. I am an old lady and totally love to read about gardening. I grow roses. I have had 78 beautiful roses but down to about thirty now. The last two summers really messed them up. Hopefully we will get a well dug by springtime- then I plan on gardening all I want. Till then I am thinking of all kinds of possibiliies.

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November 20, 2012 at 4:26 pm

exp. Is the worst teacher. Yes i would spend 47 bucks to learn from mikes mistakes and success

November 20, 2012 at 10:41 am

sold! ! ! Im diggen thru my couch right now

November 20, 2012 at 6:08 pm

Ben, I really hope you find the money in the couch! And I hope doing so changes your life for the better! Thanks, Mike

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November 19, 2012 at 9:37 am

One correction, people can’t always find money fir what they really want. Sometimes, we can’t even find money for what we really need. I’ve got cuttings started, no clue where to sell them this time of year, and can’t afford your book. Medical condition + no help= needs unmet and “wants” unfulfilled. Sometimes, it really is that bad so don’t minimize it, please.

November 20, 2012 at 6:07 pm

Jules, all you have to do is sell the cuttings you have and you’ll have some income. If you root cuttings of really nice flowering shrubs, people will buy them. It’s as simple as that. I understand the financial issues that people face. I hope you can find a way to make this work. I’m not trying to minimize your situation. That’s why I work so hard to give away information and techniques that people can use to earn some extra money.

I don’t get paid for making a video or writing a 700 word blog post and I’ve been doing them for 14 years. Often times it takes me hours to take photos, edit the photos, get them posted on the blog then write an article, then send a newsletter. All of those things I do for free. Nobody pays me for that. I wish they did, but they don’t.

So in some ways you and I are in a similar situation. We have to find a way to get compensated for the time we devote to our craft.

February 23, 2018 at 12:49 pm

Take good care of your cuttings so they are prized specimens. Place a FREE AD on Craigslist and either let people come to your home on an as-needed basis or hold a plant yard sale once a month or so during the warmer seasons. Post great pictures on Craigslist to make people drool over your plants. Also, grow your little plants into large, blooming (if they are the flowering type), bushy plants. If you can’t afford containers, recycle anything that will hold a plant. If you are connected with your neighbors, ask them to bring you their empty, plastic, food containers. The large, plastic, coffee containers are great for this. Price your plants accordingly…not too high (especially if you are using recycled containers in lieu of actual plant containers) but not too low either – you want to make the sale and your work worthwhile. Be knowledgeable about the plants you grew, be friendly and answer questions willingly and graciously. You will do fine.

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October 31, 2012 at 1:24 pm

I have been receiving emails from you for a long time I have decided to get more info from you on how to get started. What do I need to do on my end….I will need to know the how to’s, prices & so on! It sounds like I would be able to get started pretty cheaply I hope. Thank you for all the tips & knowledge you’ve shared. Hope to hear from you soon….Mary

November 1, 2012 at 11:24 am

Mary, Yes, you can get started with a really small amount of money. In the book that comes with my system, “Small Plants, Big Profits from Home” I share with you all kinds of strategies on pricing and how to sell the plants that you grow.

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October 31, 2012 at 11:48 am

mike i have been reading all the mail you send i take your advice have engouraged my daughter who has a horse farm to start a nursery she already has her green house up-she will be starting some sales soon- can we order plants and trees from you? how is the fall busines on trees and shubery? thanks for all the advice.

November 1, 2012 at 11:26 am

Edna, at this time I am not shipping any plants. But during the growing season I invite members to my nursery for a day of learning and meeting the other members and many people buy small plants from me on those visit. Fall is a great time to sell plants. Most of our members sell all spring, summer and fall. Make sure you get the system so you get started on the right foot. http://freeplants.com/wanted.htm

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October 28, 2012 at 3:32 pm

Mike I joined your backyardnursery a long time ago.I want to get started growing plants for a business,but i was trying to be careful not to get a plant that i could not take cuttings from.I don’t have the message board,so how can i find cuttings to buy to get started off,and what would be the best to grow and sell.I am in lower zone 7 in Marion Al. I need to get started off with either some different types of cuttings or a few plants that i can take cuttings from and not get into trouble for selling them.I don’t know what would be best to grow here.I could use your help.

Thank You Ronnie

November 20, 2012 at 6:00 pm

Ronnie, get the new book that recently came out, Small Plants, Big Profits from Home. Lots of good stuff in that book and answers to all of your questions. When it came out I offered it to all of my existing customers at a discount. In the book I explain in detail what you can and cannot propagate.

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October 28, 2012 at 7:41 am

I have loved growing for years and you have inspired me to start my little business. I just ordered your growing system. Thanks you mike. I am getting started now. It is October 28th, and I have already taken some cutting from you flowering tree. Wish me luck. Question Mike, can I put them outside? I don’t have a cold house yet but working on it. Let me know. Also why do you use sand? Looking forward to your answer.

October 28, 2012 at 9:45 am

Cindy, all of my cuttings are outside and will be all winter. We use sand because it drains well and the cuttings don’t rot. It makes for a great rooting medium. Thanks for buying my system, you will enjoy it I’m sure.

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October 27, 2012 at 11:42 pm

Hi Mike, about a week ago I recieved your Small Plants,Big Profits from Home dvds and book. Well, I finished watching the dvds and finished reading your book also. Guess what going to start watching the dvds and reading the book again to catch anything that I might of missed. Your system is well worth the money. It is a great system that covers every angle of the business. Thanks so much, hard earned money very well spent!!! 🙂

November 20, 2012 at 5:57 pm

Frank, thank you so much for your kind words. I really try hard to make sure people get great value. I want to see your succeed at this!

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October 27, 2012 at 11:06 pm

thanks Mike

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October 27, 2012 at 8:06 pm

About how much physical space is required to start a backyard plant business? Our backyard is wide, but not deep, and has a good amount of shade. Sunlight would seem to be an essential factor. Thanks for all the great info and encouragement!

October 28, 2012 at 9:59 am

Laura, honestly? You can start a small backyard nursery in an area 5′ by 10′ and easily produce hundreds of plants. My first backyard nursery was only 1/20 of an acre. Two areas, one was 30′ by 40′ and the other was about 20′ by 70′. I grew and sold tens of thousands of plants in those small areas. If I lived in a mobile home park and I would still grow and sell plants. A cutting only needs about one square inch while it is rooting and if you want to grow it another year or two it really only needs about 16″ square inches. That’s 4″ by 4″.

More space is not always a good thing. I now have lots of room and I am making all kinds of mistakes because I spread out too much. I am now in the process of trying to get my operation back to what I had when I had less room to work with. You can grow a lot of plants in a small space and once a cutting has roots you can sell it. My system comes with an report that explains that in detail. Get started right now and join the fun! http://freeplants.com/wanted.htm

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October 27, 2012 at 12:03 pm

Hi Mike, I just watched your arborvitae plantings video and loved the wooden box you made for all your new plantings. My question is, I have a few trees in the back of my yard and this year hundreds of little ones came up around them by themselves. I replanted a few but not sure what to do with the rest. I live in Wisconsin so I am afraid that the snow will kill all of them. Do you have any ideas?

Love what you do. Thanks Charlotte

October 27, 2012 at 4:01 pm

Charlotte, chances are the snow and cold will not harm the seedlings. If the trees are hardy to your area they should over winter just fine. Plants are a lot more durable and cold hardy than we think.

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November 17, 2012 at 1:02 pm

Charlotte – I am a South Dakota native now living in PA. The on thing that will NOT kill your little plants is snow. Snow is a perfect insulater – underneath snow the temperature is always a perfect 32 degrees. Try it yourself some time when it’s really cold. Take a bottle (plastic, please!) of soda, toss it into a snowbank so it’s completely covered, and leave it outside all night. The soda will still be liquid in the morning because the snow has insulated it right at 32 degrees. Even cold weather should not be a problem for these plants if they are native to your area, but if you have lots of leaves, you could rake them up and cover your little plants to give them some protection if it does not snow. I know MIke will have lots of other ideas, too, but I hope what I wrote will also help out. Try the snow thing. It really works! 😉 Lynn McMillen

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October 25, 2012 at 7:25 am

Mike. What kind of sand should I get? Here in Florida there are many varieties.

October 25, 2012 at 6:08 pm

Janet, almost any sand will work, but the more coarse the better. Water should run through it, not sit on top of the sand.

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October 23, 2012 at 9:08 am

Being 200 yards from Lake Eufaula in SE Oklahoma, soil here is about 90% sand, and as it’s in the Old Black Oak forest, is shaded much of the time, so space for planting is limited. I have a 60 foot by 20 foot natural compost pile where leaves, grass clippings, and other compostable material is used that I’ve been maintaining for 6 years now, which is generating some good humus with plenty of redworms. My plan is to use an area adjacent to our home that is a clearing about 150 feet by 200 feet to grow cuttings and seedlings after propagating in my 8′ by 16′ greenhouse. Much of what I plan to use is an abundance of seeds available naturally from white and pink dogwood trees, Walnut trees, Oak trees, Hickory trees, as well as numerous Scabiosa, Coreopsis, Mum, Iris, Daffodil, and Forsythia cuttings that are so prolific in propagating themselves. As there are no nurseries anywhere within a 20 mile radius, once sufficiently growing, I expect that sales should come easily and plan on offering very special prices for neighbors and customers to bring their own containers and dig them up themselves with my guidance. I’ve also got an over-abundance of bright blue Spider Wort, Morning Glory in three colors, and ‘Butterfly’ vines, which I’m trying to get out of my gardens as they will essentially take over and strangle other plants, but would be great for those just wanting some color with hardly any maintenance! My biggest problems are all of the local ‘critters’, especially this years over-abundance of grass hoppers and snakes, 3 of which are venomous and sometimes get very aggressive. Aside from that, the deer don’t seem to bother any of those plants but do a great job of keeping the indigenous grass under control. Now, if I could just get the squirrels to co-operate…………..

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October 22, 2012 at 5:24 am

Mike I have been following you for a while now. I live in Australia and was wondering if your system would be good here? Thank you Kind Regards Susanne

November 20, 2012 at 5:55 pm

Susanne, Over the years I’ve had a number of people use my system in Austraila and New Zealand with great results. Right now we have a gal in Australia that we here from quite often and she is having a blast growing and selling small plants from home. http://freeplants.com/wanted.htm

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October 21, 2012 at 1:55 pm

Dear Mike and Duston at Backyard Growers-

Please share about the definitions of the differnces between natural non-patented plants and those plants that are patented by corporations.

I believe early on in my readings of your online materials… way over a year ago, I read some about the world of plants …about how backyard nursery growers are engaged with our natural non-patented plants that we ARE free to grow for profit, versus those plants patented and owned by corporations, that we are NOT permitted to grow for profit.?

Will you please explain because maybe others also may find this of interest to fully understand what I think is true, that we are learning to propagate our natural plants help them flourish and maintain our rights to do so.

I have no idea how many starts at the average plant nursery outlet are patented but our local big center told me alot of them are. Mgr alos told me I could propagate for myself but not for sales profit.

I have no idea how much of the plant world is illegal off-limits, but Monsanto keeps buying up companies that made organic heirloom non- patented self-pollinating seeds and taking them off the market to destroy the competition for their hybridized seed that do not produce plants that produce fertile seeds. The hybrids are not able to, so gardeners and farmers have to go buy new seeds stock everytime they want to plant their crops.

This unnatural monopoly also obliterates plant’s natural abilities to adapt their DNA to the micro-climate and soils and conditions of your custom site specific criteria. Many of the old self- pollinating non-patented seed companies would tell you that it was better to get seeds from a similar AG zone as your garden/nursery or farm rather than from an AG zone drastically different. Also that to improve further you let some of your best plants go fully to seed every year as the seeds with good care of course will continue to adapt and improve to your site location.

I do not know if Monsanto is claiming patents now for the real seeds companies they bought up… or if they may use the real seeds as part of their Genetically Modified Organisms “Frankenfoods”. GMOs or Bio-Engineered is where multi-national corporations are gene splicing stuff so an ear of corn may be part chicken genes or whatever. We have demanded GMO on labelling and ingredients lists at least and indeed here in CA we have a ballot measure demanding this which we are working hard to see win. GMO crops are not proven to be safe. Indeed the studies with mice (poor mice!) show huge tumors on mice fed GMO foods and much shorter lives. These corps are now into GMO Salmon that is way bigger than natural river Salmon. If nothing else we do not want our natural real native Salmon varieties crossing with the GMOs. Many countries do not allow GMOs due to no industry studies whatsoever and all scientific independent studies show horrors of deadly side effects. USDA DOES NOT CARE AND BIG AG-BIZ spends $40 million or more to fight labelling with Super-PAC ads that lie.

I am an ardent advocate for citizens of USA to reclaim our natural fertile organic self-pollinating un-patented seeds and protect, preserve and propagate, propagate, propagate!

Please help me develope the definitions of the seeds/plants world here, because I am suffering from all the war on real so I am fumbling and mumbling as I research this as the foundation information as I see it for the family nursery plants propagation and learning center. We are ripe and ready for a complete up-to-date over-view that we can begin with and teach to ourselves and our youth education projects. Our schools are eager to engage and being an old retired school teacher that went to school with organic gardening classes in the school yards, I am eager to develope education programs that get in depth and not confusing for sure.

Can we please talk about this or maybe everything I am trying to get very clear wording and understanding about is in Mike’s book? Please let us meet in unity to share the best of the best education for the kids in perpetuity in harmony with Mother Nature

So glad you sent the email now! INSPIRED!

Meaghan Simpson

November 20, 2012 at 5:53 pm

Megan, I will write something about patented plants on my blog. I thought I did that. I know I address it in my book Easy Plant Propagation and I address it in detail in the new book that comes with my system. http://freeplants.com/wanted.htm There are a lot of things that I share with customers that I cannot share here publicly. I’m sure you understand.

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October 21, 2012 at 1:13 pm

Just purchased your program and looking forward to starting in the nursery business. I was reading the propagation download and I’m ready to get started.

November 20, 2012 at 5:48 pm

Eric, Thank you and stay tuned. I’m working on a grafting class for our members and we’ll have a great offering of Japanese Maples for sale in early January at rock bottom prices. I’ll Email you with more details. http://freeplants.com/wanted.htm

October 21, 2012 at 11:49 am

Hi Mike and Duston! Thanks for being on planet Earth and I love this latest email newsletter taking me to your blog? How can I get back here and read and join in? do I have to purchase your system before I can regularly read and reply?

I adopted Mike and his family as my own and have been on a mission to co-create a small plants propagation business and learning center here with my large family.

I am going to be 68 come November and I want to do this for the rest of my life researching, learning, teaching plants propagations protocols peaceful paradise premises dedicated for perpetuity so the kids and their kid’s kids can carry on and on and on! I am building bridges back to the garden where we belong so we can carry on and on. I am not ready to retire and working with plants will keep me healing and grounding and I will be blessed to help others who are eager to join me.

We are having a business plan meeting on Wed and have a book-keeper lined up. I have family members that are very business savvy both for-profit & non-profit. I don’t have a yard but my family has an organic farm and enough acres … so I don’t exactly fit in to the “just jump in and start starting starts small and little baby steps no. I have to have a real good business plan so I am calling upon our local horticultural knowledge and wisedom aplenty because we will adapt Mike’s PlantGrowersSystem to/for/with organic/no toxic chemicals protocols and products. My very first e-mail to Mike after reading everything on-line was about coming up with a companion organic all the way alternative option program. My mom was an organic gardener since 1930 something and alot of people we knew were too. By the 60’s we started an organic food-co-op in Laguna Beach, CA and became very familiar with CCOF- California Certified Organic Farms standards which are the original and best standards in USA, even today. USDA Organic is not the real clean strict standards and USDA is always pushing to cheat, lie and worse.

My mission is to co-create healthy jobs for family of all ages and that includes some like myself that have health challenges due to injuries from poison synthetic petro-chemicals. Even cancers are chemical injuries diseases so I want to offer everyone the gift of healthy, easy, affordable options to toxics for working in nursery gardening.

Mike wrote that he sees great interest from others for this information and you will be surprised how much fun and easy it is. We have the finest organic backyard or homestead gardeners, nursery businesses, permaculturists and farmers here in my family. We also have many very gifted artists and musicians and healing artists. We are always learning about “the secret life of plants and the benefits of music for plants and other subtle energies that are beyond a doubt beneficial. Plants are magical and they do respond to you!

Grandma Meaghan Simpson wants to give you the gift of non-toxic gardening so your work is part of your health insurance plan. Reclaim your lives from BIG CHEM and mother nature will LOVE you back aplenty! Well I got really carried away dreaming of inviting others to join me at the farm to play live acoustic music for our nursery plants and already have lots of very gifted volunteers and our family radio music-show hosts will donate recordings that we can play in the nursery. We are gonna have alot of fun and we want to share it with you because YOU are already part of my family and I want you to have the healthiest happy lives and contrary to some popular opinion, it is easy really easy and affordable. You will probably say, “now why didn’t I think of that!? It’s sooo simple!”

MIKE YOU ALWAYS SAY, STAY INSPIRED! WELL THANKS TO YOU AND YOURS, THERE IS NO DOUBT THAT I AM INSPIRED AND PLAN TO ATTEND A SHINDIG AT YOUR PLACE ONE DAY, SO IT IS MY JOY AGAIN TO OFFER YOU AN INVITATION TO OUR FARM AND FAMILY SHINDIG THAT WE WILL HAVE IN YOUR HONOR SOMEDAY… WE CAN MAKE IT HAPPEN Maybe make it with a great update story in Mother Earth News… who knows?

How can I continue to read and write with this??? Please send me an email at my newsletter address: [email protected] I am computer impaired low-tech HELP!

Blessings- Meaghan Simpson

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October 20, 2012 at 2:45 pm

Mike, I tried rooting azaleas in the spring and got maybe 4 plants out of 50. Itried again in august and got 0 out of 50. I dont know if the sand is too fine or if they got water logged. Any ideas? Regards, Harry

November 20, 2012 at 5:45 pm

Harry, if the stems rotted the sand is too wet. If the leaves dried out, the humidity wasn’t high enough. You should have great results doing them in late June, put the propagation box in a shaded area. http://freeplants.com/wanted.htm

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October 19, 2012 at 11:53 pm

Mike,I lovegardening and all that entails, my dream would be to have a self sufficient farm; I appreciate your emails and all the information you share. I grow my own herbs,, some vegetables and a couple of fruit trees and vines, however, all plants are in pots on a patioin the apartment complex that Ilive. Do you have any suggestions on propagating small plants for profit in my situtation. Catherine L Ross, San Antonio, TX

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October 19, 2012 at 8:30 pm

Mike, I just finished reading about making cuttings and was surprised that you can do evergreens. How would I do cedar, spruce and pine cuttings for rooting new shrubs for natural barriers or fences around my own gardens? I prefer using natural as opposed to manmade fencing but buying all those shrubs can be very costly. Katie

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October 17, 2012 at 11:35 am

Oops! Sorry Duston; I just noticed I missplelled/typo’d your name . . .

October 17, 2012 at 11:30 am

Hi Mike, We first found your info doing a search on the internet at a time when we were building a greenhouse for a start-up nursery and tree farm. I did purchase your growing system (CDs and lit.) at the time and we have been over it a time or two since then (back in Q4 2010 or Q1 2011).

We found much of your information you share so freely to be very valuable and have followed your lead and contacted a couple of your sources for plants and hard goods and I just wanted to thank you for all your hard work and dedication (and Dunston, etc.), which, as I said has been very welcome and valuable as we continue to try to grow our business.

I was employed as a telecommnications engineer, but left that job (and just turned down another of the same type) so my wife, Debbie, and I can work together to pursue our shared passion – plants!

We’re both nearing retirement age, but we’ve brought our two sons into the mix, so we’re hoping things will progress so they can take over what we started and keep it going for them and their families.

I’ll send you some pics one day soon, if you would like, of the greenhouse now filled to overflowing with plants we hope to sell both wholesale and retail in the coming spring and summer.

Thanks again for all the great info and good luck to you and yours as your business and efforts expand for the future.

Rob & Debbie . . .

PS Really like the ‘new’ website and videos, all of which I intend to watch and refer to often; keep up the great work . . .

October 17, 2012 at 8:03 pm

Rob, thank you so much for your kind words. It sounds like you and your family are really digging into this business. I was just at a big box store today and I am amazed at how much they are charging for most of the plants in their garden area. $25.00 for a potted Burning Bush! All of that only means great opportunity for us who grow and at home and have very little overhead compared to larger nurseries. You should do well. I wish you and your family the best life has to offer. -Mike McGroarty http://freeplants.com/wanted.htm

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October 17, 2012 at 3:27 am

I still have a few buts also as still trying to get the family farm livable. Not to mention water seems to be the bain in my life right now. We will hopefully be running new pipe from the water well this week to the house and mobile. Also the irrigation at the farm, first when they switched from ditches to under ground pipes they broke the pipe that came to us. They fixed that after it got figured out like a month or so later. Everyone else has pressure but not me as our water goes into a holding pond. Of course the old pump died this year too so water barely comes out of the sprinklers. GRRRRR!

Where I live in town the landlord and I have been fixing the water system we put in 2 seasons ago, pipes broke an other one slipped. At least in town I always have hoses to drag and water pressure. I had a plant sale this summer and everyone just wanted to buy my strawberry plants.

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October 16, 2012 at 5:48 pm

I’ll do it when I stop traveling and settle down in one place. lol I still propagate plants when I am around the home base and then I have to find homes for them. I’ve got some houseplants and herbs rooting right now.

Hans, that’s really cool!

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October 16, 2012 at 3:53 pm

I started propagating muscadine vines for the first time this year. I sell more than I can grow. My 8 weeks old rooted cutting sell for $4.99. I ship all over the South.

November 20, 2012 at 5:42 pm

Hans, that’s what I like to hear. I’m sure some of our members would like to buy from you as well.

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October 16, 2012 at 3:28 pm

Well all your e-mails are encouraging and keep me inspired! I just collect a good batch of maple seeds that I am going to try to grow next spring. Thanks for the information that you send!

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October 16, 2012 at 3:01 pm

I purchased your Backyard Growing System last year (i believe)for $37.00. How is this information different/better? I’m asking out of curiosity, and in no way am I trying to imply anything. Due to health reasons, I never used the first system I purchased but I love plants, need money, and like the idea of having my own backyard nursery.

November 20, 2012 at 5:41 pm

Carol, this summer, 2012 I spent three weeks writing the book that now comes with my system. Some of the information is new, one of the DVDs is also new. The previous system contained a great deal of information, but people wanted physical products, so that’s what we did. http://freeplants.com/wanted.htm

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October 16, 2012 at 2:50 pm

The “Don’t have the money right now is my excuse”, but I’ve bought the Book and video, so I am reading and learning what to do. Right after getting the System, I have moved, got a mortgage, lost my job, then my new tenants abandoned their lease, so the income I expected to get dried up pretty fast. But I’m employed again, and trying to find my new budget so I’m hesitant to buy the materials and supplies I need to get started. But I can see why getting started sooner than later means that I could have another income producing source sooner than later, so I’ll keep reading and do what I can as I can. Thanks for the encouragement on all the different excuses people have.

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October 16, 2012 at 2:01 pm

I’m with you Mike, I do landscape maitnance and my customers are always needing replacement plants,something new to add to their landscape, and flea markets are great also!! thinking about a website but…yep there is the but!! I will keep website in mind, for now it’s word of mouth. thanks for all your info..it has helped and inspired me!!! life is a garden..dig it!!

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October 16, 2012 at 1:19 pm

I love plants, have for more years than I can count. You have certainly given me a lot to think about. I am pottin and rootin a few plants. Just to get the feel of it. Thinking seriously about it. Thanks so much.

November 20, 2012 at 5:38 pm

Jackie, good luck with the things that you are rooting and potting now. You could be up to speed so much faster with all of the information that is in my system, and you won’t make a lot of mistakes by not having good information. http://freeplants.com/wanted.htm

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October 16, 2012 at 12:17 pm

Between the economy and my health issues, I am not employed now. I will be losing my home. I will probably be living on property in the country that my son owns in a trailer home. If he keeps his end of the bargain I will be in definitely start by growing small plants with your system. I have been doing the same on a small scale here in town to grow my own perennials and ornamental plants. Plus I grow my annual flowers and veggie plants on a home made lighted plant stand starting in February so they are ready to plant in late May. IF you ever have another free offer of your planting system, please make sure I am in the contest. I have saved all your emails over the past decade and I have learned so much. Thank you for all the time you put into your emails and your books on how to set up starter system of growing plants at home. Looking forward to your next email, Rebecca J. Shumaker

October 16, 2012 at 7:02 pm

Rebecca, I will from time to time be giving away gifts to those who post comments on this site. However, I really have to do it randomly and not select who I want to receive the gift.

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October 16, 2012 at 11:00 am

We have a small nursery at our house. We grow and sell do some plantings. Check out out website. http://www.tarweednativeplants.com

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Garden Nursery Business Plan

Start your own garden nursery business plan

Rose Petal Nursery

Executive summary executive summary is a brief introduction to your business plan. it describes your business, the problem that it solves, your target market, and financial highlights.">.

Rose Petal Nursery is dedicated to providing a quality choice for people looking for plant and garden supplies, as well as serving contractors who need a reliable source of products. Our start-up expenses come to $41,500 which includes the cost of the greenhouses ($38,000) and the cost of rent for the land ($1,000). The start-up costs will be financed entirely by Jim and Dan Forester.

We will offer a wide variety of plants, trees, vegetable plants, along with a selection of garden supplies. Most of the plants we sell will be grown in our greenhouses. With a convenient location Rose Petal Nursery intends to successfully market to the residential customer, as well as contractors and renters.

We would like to see a five to ten percent increase in our customer base each year. Our marketing strategy includes providing a knowledgeable staff, affordable prices, a great location, and top notch customer service.

Rose Petal Nursery has been the dream of owners Jim and Dan Forester for many years, and has been a project in the making for the last five years. Jim and Dan will manage all aspects of operations at Rose Petal Nursery. Dan will oversee the staff and be involved with the ordering of merchandise, while Jim will be responsible for the ordering of the garden supplies and tree stock, as well as the maintenance of the greenhouses.

Rose Petal aims to experience a growth rate of 20% in sales for the second year of operation and build upon that as the company grows. With creative marketing, and a quality choice of plants and garden supplies for our customers Rose Petal Nursery intends to make its presence known in the nursery community.

Garden nursery business plan, executive summary chart image

1.1 Objectives

  • Maintain an average gross margin at or above 50%.
  • Generate an average of $1,000 of sales each business day of each month.
  • Realize an annual growth rate of 10% in Year 2.

1.2 Mission

Rose Petal Nursery is dedicated to providing a wide variety of plants and trees in an aesthetic setting. Customer service is extremely important. We want each customer to have a pleasant shopping experience, and it is the intention of our staff to answer questions with expertise and to offer advice when we feel it is needed.

1.3 Keys to Success

The primary keys to success for the company will be based on the following factors:

  • Sell products of the highest quality with excellent customer service and support.
  • Retain customers to generate repeat purchases and make referrals.
  • Continue to expand daily sales by adding to the variety of plants we sell.
  • Communicate with our customers through creative advertising.

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Company summary company overview ) is an overview of the most important points about your company—your history, management team, location, mission statement and legal structure.">.

Rose Petal Nursery is the dream of brothers Jim and Dan Forester, and has been a project in the making for five years. With an opening date of April of this year, Jim and Dan are seeing the dream of operating a nursery come to fruition. Located on the outskirts of Eugene at 35571 Brookside Rd. Rose Petal Nursery will focus on providing quality bedding, hanging,and vegetable plants, along with a variety of potted trees. Our aim is to serve both residential customers and landscaping contractors. We will also have a variety of garden accessories such as ponds, statues, potting soils, fertilizers, and garden tools. Our start-up requirements will be $100,000.

2.1 Start-up Summary

Our start-up requirements come to $100,000 which includes the first month’s rent of the land for our nursery. The regular rental fee is $1,000 a month. The start-up costs will be financed entirely by Jim and Dan Forester.

Garden nursery business plan, company summary chart image

2.2 Company Ownership

Jim and Dan Forester are the owners and operators of Rose Petal Nursery. Jim has worked in the nursery industry for over twenty years (with 10 years managing Stoneybrook Nursery). Dan has a degree from Washington State University in agronomy and has worked for the Lane County Extension Agency as a plant specialist advising the local population on the purchase and care of a wide range of plants.

Rose Petal Nursery will offer a wide variety of bedding plants, shrubs, trees, and vegetable plants along with many garden accessories such as fountains, stepping stones, garden tools, fertilizers, and potting soils. Most of the plants will be grown on-site in state-of-the-art greenhouses. Initially though, we will buy full grown plants for our first few months of inventory.

Market Analysis Summary how to do a market analysis for your business plan.">

Rose Petal Nursery target market strategy is based on becoming an attractive choice for homeowners and landscape contractors in the greater Eugene/Springfield region. The target markets we are going to pursue are the residential consumers looking for a wide variety of plants and trees to beautify their residences. Landscape contractors will be attracted by competitive prices and a diverse inventory. People will want to shop at our location because of the superior customer service we will provide. Rose Petal Nursery would like to see a five to ten percent increase in customers annually.

4.1 Market Segmentation

The profile of our customer consists of the following geographic and demographic information:

Geographics

  • Our immediate geographic market is the greater Eugene/Springfield metropolitan area with a population of 200,000 people.
  • A 100 mile geographic area would want our services, as we become a well known nursery.
  • The total target market is estimated at 500,000 people.

Demographics

  • Male and Female.
  • Married and Single.
  • Combined annual income in excess of $50,000.
  • Age range of 25 to 80 years, with a median age of 40.
  • Own their own houses or townhouses valued at over $150,000.
  • Most work out of the home by choice in a variety of work environments.

We know the following regarding the profile of the typical resident of the greater Eugene/Springfield area:

  • 50% have lived in the area for 10 or more years.
  • 30% are between the ages of 30 and 45 years of age.
  • 40% have completed some college.
  • 30% are professionals and/or business owners, or managers.
  • 60% have children living at home.
  • 50% own their own residence.

Garden nursery business plan, market analysis summary chart image

4.2 Target Market Segment Strategy

Our target market is based on becoming a resource for people looking to buy flowers, trees, and garden supplies. Our marketing strategy centers around superior performance in the following areas.

  • Customer service
  • Large selection and fair pricing
  • Quality products

The target markets are separated into three segments; “Residential, Homeowners,” “Commercial Contractors,” and “Renters”. The primary marketing opportunity is selling to these accessible target market segments that focus on the beautification of peoples’ homes and places of business.

Residential, Homeowners — Rose Petal Nursery would like to be an attractive choice for homeowners purchasing plants and garden supplies. With our large and varied selection of plants, trees, and garden supplies it is our aim to give individual attention to every customer and to serve their planting needs. The residential sector has a wide range of income levels, but on average the annual household income of our customers is $50,000.

Commercial Contractors — Commercial contractors are important Rose Petal Nursery customers. A consistent inventory, and providing the large quantities contractors need, is important. With prompt and affordable service, contractors will know that they can count on us to meet their needs in a professional manner. Most of the contracting businesses we will service have an annual revenue of at least $50,000 to over $100,000.

Renters — People who do not own their own homes but need flowers and plants to beautify their living spaces make up an important segment of our target market. Many rentals and even apartment complexes have spaces that renters can use to plant gardens. Household income for this group would be in the range of $20,000 to $50,000.

4.3 Industry Analysis

The nursery business is highly competitive, and it is important to maintain a high level of customer service, offer quality products, and give the consumer a wide variety of choices when shopping for plants and trees. Our approach will be to offer a diverse selection of plants, trees, and garden supplies. Exceptional customer service will be important in meeting the needs of our target markets. Healthy plants will be a top priority, and we will display the plants artistically. Plants are a commodity that will always have a market as people consider them to be very important to have around their residences. There are four other nurseries around the greater Lane County area, and we will have to provide top quality service to be succeed.

4.3.1 Competition and Buying Patterns

Current local competition includes the following:

  • Lone Pine Nursery — Locally owned, and selling a limited variety of plants, shrubs, trees, and garden products to the general public. This nursery is seasonal focusing on spring and summer flowers. They have a very pleasant facility in which to shop, but prices are a little more on average than Rose Petal’s with not a very good selection of trees and shrubs.
  • McKenzie Nursery — Locally owned, offers a limited selection of plants and shrubs with the main emphasis on providing fresh produce in the summer months. Seasonal “U-pick” strawberries, blueberries, and apples are available on the property. Their prices are competitive but the location is not convenient for a lot of people, as it is 25 miles out of town.
  • Green Thumb Nursery — Locally owned, offering a variety of plants and trees, as well as, a large selection of garden supplies. Green Thumb most closely matches what we have to offer when talking about plants and shrubs, but they do not have a large enough inventory to service some of the large contractors in the area.

Rose Petal Nursery will provide competitive pricing for its products, and will guarantee to match competitors’ prices, but exceptional customer service and product knowledge will make us stand out to our target markets. The size of our inventory and the variety of choices our customers will have when choosing flowers, trees, and shrubs will make Rose Petal Nursery an attractive choice. Our location is very convenient, only 5 minutes outside the city limits.

Strategy and Implementation Summary

Our strategy is based on serving our customers with expert service and product knowledge.

  • We are building our marketing plan to reach homeowners, renters, and contractors.
  • We focus on satisfying the needs of our customers.
  • We focus on providing quality plants at affordable prices.

5.1 Sales Strategy

The primary sales strategy includes these factors:

  • Exceptional customer service
  • Exceptional product knowledge
  • Large and varied inventory
  • Convenient location.

5.1.1 Sales Forecast

The sales forecast is broken down into two main revenue streams: the general public, and contractors. The sales forecast for the upcoming year is based on a modest growth rate for sales. Being a start-up business we are projecting a growth rate of 20%, hoping our advertising will bring in new customers daily.

Garden nursery business plan, strategy and implementation summary chart image

5.2 Milestones

The milestones chart is accompanied by a table outlining key activities critical to our success.

Garden nursery business plan, strategy and implementation summary chart image

5.3 Marketing Strategy

Our marketing strategy is based on becoming an option for contractors and the general public to fill their plant and shrubbery needs. Our marketing strategy is based on superior performance in the following areas:

  • Knowledgeable staff
  • Affordable prices
  • Great location.

5.4 Competitive Edge

Rose Petal Nursery will have one of the most extensive and affordable plant and flower selections in the greater Eugene/Springfield area, and a very knowledgeable staff ready to provide unparallel customer service. Contractors looking for a reliable nursery will find Rose Petal very supportive and easy to work with. The ease and convenience of our location is a very big plus.

Management Summary management summary will include information about who's on your team and why they're the right people for the job, as well as your future hiring plans.">

Owners Jim and Dan Forester will oversee and manage all aspects of operation at Rose Petal Nursery. Jim will be responsible for the ordering of garden supplies and tree stock as well as the maintenance of the greenhouses. Dan will be responsible for overseeing staff and working with contractors as well as doing some of the ordering of merchandise.

6.1 Personnel Plan

The personnel plan contains two full-time employees and two part-time employees in addition to Jim and Dan Forester. Jim and Dan will both draw $3,500 per month. The two full-time employees will be paid $2,000 per month to begin with and the two part-time employees will make $1,000 a month. Employees will help customers and care for plants as part of their jobs.

Financial Plan investor-ready personnel plan .">

The financial plan contains these essential factors:

  • A growth rate of 20% in sales for the year 2005, to total in excess of $379,000 in total revenues.
  • Average in sales per business day (305 days per year) in excess of $900.00.

Difficulties and Risks

  • Slow sales resulting in less-than projected cash flow.
  • Overly aggressive and debilitating actions by competitors.
  • A parallel entry by a new competitor.
  • Sluggish economic conditions.

7.1 Important Assumptions

The following critical assumptions will determine the potential for future success.

  • A healthy economy that supports moderate growth in our market.
  • Low operating expenses, particularly in the area of buying plants that could be grown on-site.

7.2 Break-even Analysis

The following chart and table summarize our break-even analysis. Our fixed costs will be approximately $14,800 per month at the onset and we expect to reach the break-even point in the third year of operation.

Garden nursery business plan, financial plan chart image

7.3 Projected Profit and Loss

The following represents the projected profit and loss for Rose Petal Nursery based, on sales and expenses, for 2004 and beyond. We are anticipating a steady increase in sales through July. Business is expected to slow during the autumn and winter.

Garden nursery business plan, financial plan chart image

7.4 Projected Cash Flow

The cash flow projections are outlined below. These projections are based on our basic assumptions with revenue generation factors carrying the most significant weight regarding the outcome. We are anticipating that we will have a steadily increasing cash flow as the business continues to grow.

Garden nursery business plan, financial plan chart image

7.5 Projected Balance Sheet

Rose Petal Nursery’s balance sheet is outlined below.

7.6 Business Ratios

Business ratios for the years of this plan are shown below. Industry profile ratios based on the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) Code 5193.02, Flowers and Nursery Stock are shown for comparison.

The following will enable us to keep on track. If we fail in any of these areas, we will need to re-evaluate our business model:

  • Gross margins at or above 50%.
  • Month-to-month annual comparisons indicate an increase of 15% or greater.
  • Do not depend on a credit line to meet cash requirements.

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How to Start a Profitable Backyard Plant Nursery: A Complete Guide

Mar 26, 2023 | Lawn & Garden , Lifestyle

profitable backyard plant nursery 01

How do you start a profitable backyard plant nursery? How do you know what plants to grow? In this article, you’ll find a complete guide on how to start a profitable backyard plant nursery. We will cover everything from your business plan to the best plants to start with to start your own plant nursery business.

How to Start a Profitable Backyard Plant Nursery

Are you passionate about growing plants? Better yet, are you thinking of turning your hobby into something profitable?

If your answer is yes, you’ve stumbled upon one of the best business ideas.

Why? Not many people have the highly-desired “green thumb” required to start a backyard nursery business.

So, if you’re serious about the idea of using your garden skills to own a profitable backyard plant nursery, here’s everything you should know.

Ensure you have everything you need

Do a swot analysis.

A basic SWOT business analysis can prevent you from getting surprised halfway through your backyard plant nursery journey. So here’s what you have to evaluate.

Strengths – Analyze your strengths that would translate into value. Your strengths could be experiences in running a business, extensive knowledge of plants, previous experience working at a nursery, etc.

Weaknesses – You might not have experience in growing profitable plants whatsoever. Or you may not have much space. Consider all of your potential pain points so you can plan accordingly.

Opportunities – Find out whether there is an underserved market for plants in your neighborhood. Do you have friends and family that would be willing customers? Are there wholesale nurseries nearby where you can buy plants?

Threats – Is the plant business saturated in your area? Do you have premium garden soil with no pesticides, no toxins, etc.? Is your location prone to floods? Are there too many garden centers nearby?

Take some time to sort through these answers to determine whether a profitable backyard plant nursery is feasible.

How to Start a Profitable Backyard Plant Nursery - 02

See whether you have finances

Initial expenses for seeds, soil, and pottery, etc., should be calculated first. Likewise, plan to throw in approximately $250 to $1,000 for a business license.

Even if you’re starting as a small business, you might need a hand from an employee for a few months to get the business off the ground.

Since any business needs liability insurance, you’ll have to factor this in as well.

Estimating these initial costs are important to understand the journey in front of you. It can also come in handy if you need to apply for a loan as well.

Look to see if there is an affordable wholesale nursery that offers reasonable prices for you to resale.

Apply for a business license

Depending on where you live, the requirements for obtaining a license and permit for your business can vary.

Contact your local government’s business department and figure out what forms you need to fill out and make sure you apply for a home-business license for your backyard plant nursery.

See whether you have enough land

Land space doesn’t determine the quality of your backyard nursery. Even commercial nurseries are operated on lands as little as 4000 square feet, which provide for a whole family.

Usually, rare plants, bonsai, carnivorous plants, and orchids take up less space.

Say you’re planting ground cover crops. A 50 x 50 feet backyard plot can hold 8000 plants that can be sold for $3 each wholesale or $4 to $5 as the retail price, which is quite profitable.

Gather supplies

How to Start a Profitable Backyard Plant Nursery - 03

Pick up some supplies from your local garden center or order them online.

Plant propagation needs tools and supplies such as hand tools, knives, secateurs, hoses , wheelbarrows, sprayers, punnets, pots, seeds , disinfectants, propagating and potting soil mixes, hormone preparations, clean benches to prepare the seeds, etc.

  • Make sure you have a fresh potting soil mix and look into getting some good compost to ensure your plants have all the nutrients they need .
  • Make sure you have lots of small containers to sell your plants in. You can usually make good profits by selling your plants in cute or fashionable containers.

A small garden shed or a small area with storage will suffice to hold all these.

Choosing the Correct Plants for Your Backyard Plant Nursery

The plants you choose should be profitable and be able to be grown easily. If they are not, they won’t add value to the business that you’re passionate about.

You don’t need thousands of plants to turn a profit, but you need to be strategic about the plants you plan to sell. Having an ideal backyard nursery crop will help get you on the right track.

Here are some of the nursery plants that are both profitable and low maintenance.

The demand for bamboo is overwhelming, and homeowners and landscapers are willing to pay around $150 per potted bamboo plant (full-size, 7-12ft tall).

Bamboo in Profitable Backyard Plant Nursery

Because of the bamboo’s versatility, it can be used for screens, as a stand-alone “specimen” plant, or hedges.

Bamboo not only adds value to your backyard nursery, but it can also handle sub-zero winters.

It’s a good idea to learn a bit about the different bamboo species and their respective values .

Flower in Profitable Backyard Plant Nursery

It is well-known that flowers are everlasting in the plant market since they have market demand all year long.

Flowers are a wise choice for those who are after a high income in the first year of business. Just a couple of dollars can get you up and running for a flower business with eager buyers that are abundant all year long.

Make sure you do some research about the flowers you plan to use. For example, it’s important to know whether you plan to work with annuals or perennials (or both) in your business.

3. Landscaping Trees and Shrubs

If you can tap into a niche that you’re passionate about, landscaping trees and shrubs can be sold each year for a premium income. For instance, Japanese Maple specimen trees are sold between $100 and $1,000.

Additionally, shrub trees like the Abutilon, Azalea, Camellia, Cercis, Hydrangeas, etc., are perfect choices for small tree/shrub growers and are profitable as well.

If you’re keeping larger shrubs, you’ll want to learn how to prune your different landscaping plants.

Check out our article on How to Prune Hydrangeas !

4. Microgreens

Quickly grown and ready to sell in 2 weeks, these tiny gold mines are primarily used for main dishes and served as mini-salads.

Microgreens in Profitable Backyard Plant Nursery

Microgreens are easier to grow since they can survive both indoors and outdoors. In addition, these are relatively low maintenance and can be very profitable when grown in bulk.

Culinary and medicinal herbs, including basil, chives, cilantro, oregano, lavender, etc., are a splendid way to break into the market.

Best Herbs Oregano

These are incredibly profitable to the point that some small backyard nurseries focus only on growing lavender and earn massive incomes.

Check out our article on the 5 Best Herbs to Grow in Your Backyard as a start.

6. Mushrooms

If you worry about running out of space, mushrooms are the way to go. Exotic mushrooms such as oyster mushrooms can grow around 25 pounds per square foot within a year.

A pound of these mushrooms is sold for approximately $7. So when you do the math, you can potentially earn approximately $17,000 per year by successfully growing mushrooms in a 10’x10′ space.

7. Succulents

Succulents are great for starting a backyard plant business because people love buying them! They are easy to care for and don’t require much maintenance.

Succulents in Profitable Backyard Plant Nursery

They are also easy to propagate, so you can buy a few plants and reproduce many clones without any additional investment.

As they are easy to grow, you can make some good money by selling these plants on Etsy or at your local farmer’s market. People love succulents planted in terrariums with rocks .

By diversifying the types of succulents you sell ( like snake plants ), it will be easier for people to shop from you and provide different uses in their home decorating.

How to Maintain Your Backyard Plant Nursery

It’s not just starting the business you’re passionate about; it’s also about maintaining it.

Growing and selling plants is the fun part, but maintaining your nursery is the key to make money in the long term.

So here’s some know-how on prolonging the value of your backyard nursery.

This is not a run-of-the-mill business. Instead, the value of your backyard nursery depends on how well you treat it.

You need to remove the plants from time to time and sweep the dirt and debris off the walls and floors.

Clean your nursery before winter to steer clear from contracting any plant diseases and insect infestations.

Using a common household disinfectant is an effective way to clean the nursery. Use specialty cleaners that are safe for your plants.

Maintain Weeds and Pests

Killing off weeds by applying herbicides in crop-free areas is also necessary to maintain your plants’ health. Insect infestations can also kill your plants, so make sure you invest in an insecticide, if necessary.

Concrete or Gravel Floors

Keeping a dirt floor is ill-advised. Concrete or gravel are the most viable options. Also, be careful of the water source you’re choosing because nearby lakes, streams, or ponds might contain harmful substances that will destroy your plants.

Proper Watering

Overhead watering is another method you should refrain from using, as it can expose your plants to waterborne diseases like Phytophthora and moisture-related diseases like powdery mildew.

Ground watering is the best because it goes straight to the roots where the water is needed.

How to Start a Profitable Backyard Plant Nursery

Is It Legal to Sell Plants from Home?

How to start a profitable backyard plant nursery… LEGALLY!

Well, the good news is, it is legal! But, like anything else, there are rules and regulations you need to follow.

To get started, you’ll need to check with your local government to see if you need any business licenses or permits. This can vary depending on where you live, so make sure to do your research first.

Also, some states require nurseries to be inspected and certified by the state agriculture department. This is to make sure that the plants you’re selling are healthy and free from disease.

Plant Identification

Another important thing to remember is to label your plants correctly with their common and botanical names. Don’t forget to include any care instructions or warnings to help your customers take good care of their new plants.

Next, you need to consider whether selling plants from home qualifies as a hobby or a business. If you’re selling plants on a casual, occasional basis and don’t make a profit, then it may be considered a hobby and you won’t owe any taxes. However, if you’re selling plants regularly with the intention of making a profit, then it’s considered a business and you’ll need to pay taxes on your income.

When it comes to taxes, you’ll need to keep accurate records of all your sales and expenses. This includes things like the cost of plants, supplies, and any fees associated with obtaining necessary licenses or permits. By tracking your expenses, you can reduce your tax liability by deducting eligible business expenses from your income.

Another important consideration is whether you need to collect and remit sales tax. Sales tax laws vary by state, so it’s important to check with your state’s department of revenue to see if you’re required to collect and remit sales tax. In some cases, you may be exempt from sales tax if you’re selling plants that are considered food or medicine. Just be sure to do your due diligence and research any tax obligations associated with your business to avoid any surprises come tax season.

Don’t forget to collect sales tax!

Invasive Species

Lastly, it’s important to be aware of any regulations regarding the sale of invasive plant species in your area. Selling invasive plants can cause damage to the environment and local ecosystems, so stick to selling plants that are safe and legal to grow in your area.

By following these guidelines, you can start selling plants from home legally and turn your gardening passion into a profitable business. Good luck!

Final Thoughts : How to Start a Profitable Backyard Plant Nursery

There is more than meets the eye to starting a backyard plant nursery. However, if you’re passionate enough, you can pull off these initial steps and figure out the best way to make your business boom.

After you’ve started your business, consider the presentation and packaging as they can affect your brand identity.

Once you’ve got the gardening down, you can ease into online selling and expand into offering deliveries. In today’s market, having a substantial online presence can widen your market and increase your profitability.

After you’ve run your business with decent profitability, you can look to make this your full-time gig and even possibly hire a helping hand.

There is no way to know everything ahead of time. You will learn the most valuable information along the way.

So what are you waiting for? Get started and start growing your successful plant nursery!

Getting Started

Check out our articles on some backyard must-haves as you get your backyard business started:

  • 15 Best Gardening Hats: A Complete Guide
  • 5 Best Outdoor Bluetooth Speakers for Patio
  • 7 Best Shoes For Gardening And Yard Work

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Plant Nursery

Back to All Business Ideas

How to Start a Plant Nursery

Written by: Carolyn Young

Carolyn Young is a business writer who focuses on entrepreneurial concepts and the business formation. She has over 25 years of experience in business roles, and has authored several entrepreneurship textbooks.

Edited by: David Lepeska

David has been writing and learning about business, finance and globalization for a quarter-century, starting with a small New York consulting firm in the 1990s.

Published on January 6, 2022 Updated on February 14, 2024

How to Start a Plant Nursery

Investment range

$2,050 - $105,100

Revenue potential

$70,000 - $1,000,000 p.a.

Time to build

6 – 12 months

Profit potential

$65,000 - $400,000 p.a.

Industry trend

Outdoor living spaces are just as important to most people as indoor spaces. Plants and flowers of all types can make those outdoor spaces look and smell amazing. For some, going to the local plant nursery to pick out goodies to enhance their landscaping is a ritual every spring. 

Our love of everything green is why the US nursery and garden center industry is valued at an astounding $42 billion. You could start your own plant nursery, even in your backyard, and get a share of that market.

Starting a plant nursery will have challenges, and will require hard work, time, and knowledge. This step-by-step guide has all the information you need to start growing your way to entrepreneurial success.

Looking to register your business? A limited liability company (LLC) is the best legal structure for new businesses because it is fast and simple.

Form your business immediately using ZenBusiness LLC formation service or hire one of the Best LLC Services .

Step 1: Decide if the Business Is Right for You

Pros and cons.

Starting a plant nursery has pros and cons that you should consider before deciding if it’s right for you.

  • Gratifying – Nurturing living things can bring great pleasure
  • Excellent Profit – Profit margins on plants are high
  • Backyard Opportunity – Start in your backyard for little money
  • Seasonality – Depending on your location, you may have some downtimes
  • Competition – You’ll face competition from big garden centers

Plant nursery industry trends

The nursery and garden store industry includes large garden centers as well as farm supply companies.

Industry size and growth

  • Industry size and past growth – Market analyst IBISWorld values the US nursery and garden store industry at $42 billion in 2021, with an average annual growth of 2% since 2017.(( https://www.ibisworld.com/industry-statistics/market-size/nursery-garden-stores-united-states/ )) The plant and flower growing industry alone was valued at over $15 billion in 2020, an increase of over 7% from the previous year, according to market analyst Statista.(( https://www.statista.com/statistics/1174498/plant-and-flower-growing-industry-market-size-us/ ))
  • Growth forecast – Higher consumer spending on home improvements presents growth opportunities for the nursery and garden stores industry, according to IBISWorld.(( https://www.ibisworld.com/united-states/market-research-reports/nursery-garden-stores-industry/ ))
  • Number of businesses – There are almost 19,000 nursery and garden stores in the US.(( https://www.ibisworld.com/industry-statistics/number-of-businesses/nursery-garden-stores-united-states/ ))
  • Number of people employed – Close to 145,000 people are employed in nursery and garden stores.(( https://www.ibisworld.com/industry-statistics/employment/nursery-garden-stores-united-states/ )) 

plant nursery industry size and growth

Trends and challenges

Some trends in the nursery industry include:

  • The housing market affects the nursery industry since when people buy new homes they often invest in landscaping. Home sales are projected to be up almost 7% in 2022, according to Realtor.com, which is positive news for the nursery industry.
  • Home gardening television shows have increased the popularity of landscaping, propelling the growth of the industry.

Some challenges also exist in the industry which include:

  • Competition for US nurseries comes from cheaper imported plants. 
  • The industry is affected by factors such as climate issues and infectious plant diseases.

plant nursery industry trends and challenges

How much does it cost to start a plant nursery business?

Startup costs range from about $2,000 to $100,000 or more. The low end represents starting a backyard nursery that sells plants to garden centers. You could also sell your plants to customers if you set up a small farm stand. The high end includes the cost of a down payment to buy or build a greenhouse and storefront. 

You’ll need a handful of items to successfully launch your plant nursery business. Here’s a list to get you started:

  • Shovels, trowels, pruners

How much can you earn from a plant nursery business?

Profit margins will be high for a backyard nursery, around 95%, even selling plants at wholesale prices to retail garden centers. The price you charge will vary based on the type of plants you grow but should average about $7. Your volume of sales will depend on the amount of space you have for growing, and how much space the type of plants you grow require.

In your first year or two, you could grow and sell 10,000 plants. That would mean $70,000 in revenue and over $65,000 in profit, assuming that 95% margin. As your brand gains recognition, you could purchase a greenhouse and storefront and hire staff, reducing your profit margin to around 40%. If you produce and sell 100,000 plants per year and sell them at retail prices that average $10, your expected annual revenue would be $1,000,000, and you would make about $400,000.

Plant Nursery business earnings forecast

What barriers to entry are there?

There are a few barriers to entry for a plant nursery. Your biggest challenges will be:

  • You either need to have enough land for growing, or spend a chunk of money on a greenhouse and storefront
  • The climate where you live may make your business seasonal
  • You need extensive knowledge about how to plant and grow various species

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Step 2: hone your idea.

Now that you know what’s involved in starting a plant nursery, it’s a good idea to hone your concept in preparation to enter a competitive market. 

Market research will give you the upper hand, even if you’re already positive that you have a perfect product or service. Conducting market research is important, because it can help you understand your customers better, who your competitors are, and your business landscape.

Why? Identify an opportunity

Research plant nurseries in your area to examine their products, price points, and customer reviews or what sells best. You’re looking for a market gap to fill. For instance, maybe the local market is missing a plant nursery that offers varietal ground cover plants.

backyard nursery business plan

You might consider targeting a niche market by specializing in a certain aspect of your industry such as shrubbery.

This could jumpstart your word-of-mouth marketing and attract clients right away. 

What? Determine your products or services

You should decide first whether to specialize in certain types of plants or grow a wide variety. Your space should be a consideration since certain types of plants will require more space. Also consider how long it takes plants to grow. The faster they grow, the faster you can sell them. 

How much should you charge for plants?

Your prices will be dependent on the market for each specific type of plant. If you are selling to garden stores, your prices will be wholesale prices the stores are willing to pay. Your target profit margin should be high, around 95%.

Once you know your costs, you can use this Step By Step profit margin calculator to determine your mark-up and final price point. Remember, the price you use at launch should be subject to change if warranted by the market.

Who? Identify your target market

Your target market will likely be either be homeowners or garden center managers. Either way, you can likely find those groups on Facebook or LinkedIn. 

Where? Choose your plant nursery location

If you are starting a backyard plant nursery, you’ll be running your business from home. If you are going to open a garden store, you’ll need a space with a greenhouse and a storefront.

When choosing a location for your plant nursery, here are the factors to consider:

  • Proximity to Target Market – Choose a location close to your primary customers to minimize transportation costs and ensure fresh plant delivery.
  • Soil Quality – Ensure the soil at the chosen location is fertile, well-draining, and free from diseases or pests, to support healthy plant growth.
  • Access to Water – The nursery should be near a reliable water source, as regular and quality watering is vital for plant growth and health.
  • Sunlight Exposure – Select a site with adequate sunlight since most plants require sunlight for photosynthesis and optimal growth.
  • Protection from Extreme Elements – Choose a location that can be easily protected from harsh weather conditions, such as heavy winds or frost, to prevent plant damage.
  • Ease of Access for Transpor t – Consider road connectivity and transport logistics to facilitate easy shipping of plants and receipt of supplies.
  • Room for Expansion – Opt for a location with extra land or space, allowing for future expansion of the nursery as your business grows.
  • Local Regulations and Zoning Laws – Ensure the chosen location adheres to local zoning laws and regulations related to land use, water rights, and business operations.

plant nursery business idea rating

Step 3: Brainstorm a Plant Nursery Name

Your business name is your business identity, so choose one that encapsulates your objectives, services, and mission in just a few words. You probably want a name that’s short and easy to remember, since much of your business, and your initial business in particular, will come from word-of-mouth referrals.

Here are some ideas for brainstorming your business name:

  • Short, unique, and catchy names tend to stand out
  • Names that are easy to say and spell tend to do better 
  • Name should be relevant to your product or service offerings
  • Ask around — family, friends, colleagues, social media — for suggestions
  • Including keywords, such as “nursery” or “plant nursery”, boosts SEO
  • Name should allow for expansion, for ex: “Jim’s Nursery” over “Jim’s Shrubs”
  • Avoid location-based names that might hinder future expansion
  • Use online tools like the Step by Step Business Name Generator . Just type in a few keywords and hit “generate” and you’ll have dozens of suggestions at your fingertips.

Once you’ve got a list of potential names, visit the website of the US Patent and Trademark Office to make sure they are available for registration and check the availability of related domain names using our Domain Name Search tool. Using “.com” or “.org” sharply increases credibility, so it’s best to focus on these. 

Find a Domain

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Finally, make your choice among the names that pass this screening and go ahead with domain registration and social media account creation. Your business name is one of the key differentiators that sets your business apart. Once you pick your company name, and start with the branding, it is hard to change the business name. Therefore, it’s important to carefully consider your choice before you start a business entity.

Step 4: Create a Plant Nursery Business Plan

Every business needs a plan. This will function as a guidebook to take your startup through the launch process and maintain focus on your key goals. A business plan also enables potential partners and investors to better understand your company and its vision:

  • Executive Summary: A concise summary outlining the key elements of the plant nursery business, including its mission, goals, and financial projections.
  • Business Overview: An overview detailing the nature of the plant nursery business, its mission, vision, and the specific products it intends to offer.
  • Product and Services: Clear description of the variety of plants and services the nursery will provide, emphasizing unique offerings or specialty items.
  • Market Analysis: Thorough examination of the target market, including demographics, trends, and potential customer needs for plant-related products.
  • Competitive Analysis: Evaluation of competitors in the plant nursery industry, highlighting strengths and weaknesses to inform the business’s competitive strategy.
  • Sales and Marketing: Detailed plan outlining how the nursery will attract and retain customers, including pricing strategies, promotions, and marketing channels.
  • Management Team: Introduction to the key individuals who will lead and manage the plant nursery, emphasizing relevant experience and skills.
  • Operations Plan: A comprehensive outline of the day-to-day operations, including sourcing plants, managing inventory, and ensuring quality control.
  • Financial Plan: A detailed financial forecast, including startup costs, revenue projections, and a break-even analysis, providing a clear picture of the business’s financial viability.
  • Appendix: Additional supporting documents and information, such as resumes of key team members, market research data, or any other relevant details that enhance the business plan.

what to include in a business plan

If you’ve never created a business plan yourself before, it can be an intimidating task. Consider hiring an experienced business plan writer to create a professional business plan for you.

Step 5: Register Your Business

Registering your business is an absolutely crucial step — it’s the prerequisite to paying taxes, raising capital, opening a bank account, and other guideposts on the road to getting a business up and running.

Plus, registration is exciting because it makes the entire process official. Once it’s complete, you’ll have your own business! 

Choose where to register your company

Your business location is important because it can affect taxes, legal requirements, and revenue. Most people will register their business in the state where they live, but if you are planning to expand, you might consider looking elsewhere, as some states could offer real advantages when it comes to plant nurseries. 

If you’re willing to move, you could really maximize your business! Keep in mind, it’s relatively easy to transfer your business to another state. 

Choose your business structure

Business entities come in several varieties, each with its pros and cons. The legal structure you choose for your plant nursery will shape your taxes, personal liability, and business registration requirements, so choose wisely. 

Here are the main options:

  • Sole Proprietorship – The most common structure for small businesses makes no legal distinction between company and owner. All income goes to the owner, who’s also liable for any debts, losses, or liabilities incurred by the business. The owner pays taxes on business income on his or her personal tax return.
  • Partnership – Similar to a sole proprietorship, but for two or more people. Again, owners keep the profits and are liable for losses. The partners pay taxes on their share of business income on their personal tax returns.
  • Limited Liability Company (LLC) – Combines the characteristics of corporations with those of sole proprietorships or partnerships. Again, the owners are not personally liable for debts.
  • C Corp – Under this structure, the business is a distinct legal entity and the owner or owners are not personally liable for its debts. Owners take profits through shareholder dividends, rather than directly. The corporation pays taxes, and owners pay taxes on their dividends, which is sometimes referred to as double taxation.
  • S Corp – An S-Corporation refers to the tax classification of the business but is not a business entity. An S-Corp can be either a corporation or an LLC , which just need to elect to be an S-Corp for tax status. In an S-Corp, income is passed through directly to shareholders, who pay taxes on their share of business income on their personal tax returns.

types of business structures

We recommend that new business owners choose LLC as it offers liability protection and pass-through taxation while being simpler to form than a corporation. You can form an LLC in as little as five minutes using an online LLC formation service. They will check that your business name is available before filing, submit your articles of organization , and answer any questions you might have. 

Form Your LLC

Choose Your State

We recommend ZenBusiness as the Best LLC Service for 2023

backyard nursery business plan

Step 6: Register for Taxes

The final step before you’re able to pay taxes is getting an Employer Identification Number , or EIN. You can file for your EIN online or by mail or fax: visit the IRS website to learn more. Keep in mind, if you’ve chosen to be a sole proprietorship you can simply use your social security number as your EIN. 

Once you have your EIN, you’ll need to choose your tax year. Financially speaking, your business will operate in a calendar year (January–December) or a fiscal year, a 12-month period that can start in any month. This will determine your tax cycle, while your business structure will determine which taxes you’ll pay.

backyard nursery business plan

The IRS website also offers a tax-payers checklist , and taxes can be filed online.

It is important to consult an accountant or other professional to help you with your taxes to ensure you are completing them correctly.

Step 7: Fund your Business

Securing financing is your next step and there are plenty of ways to raise capital:

  • Bank loans : This is the most common method but getting approved requires a rock-solid business plan and strong credit history.
  • SBA-guaranteed loans : The Small Business Administration can act as guarantor, helping gain that elusive bank approval via an SBA-guaranteed loan .
  • Government grants : A handful of financial assistance programs help fund entrepreneurs. Visit Grants.gov to learn which might work for you.
  • Friends and Family : Reach out to friends and family to provide a business loan or investment in your concept. It’s a good idea to have legal advice when doing so because SEC regulations apply.
  • Crowdfunding : Websites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo offer an increasingly popular low-risk option, in which donors fund your vision. Entrepreneurial crowdfunding sites like Fundable and WeFunder enable multiple investors to fund your business.
  • Personal : Self-fund your business via your savings or the sale of property or other assets.

Starting a backyard nursery shouldn’t require any financing, but if you want to open a garden center with a greenhouse, a bank loan will probably be your best option. Friends and family might also be a good possibility. 

types of business financing

Step 8: Apply for Plant Nursery Business Licenses and Permits

Starting a plant nursery business requires obtaining a number of licenses and permits from local, state, and federal governments. Federal regulations, licenses, and permits associated with starting your business include doing business as, health license and permit from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration ( OSHA ), trademarks, copyrights, patents, and other intellectual properties, as well as industry-specific licenses and permits. 

You may also need state-level licenses and local county or city-based licenses and permits. The license requirements and how to obtain them vary, so check the websites of your state, city, and county governments or contact the appropriate person to learn more. You could also check this SBA guide for your state’s requirements. 

This is not a step to be taken lightly, as failing to comply with legal requirements can result in hefty penalties.

If you feel overwhelmed by this step or don’t know how to begin, it might be a good idea to hire a professional to help you check all the legal boxes.

For peace of mind and to save time, we recommend using MyCorporation’s Business License Compliance Package . They will research the exact forms you need for your business and state, and provide them to you to make sure you’re fully compliant.

Step 9: Open a Business Bank Account

Before you start making money, you’ll need a place to keep it, and that requires opening a bank account . Keeping your business finances separate from your personal account makes it easy to file taxes and track your company’s income, so it’s worth doing even if you’re running your plant nursery business as a sole proprietorship. 

Opening a business bank account is quite simple, and similar to opening a personal one. Most major banks offer accounts tailored for businesses — just inquire at your preferred bank to learn about their rates and features.

Banks vary in terms of offerings, so it’s a good idea to examine your options and select the best plan for you. Once you choose your bank, bring in your EIN (or Social Security Number if you decide on a sole proprietorship), articles of incorporation, and other legal documents and open your new account. 

Step 10: Get Business Insurance

Business insurance is an area that often gets overlooked yet it can be vital to your success as an entrepreneur. Insurance protects you from unexpected events that can have a devastating impact on your business.

Here are some types of insurance to consider:

  • General liability : The most comprehensive type of insurance, acting as a catch-all for many business elements that require coverage. If you get just one kind of insurance, this is it. It even protects against bodily injury and property damage.
  • Business Property : Provides coverage for your equipment and supplies.
  • Equipment Breakdown Insurance : Covers the cost of replacing or repairing equipment that has broken due to mechanical issues.
  • Worker’s compensation : Provides compensation to employees injured on the job.
  • Property : Covers your physical space, whether it is a cart, storefront, or office.
  • Commercial auto : Protection for your company-owned vehicle.
  • Professional liability : Protects against claims from a client who says they suffered a loss due to an error or omission in your work.
  • Business owner’s policy (BOP) : This is an insurance plan that acts as an all-in-one insurance policy, a combination of any of the above insurance types.

types of business insurance

Step 11: Prepare to Launch

As opening day nears, prepare for launch by reviewing and improving some key elements of your business. 

Essential software and tools

Being an entrepreneur often means wearing many hats, from marketing to sales to accounting, which can be overwhelming. Fortunately, many websites and digital tools are available to help simplify many business tasks. 

You can use industry-specific software, such as epicor , acctivate , or Planting Nursery , to manage your plantings, inventory, billing, purchasing, and staff. 

  • Popular web-based accounting programs for smaller businesses include Quickbooks , Freshbooks , and Xero . 
  • If you’re unfamiliar with basic accounting, you may want to hire a professional, especially as you begin. The consequences for filing incorrect tax documents can be harsh, so accuracy is crucial.

Develop your website

Website development is crucial because your site is your online presence and needs to convince prospective clients of your expertise and professionalism.

You can create your own website using services like WordPress, Wix, or Squarespace . This route is very affordable, but figuring out how to build a website can be time-consuming. If you lack tech-savvy, you can hire a web designer or developer to create a custom website for your business.

They are unlikely to find your website, however, unless you follow Search Engine Optimization ( SEO ) practices. These are steps that help pages rank higher in the results of top search engines like Google. 

Starting a plant nursery is an exciting venture, and successful marketing is key to growing your business. Beyond the basics of websites and networking, here are some practical marketing strategies to help your plant nursery thrive.

  • Local Partnerships: Collaborate with local businesses, such as landscapers, garden centers, and home improvement stores, to cross-promote your plants and expand your customer base.
  • Educational Workshops: Host workshops on gardening, plant care, and landscaping to engage the community and position your nursery as a knowledgeable resource, fostering customer loyalty.
  • Seasonal Promotions: Create seasonal promotions and discounts to attract customers during peak planting times and encourage repeat business throughout the year.
  • Community Events Sponsorship: Sponsor local events or community festivals to increase brand visibility, enhance community relationships, and draw attention to your nursery.
  • Loyalty Programs: Implement a loyalty program offering discounts or freebies for repeat customers, encouraging customer retention and word-of-mouth referrals.
  • Social Media Engagement: Utilize social media platforms to showcase your plants, share gardening tips, and engage with your audience, building a loyal online community.
  • Demo Gardens: Establish demo gardens at your nursery to allow customers to see mature plants in a natural setting, inspiring them to make purchases and providing practical ideas for their own gardens.
  • Email Marketing: Build an email subscriber list to share newsletters, exclusive promotions, and gardening advice directly with your audience, keeping your nursery top-of-mind.
  • Customized Plant Bundles: Offer curated plant bundles for specific gardening needs, making it easier for customers to create cohesive and attractive landscapes.
  • Customer Testimonials: Showcase success stories and testimonials from satisfied customers, instilling confidence in your nursery’s quality and expertise.

Focus on USPs

Unique selling propositions, or USPs, are the characteristics of a product or service that sets it apart from the competition. Customers today are inundated with buying options, so you’ll have a real advantage if they are able to quickly grasp how your plant nursery meets their needs or wishes. It’s wise to do all you can to ensure your USPs stand out on your website and in your marketing and promotional materials, stimulating buyer desire. 

Global pizza chain Domino’s is renowned for its USP: “Hot pizza in 30 minutes or less, guaranteed.” Signature USPs for your plant nursery business could be:

  • Organically grown plants to beautify your lawn
  • Varietal ground covers to accent your yard
  • Lovingly homegrown flowers to brighten your curb appeal

unique selling proposition

You may not like to network or use personal connections for business gain. But your personal and professional networks likely offer considerable untapped business potential. Maybe that Facebook friend you met in college is now running a plant nursery business, or a LinkedIn contact of yours is connected to dozens of potential clients. Maybe your cousin or neighbor has been working in plant nurseries for years and can offer invaluable insight and industry connections. 

The possibilities are endless, so it’s a good idea to review your personal and professional networks and reach out to those with possible links to or interest in plant nurseries. You’ll probably generate new customers or find companies with which you could establish a partnership. 

Step 12: Build Your Team

If you’re starting out small with a backyard nursery, you may not need any employees. But if you purchase a greenhouse and store you will likely need workers to fill various roles. Potential positions for a plant nursery business would include:

  • Gardeners – plant and care for plants
  • Store Clerks – make sales, customer service
  • General Manager – order supplies, staff management, accounting
  • Marketing Lead – SEO strategies, social media, other marketing

At some point, you may need to hire all of these positions or simply a few, depending on the size and needs of your business. You might also hire multiple workers for a single role or a single worker for multiple roles, again depending on need. 

Free-of-charge methods to recruit employees include posting ads on popular platforms such as LinkedIn, Facebook, or Jobs.com. You might also consider a premium recruitment option, such as advertising on Indeed , Glassdoor , or ZipRecruiter . Further, if you have the resources, you could consider hiring a recruitment agency to help you find talent. 

Step 13: Run a Plant Nursery – Start Making Money!

If you have a love of gardening, starting your own plant nursery will be a great way to do what you love and make a healthy profit at the same time. Plant nurseries are a $42 billion industry and can be very lucrative ventures. 

You can start in your own backyard with just a few tools and your green thumb, and eventually purchase your own greenhouse and storefront. Now that you know what’s involved in starting a plant nursery, you’re ready to start your entrepreneurial journey and plant your way to success! 

  • Plant Nursery Business FAQs

Absolutely! Planting and growing your offerings costs very little, so you can sell them for a large markup. You can even sell your plants at wholesale prices to large garden centers and make a healthy profit.

Even a backyard nursery is a business, so depending on where you live, you may need business licenses and permits at the state and local levels. Check with your local governments for requirements.

You can start a plant nursery with very little space. You’ll just be limited to the number of plants that you can grow. You can plant things like ground cover and produce a lot of plants in a small space. A 50 by 50-foot plot can hold up to 8000 ground cover plants pots.

Effective marketing strategies for promoting a plant nursery include creating an attractive website, utilizing social media platforms, attending local events, collaborating with complementary businesses, and offering educational content.

The types of plants to consider growing in a nursery depend on factors such as the local market, climate, and customer preferences. Popular options include flowering plants, succulents, herbs, vegetable seedlings, shrubs, and trees.

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  • Decide if the Business Is Right for You
  • Hone Your Idea
  • Brainstorm a Plant Nursery Name
  • Create a Plant Nursery Business Plan
  • Register Your Business
  • Register for Taxes
  • Fund your Business
  • Apply for Plant Nursery Business Licenses and Permits
  • Open a Business Bank Account
  • Get Business Insurance
  • Prepare to Launch
  • Build Your Team
  • Run a Plant Nursery - Start Making Money!

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How to Start a Plant Business

Last Updated: August 10, 2023 Approved

This article was co-authored by Melinda Meservy and by wikiHow staff writer, Eric McClure . Melinda Meservy is a Plant Specialist and the Owner of Thyme and Place, a botanical boutique offering plants and gifts in Salt Lake City, Utah. Before starting her own business, Melinda worked in process and business improvement and data analytics. Melinda earned a BA in History from the University of Utah, is trained in lean and agile methodologies, and completed her Certified Professional Facilitator certification. Thyme and Place offers indoor plants and containers, a fully stocked potting bench, and tips on plants to suit your space and lifestyle. There are 7 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. This article received 18 testimonials and 100% of readers who voted found it helpful, earning it our reader-approved status. This article has been viewed 566,444 times.

Setting up a plant nursery business can be an overwhelming venture, but it can be extremely rewarding if you have a passion for greenery and a firm knowledge of how to grow and cultivate plants. There are three distinct types of nurseries. Backyard growers sell plants that they cultivate in their home, and usually sell plants in their front yard like a garage sale several times a month. Retail growers rent or buy brick-and-mortar shops where they sell to the public. Wholesale growers focus on cultivating a lot of plants at once and sell to other vendors and shops. Choose which kind of nursery you want to open based on your knowledge, time availability, and whether you want to work full-time or part-time on your plants.

Planning Your Business

Step 1 Estimate how much money you’ll need to start by adding initial expenses.

  • If you’re trying to appeal to investors or a bank for a loan, they’ll want to see an estimate of your costs.
  • Retail stores need to pay rent or a mortgage. Calculate this cost based on averages for available commercial properties in your area.
  • Every business needs general liability insurance. If you plan on hiring employees, you’ll need to buy insurance for your workers as well.

Step 2 Apply for the...

  • Business licenses always have a fee attached to them. This can range from $25-1,000 based on where you are.
  • Make sure that you’re getting a home-business license if you’re going to operate a backyard nursery.

Warning: If you’re in the United States, you need to apply for a federal agricultural license if you want to import or export plants to/from other states. [3] X Trustworthy Source U.S. Small Business Administration U.S. government agency focused on supporting small businesses Go to source

Step 3 Master your craft by studying and enrolling in classes.

  • Botany tends to be a more scientific field, while horticulture focuses more on practical growing methods. Horticulture may be more helpful, but they’ll both be useful fields to learn more about.
  • If you’re enrolling at a college or university, consider double-majoring in business. The business degree will provide you with a ton of useful information on how to run a business.

Step 4 Create a mission statement and some preliminary marketing materials.

  • Order some business cards with your name and company logo. Print a few mission statements with the logo and include your mission statement. These will be incredibly helpful when you’re starting out as you try to network and appeal to customers.
  • Most nurseries work with a few different varieties of plants. If you’re absolutely certain that you want to focus on a specific species or style of plant, emphasize it in your statement and logo.
  • For example, a business statement might start, “Peach Orchard Nursery is a local Nebraskan plant nursery that focuses on succulents and cactus plants. Our goal at Peach Orchard is to bring the absolutely highest-quality plants to the public using eco-friendly growing practices.”

Running a Backyard Nursery

Step 1 Acquire the proper materials to begin planting.

  • A high-end sprinkler system can cost quite a bit of money, but it can save you quite a bit of time and effort when it comes to watering your plants.
  • You’ll probably need shears, sprayers, punnets, and pots. Most backyard nurseries don’t sell ceramic pots, so only purchase the materials that you need to grow the plants.
  • Purchase your seeds from a reputable dealer and keep the receipts. Some states and countries regulate nurseries, and they may want to know where you got your seeds.

Step 2 Focus on 2-3 popular plants to start and grow your nursery.

  • Succulents are an excellent focus if you’re in an area with a lot of younger people or college students. They’re easy to take care of and they’re relatively cheap, so they’re a good choice for a younger market.
  • Flowers, like roses and orchids, are always a safe bet. Just check to make sure that there aren’t already a bunch of flower shops in your area.
  • Track your growing cycles so that it’s easy to figure out when your plants are going to be ready. This will make it easier to figure out when you need to host some sales.

Step 3 Advertise when you’re hosting sales in the neighborhood and online.

  • A sample ad might say, “Next Saturday, from 10 am to 4 pm, there will be a flower sale at Happy Hyacinth Plant Nursery!” Include your address in the posts so that people know where to go.
  • Include photos of your plants in your adverts and posts! Showcase a few beautiful flowers or plants to show people what you’re selling.
  • If you think your area has a lot of potential buyers, consider taking out some ads in the local newspaper or on your local radio stations.

Step 4 Price your plants based on demand and what your growing costs are.

  • Host your sales as often as you have enough inventory to sell. For some nursery owners, this is once a month. For other owners, this may be once a week. It all depends on how often you have plants for sale.
  • Succulents usually cost somewhere between $10-20.
  • Flower prices can vary wildly from species to species. Usually they fetch $5-20.
  • Snake plants, spider plants, money trees, and jades range from $10-100 based on their size. The bigger the plant, the more expensive it usually is.

Step 5 Host your sales by setting your plants up in your yard and talking to customers.

  • A lot of nurseries save some time and energy by giving each species of plant the same price. For example, if you’re selling a smaller succulent and a larger succulent, it may be easier to simply list all small succulents as $5 and all larger succulents as $8.
  • Keep some change on you. You’ll need to give out change if people show up with bigger bills.

Step 6 Revise your strategy based on conversations with customers and your sales.

Tip: If you sold out and you’re happy with the money that you made, keep your prices the same to ensure people keep coming back. Otherwise, raise them to make more money or lower them to sell more inventory. If you’re underselling and you can’t lower your prices any further, use more marketing to get the word out.

Operating a Retail Store

Step 1 Rent or buy a store with adequate outdoor space and light.

  • Look for shops with big windows, and good natural ventilation.
  • If you can, try to get a shop that will let you use the roof. A roof can provide you with space to grow plants on location!
  • Most retail shops rent their spaces. Unless it’s a large corporation, it’s rare for a business to own their building.

Warning: Do not rent a shop with carpet under any condition. You’re going to be watering your plants to keep them healthy while they’re available, and it’s impossible to keep carpeting from growing mold and developing a nasty and unhealthy aroma if it’s always getting wet.

Step 2 Set up a grow site in a separate location and plant your seeds.

  • You’ll need soil, shears, wheelbarrows, and spades to run your off-site nursery. Set it up in a nutrient-rich yard or lot near your home to make it easy to monitor and transport them.

Step 3 Purchase additional plants and inventory for your shop.

  • Retail shops rarely specialize in certain types of plants unless they’re in major cities, and there’s a lot of competition.
  • A majority of retail nurseries grow most of their plants. Some of them grow all of them, but it can be hard to grow the variety of plants necessary to appeal to everyone. A lot of nurseries make up for this by buying the plants they’re missing and marking the prices up.
  • You can purchase from backyard nurseries and then mark the price up to make a profit.

Step 4 Set your store up and arrange your plants.

  • Buy reclaimed and upcycled furniture if you can. Some plant-buying customers care deeply about sustainability, and it’s good to be environmentally-conscious.
  • Many nurseries grow in a different location and bring the plants they want to sell to the store every week or so.

Step 5 Hire employees as needed to operate your store.

  • It’s perfectly reasonable to run a nursery on your own—especially if you’ve got a smaller space that can only accommodate 5-15 customers at a time.

Step 6 Adjust prices and shift your focus to react to the market.

  • If business is slowing down after the opening rush, start doing some local marketing. Post ads in the local paper, and put out signs on the sidewalk in front of your store.
  • Retail nurseries in temperate climates often shut down in the winter. Some owners sublease their space to rent it out in the off-months as a concert hall or reception space.

Starting a Wholesale Nursery

Step 1 Contact local flower shops, stores, and vendors to see what their needs are.

  • If you can, sign some contracts to sell to a store or vendor before you begin planting. This will take a lot of the pressure off early and will lock in the type of plant that you’re growing.

Step 3 Set up a nursery site and start a growing schedule your plants.

  • The type of soil that you use is dependent upon the plant, flower, or tree that you’re growing. Monitor the soil closely by getting it tested regularly by an environmental engineer. Consider hiring aerial seeding contractors once every 6 month to coat your field with growing nutrients and seed preservatives.
  • For example, if you’re growing snake plants and a store expects a shipment of 20 plants once every month, plant 3 different sites of 30-35 seeds in intervals where you’ll have a new set of mature plants once every 30 days or so.
  • Depending on what you’re growing, you’ll probably need a massive water supply. Contact your local utility company to see what the rules are regarding large water usage in your area.
  • Cover crops and plants with awnings during dry spells if your plants are getting too much sun.

Tip: Always overplant. You’re going to lose some of your plants, whether it’s due to the weather, predators, or insects. Have a few extra plants available to compensate. Some seeds may simply fail to sprout regardless of how much care you take to treat your plants right.

Step 4 Fulfill your growing obligations and deliver your plants on time.

  • Wholesale nurseries rarely sell plants directly to the public, but you can certainly take your excess inventory to a street fair, farmer’s market, or garden show to sell it off.

Community Q&A

wikiHow Staff Editor

  • Look for discarded plant containers at construction projects to avoid having an out of pocket expense if you are going to grow container-grown shrubs or trees. Thanks Helpful 2 Not Helpful 0
  • Be aware that plant certifications, both for individual species and overall plant health, are required in many jurisdictions. Be prepared to document seed sources and have your plants checked by a certifying agent for diseases, noxious weeds, and pests based on the legal requirements. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
  • Look for seed sources you can harvest and germinate locally. This will require more labor and a longer period for the plants to reach a marketable size, but will save you money on the purchase of seedling plants. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

backyard nursery business plan

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  • ↑ https://www.forbes.com/sites/alejandrocremades/2019/02/13/how-to-start-a-business/#2186e6496e1a
  • ↑ https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/launch-your-business/apply-licenses-permits
  • ↑ https://www.acs.edu.au/info/business/small-business/start-a-plant-nursery-.aspx
  • ↑ https://www.extension.purdue.edu/extmedia/HO/HO-212.pdf
  • ↑ http://pubs.cahnrs.wsu.edu/publications/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/publications/tb13.pdf
  • ↑ https://sba.thehartford.com/business-management/managing-risk/what-you-need-to-know-before-you-lease-commercial-property-for-your-small-business/
  • ↑ https://www.theenglishgarden.co.uk/expert-advice/gardeners-tips/how-to-start-your-own-nursery/

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Plant Nursery Business Plan Template & Guidebook

If you’re looking to start your own successful plant nursery business, then The #1 Plant Nursery Business Plan Template & Guidebook is an essential tool that will help you get off to the right start. This comprehensive guidebook is packed with essential information—from essential business and marketing tips, to easy-to-follow step-by-step instructions for creating a robust business plan—all designed to help you craft a solid strategy for achieving your goals and securing the funds necessary to get your plant nursery up and running. So don't wait any longer—start crafting your successful plant nursery business in no time!

Nick

Get worry-free services and support to launch your business starting at $0 plus state fees.

  • How to Start a Profitable Plant Nursery Business [11 Steps]
  • 10+ Best & Profitable Plant Nursery Business Ideas [2023]

How to Write a Plant Nursery Business Plan in 7 Steps:

1. describe the purpose of your plant nursery business..

The first step to writing your business plan is to describe the purpose of your plant nursery business. This includes describing why you are starting this type of business, and what problems it will solve for customers. This is a quick way to get your mind thinking about the customers’ problems. It also helps you identify what makes your business different from others in its industry.

It also helps to include a vision statement so that readers can understand what type of company you want to build.

Here is an example of a purpose mission statement for a plant nursery business:

Our mission at Plant Nursery is to provide our customers with high-quality plants and landscaping services that meet their needs and exceed their expectations. We strive to be an industry leader in plant selection, customer service, and professionalism. We are dedicated to providing our local community with a reliable source of beautiful plants, trees, shrubs, and vegetation at affordable prices.

Image of Zenbusiness business formation

2. Products & Services Offered by Your Plant Nursery Business.

The next step is to outline your products and services for your plant nursery business. 

When you think about the products and services that you offer, it's helpful to ask yourself the following questions:

  • What is my business?
  • What are the products and/or services that I offer?
  • Why am I offering these particular products and/or services?
  • How do I differentiate myself from competitors with similar offerings?
  • How will I market my products and services?

You may want to do a comparison of your business plan against those of other competitors in the area, or even with online reviews. This way, you can find out what people like about them and what they don’t like, so that you can either improve upon their offerings or avoid doing so altogether.

Image of Zenbusiness business formation

3. Build a Creative Marketing Stratgey.

If you don't have a marketing plan for your plant nursery business, it's time to write one. Your marketing plan should be part of your business plan and be a roadmap to your goals. 

A good marketing plan for your plant nursery business includes the following elements:

Target market

  • Who is your target market?
  • What do these customers have in common?
  • How many of them are there?
  • How can you best reach them with your message or product?

Customer base 

  • Who are your current customers? 
  • Where did they come from (i.e., referrals)?
  • How can their experience with your plant nursery business help make them repeat customers, consumers, visitors, subscribers, or advocates for other people in their network or industry who might also benefit from using this service, product, or brand?

Product or service description

  • How does it work, what features does it have, and what are its benefits?
  • Can anyone use this product or service regardless of age or gender?
  • Can anyone visually see themselves using this product or service?
  • How will they feel when they do so? If so, how long will the feeling last after purchasing (or trying) the product/service for the first time?

Competitive analysis

  • Which companies are competing with yours today (and why)? 
  • Which ones may enter into competition with yours tomorrow if they find out about it now through word-of-mouth advertising; social media networks; friends' recommendations; etc.)
  • What specific advantages does each competitor offer over yours currently?

Marketing channels

  • Which marketing channel do you intend to leverage to attract new customers?
  • What is your estimated marketing budget needed?
  • What is the projected cost to acquire a new customer?
  • How many of your customers do you instead will return?

Form an LLC in your state!

backyard nursery business plan

4. Write Your Operational Plan.

Next, you'll need to build your operational plan. This section describes the type of business you'll be running, and includes the steps involved in your operations. 

In it, you should list:

  • The equipment and facilities needed
  • Who will be involved in the business (employees, contractors)
  • Financial requirements for each step
  • Milestones & KPIs
  • Location of your business
  • Zoning & permits required for the business

What equipment, supplies, or permits are needed to run a plant nursery business?

  • Greenhouse or growing space
  • Containers and trays
  • Potting soil and organic compost
  • Landscape fabric, ground cover, and mulch
  • Fertilizers and pesticides
  • Plant tags, stakes, and labels
  • Irrigation and water systems
  • Business license or permit </

5. Management & Organization of Your Plant Nursery Business.

The second part of your plant nursery business plan is to develop a management and organization section.

This section will cover all of the following:

  • How many employees you need in order to run your plant nursery business. This should include the roles they will play (for example, one person may be responsible for managing administrative duties while another might be in charge of customer service).
  • The structure of your management team. The higher-ups like yourself should be able to delegate tasks through lower-level managers who are directly responsible for their given department (inventory and sales, etc.).
  • How you’re going to make sure that everyone on board is doing their job well. You’ll want check-ins with employees regularly so they have time to ask questions or voice concerns if needed; this also gives you time to offer support where necessary while staying informed on how things are going within individual departments too!

6. Plant Nursery Business Startup Expenses & Captial Needed.

This section should be broken down by month and year. If you are still in the planning stage of your business, it may be helpful to estimate how much money will be needed each month until you reach profitability.

Typically, expenses for your business can be broken into a few basic categories:

Startup Costs

Startup costs are typically the first expenses you will incur when beginning an enterprise. These include legal fees, accounting expenses, and other costs associated with getting your business off the ground. The amount of money needed to start a plant nursery business varies based on many different variables, but below are a few different types of startup costs for a plant nursery business.

Running & Operating Costs

Running costs refer to ongoing expenses related directly with operating your business over time like electricity bills or salaries paid out each month. These types of expenses will vary greatly depending on multiple variables such as location, team size, utility costs, etc.

Marketing & Sales Expenses

You should include any costs associated with marketing and sales, such as advertising and promotions, website design or maintenance. Also, consider any additional expenses that may be incurred if you decide to launch a new product or service line. For example, if your plant nursery business has an existing website that needs an upgrade in order to sell more products or services, then this should be listed here.

7. Financial Plan & Projections

A financial plan is an important part of any business plan, as it outlines how the business will generate revenue and profit, and how it will use that profit to grow and sustain itself. To devise a financial plan for your plant nursery business, you will need to consider a number of factors, including your start-up costs, operating costs, projected revenue, and expenses. 

Here are some steps you can follow to devise a financial plan for your plant nursery business plan:

  • Determine your start-up costs: This will include the cost of purchasing or leasing the space where you will operate your business, as well as the cost of buying or leasing any equipment or supplies that you need to start the business.
  • Estimate your operating costs: Operating costs will include utilities, such as electricity, gas, and water, as well as labor costs for employees, if any, and the cost of purchasing any materials or supplies that you will need to run your business.
  • Project your revenue: To project your revenue, you will need to consider the number of customers you expect to have and the average amount they will spend on each visit. You can use this information to estimate how much money you will make from selling your products or services.
  • Estimate your expenses: In addition to your operating costs, you will need to consider other expenses, such as insurance, marketing, and maintenance. You will also need to set aside money for taxes and other fees.
  • Create a budget: Once you have estimated your start-up costs, operating costs, revenue, and expenses, you can use this information to create a budget for your business. This will help you to see how much money you will need to start the business, and how much profit you can expect to make.
  • Develop a plan for using your profit: Finally, you will need to decide how you will use your profit to grow and sustain your business. This might include investing in new equipment, expanding the business, or saving for a rainy day.

backyard nursery business plan

Frequently Asked Questions About Plant Nursery Business Plans:

Why do you need a business plan for a plant nursery business.

A business plan for a plant nursery business is necessary because it provides potential investors and lenders with an overview of the business objectives, operational strategies and financial plans. It also allows owners to identify potential risks and explore ways to mitigate them. Additionally, a business plan helps to ensure that resources are allocated where they will be most effective and provides a road map for the future of the business.

Who should you ask for help with your plant nursery business plan?

You should ask for help from qualified professionals such as a business consultant, financial advisor, accountant, or lawyer. You might also consider reaching out to other people who have opened similar businesses in the past or are currently running a successful plant nursery business.

Can you write a plant nursery business plan yourself?

Writing a business plan for a plant nursery business can be a complex process, however it is possible to do it on your own. You will need to consider the company’s mission and objectives, assess the potential market, develop a marketing strategy, create financial projections, and analyze the competition. Additionally, you should ensure that you cover topics such as legal requirements and operational structure. Before starting the plan, research similar businesses to get an understanding of industry trends and the specific needs of this type of business. This will help you create a comprehensive and effective plan.

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I'm Nick, co-founder of newfoundr.com, dedicated to helping aspiring entrepreneurs succeed. As a small business owner with over five years of experience, I have garnered valuable knowledge and insights across a diverse range of industries. My passion for entrepreneurship drives me to share my expertise with aspiring entrepreneurs, empowering them to turn their business dreams into reality.

Through meticulous research and firsthand experience, I uncover the essential steps, software, tools, and costs associated with launching and maintaining a successful business. By demystifying the complexities of entrepreneurship, I provide the guidance and support needed for others to embark on their journey with confidence.

From assessing market viability and formulating business plans to selecting the right technology and navigating the financial landscape, I am dedicated to helping fellow entrepreneurs overcome challenges and unlock their full potential. As a steadfast advocate for small business success, my mission is to pave the way for a new generation of innovative and driven entrepreneurs who are ready to make their mark on the world.

How to Start a Plant Nursery

A plant nursery grows plants from seeds or saplings to the size that most gardeners, landscapers, or larger retail distributors desire for installation into lawns, backyard gardens, floral borders, and other indoor or outdoor areas.

A successful nursery offers a wide variety of young plants to their customers who purchase the plants individually or in bulk quantities. The quality, selection, and size of the products produced by the nursery will be dictated by the demographics of their location. Often, a nursery’s selection is also influenced by business relationships the owner has established with major landscaping businesses. Some nurseries will specialize in trees, decorative growing art such as bonsai, or water features and associated plant life. Additional services often offered by some nurseries include garden design, hardscaping supplies, and mulch/soil delivery.

Learn how to start your own Plant Nursery and whether it is the right fit for you.

Ready to form your LLC? Check out the Top LLC Formation Services .

Plant Nursery Image

Start a plant nursery by following these 10 steps:

  • Plan your Plant Nursery
  • Form your Plant Nursery into a Legal Entity
  • Register your Plant Nursery for Taxes
  • Open a Business Bank Account & Credit Card
  • Set up Accounting for your Plant Nursery
  • Get the Necessary Permits & Licenses for your Plant Nursery
  • Get Plant Nursery Insurance
  • Define your Plant Nursery Brand
  • Create your Plant Nursery Website
  • Set up your Business Phone System

We have put together this simple guide to starting your plant nursery. These steps will ensure that your new business is well planned out, registered properly and legally compliant.

Exploring your options? Check out other small business ideas .

STEP 1: Plan your business

A clear plan is essential for success as an entrepreneur. It will help you map out the specifics of your business and discover some unknowns. A few important topics to consider are:

What will you name your business?

  • What are the startup and ongoing costs?
  • Who is your target market?

How much can you charge customers?

Luckily we have done a lot of this research for you.

Choosing the right name is important and challenging. If you don’t already have a name in mind, visit our How to Name a Business guide or get help brainstorming a name with our Plant Nursery Name Generator

If you operate a sole proprietorship , you might want to operate under a business name other than your own name. Visit our DBA guide to learn more.

When registering a business name , we recommend researching your business name by checking:

  • Your state's business records
  • Federal and state trademark records
  • Social media platforms
  • Web domain availability .

It's very important to secure your domain name before someone else does.

Want some help naming your plant nursery?

Business name generator, what are the costs involved in opening a plant nursery.

Location will significantly affect your start-up costs as you need a decent amount of land, and an urban site will be priced significantly higher than an existing rural farm. Greenhouses can cost anywhere from $30,000 to $100,000 depending on size, whether or not it will be heated, require electricity and how you have it plumbed. Your retail storefront will require another $50,000 investment minimum and your start-up plants, soil, and supplies will run you another $10,000 to $50,000. It is a labor intensive start-up, and payroll should be part of your initial business plan.

What are the ongoing expenses for a plant nursery?

Payroll, water, chemicals, and inventory are your largest expenses. When scouting locations, you may wish to investigate the use of private wells versus municipal water supplies to lower operating costs.

Who is the target market?

Depending on your locale, you may want to target landscapers who maintain elite properties indoors and outdoors for the wealthy homeowner. Municipalities will purchase large amounts of trees and plants on an annual basis. If you are situated in a suburban setting with high foot traffic, you may cater more to the homeowner who wants to develop their own vegetable plot or flowering landscaping.

How does a plant nursery make money?

While specialty plants such as orchids or rare trees and shrubs may be sold for a much higher price than a flat of tomato plants, a profitable nursery makes its money by selling large quantities of familiar, hardy, easy-to-grow plants. Perennials, common trees such as maple and pine, and landscaping hedges require little attention to grow. This means that they will not take many of your resources to care for, and they are more likely to be purchased by your customers. Having enough product and satisfactory customer service will encourage your clients to return.

Plants are sold from $1 per pot to several hundred dollars for unique and exotic specimens of trees. Prices can be adjusted upward in wealthier neighborhoods.

How much profit can a plant nursery make?

Your profit will depend on scale and location. Successful nurseries can see an annual cash flow anywhere from $40,000 to $625,000.

How can you make your business more profitable?

Determine which plants are in the greatest demand and focus on providing enough of them to fulfill your customers' needs. Follow that up by introducing species that have a low wholesale purchase price and require the least amount of attention to attain their retail size in order to maximize return on your investment.

Want a more guided approach? Access TRUiC's free Small Business Startup Guide - a step-by-step course for turning your business idea into reality. Get started today!

STEP 2: Form a legal entity

The most common business structure types are the sole proprietorship , partnership , limited liability company (LLC) , and corporation .

Establishing a legal business entity such as an LLC or corporation protects you from being held personally liable if your plant nursery is sued.

Form Your LLC

Read our Guide to Form Your Own LLC

Have a Professional Service Form your LLC for You

Two such reliable services:

You can form an LLC yourself and pay only the minimal state LLC costs or hire one of the Best LLC Services for a small, additional fee.

Recommended: You will need to elect a registered agent for your LLC. LLC formation packages usually include a free year of registered agent services . You can choose to hire a registered agent or act as your own.

STEP 3: Register for taxes

You will need to register for a variety of state and federal taxes before you can open for business.

In order to register for taxes you will need to apply for an EIN. It's really easy and free!

You can acquire your EIN through the IRS website . If you would like to learn more about EINs, read our article, What is an EIN?

There are specific state taxes that might apply to your business. Learn more about state sales tax and franchise taxes in our state sales tax guides.

STEP 4: Open a business bank account & credit card

Using dedicated business banking and credit accounts is essential for personal asset protection.

When your personal and business accounts are mixed, your personal assets (your home, car, and other valuables) are at risk in the event your business is sued. In business law, this is referred to as piercing your corporate veil .

Open a business bank account

Besides being a requirement when applying for business loans, opening a business bank account:

  • Separates your personal assets from your company's assets, which is necessary for personal asset protection.
  • Makes accounting and tax filing easier.

Recommended: Read our Best Banks for Small Business review to find the best national bank or credit union.

Get a business credit card

Getting a business credit card helps you:

  • Separate personal and business expenses by putting your business' expenses all in one place.
  • Build your company's credit history , which can be useful to raise money later on.

Recommended: Apply for an easy approval business credit card from BILL and build your business credit quickly.

STEP 5: Set up business accounting

Recording your various expenses and sources of income is critical to understanding the financial performance of your business. Keeping accurate and detailed accounts also greatly simplifies your annual tax filing.

Make LLC accounting easy with our LLC Expenses Cheat Sheet.

STEP 6: Obtain necessary permits and licenses

Failure to acquire necessary permits and licenses can result in hefty fines, or even cause your business to be shut down.

State & Local Business Licensing Requirements

Certain state permits and licenses may be needed to operate a plant nursery. Learn more about licensing requirements in your state by visiting SBA’s reference to state licenses and permits .

Most businesses are required to collect sales tax on the goods or services they provide. To learn more about how sales tax will affect your business, read our article, Sales Tax for Small Businesses .

Labor safety requirements

It is important to comply with all Occupational Safety and Health Administration requirements .

Certificate of Occupancy

Businesses operating out of a physical location typically require a Certificate of Occupancy (CO).  A CO confirms that all building codes, zoning laws and government regulations have been met.

  • If you plan to lease a location :
  • It is generally the landlord’s responsibility to obtain a CO.
  • Before leasing, confirm that your landlord has or can obtain a valid CO that is applicable to a plant nursery business.
  • After a major renovation, a new CO often needs to be issued. If your place of business will be renovated before opening, it is recommended to include language in your lease agreement stating that lease payments will not commence until a valid CO is issued.
  • If you plan to purchase or build a location :
  • You will be responsible for obtaining a valid CO from a local government authority.
  • Review all building codes and zoning requirements for your business’ location to ensure your plant nursery business will be in compliance and able to obtain a CO.

STEP 7: Get business insurance

Just as with licenses and permits, your business needs insurance in order to operate safely and lawfully. Business Insurance protects your company’s financial wellbeing in the event of a covered loss.

There are several types of insurance policies created for different types of businesses with different risks. If you’re unsure of the types of risks that your business may face, begin with General Liability Insurance . This is the most common coverage that small businesses need, so it’s a great place to start for your business.

Another notable insurance policy that many businesses need is Workers’ Compensation Insurance . If your business will have employees, it’s a good chance that your state will require you to carry Workers' Compensation Coverage.

FInd out what types of insurance your Plant Nursery needs and how much it will cost you by reading our guide Business Insurance for Plant Nursery.

STEP 8: Define your brand

Your brand is what your company stands for, as well as how your business is perceived by the public. A strong brand will help your business stand out from competitors.

If you aren't feeling confident about designing your small business logo, then check out our Design Guides for Beginners , we'll give you helpful tips and advice for creating the best unique logo for your business.

Recommended : Get a logo using Truic's free logo Generator no email or sign up required, or use a Premium Logo Maker .

If you already have a logo, you can also add it to a QR code with our Free QR Code Generator . Choose from 13 QR code types to create a code for your business cards and publications, or to help spread awareness for your new website.

How to promote & market a plant nursery

Check out your region for flower and garden shows. Create a stunning display and work the crowd for the weekend. For routine marketing, direct mail flyers promoting the next season's available plants work as great reminders. In order to establish a new relationship with a commercial landscaper, you may wish to offer samples so the quality of your plant can be experienced in a real application.

How to keep customers coming back

Marketing pushes must be timed with the seasons. While holidays are great for selling a rose bush, your large customers are planning their purchases a month before they are planting a new garden. Personal contact with your larger companies help to keep your phone number at the top of their contact list. Homeowners look for specials in early spring and fall. Having the flowers, soil, and conditioners they are seeking in stock will help to build repeat business as they can rely on you.

STEP 9: Create your business website

After defining your brand and creating your logo the next step is to create a website for your business .

While creating a website is an essential step, some may fear that it’s out of their reach because they don’t have any website-building experience. While this may have been a reasonable fear back in 2015, web technology has seen huge advancements in the past few years that makes the lives of small business owners much simpler.

Here are the main reasons why you shouldn’t delay building your website:

  • All legitimate businesses have websites - full stop. The size or industry of your business does not matter when it comes to getting your business online.
  • Social media accounts like Facebook pages or LinkedIn business profiles are not a replacement for a business website that you own.
  • Website builder tools like the GoDaddy Website Builder have made creating a basic website extremely simple. You don’t need to hire a web developer or designer to create a website that you can be proud of.

Recommended : Get started today using our recommended website builder or check out our review of the Best Website Builders .

Other popular website builders are: WordPress , WIX , Weebly , Squarespace , and Shopify .

STEP 10: Set up your business phone system

Getting a phone set up for your business is one of the best ways to help keep your personal life and business life separate and private. That’s not the only benefit; it also helps you make your business more automated, gives your business legitimacy, and makes it easier for potential customers to find and contact you.

There are many services available to entrepreneurs who want to set up a business phone system. We’ve reviewed the top companies and rated them based on price, features, and ease of use. Check out our review of the Best Business Phone Systems 2023 to find the best phone service for your small business.

Recommended Business Phone Service: Phone.com

Phone.com is our top choice for small business phone numbers because of all the features it offers for small businesses and it's fair pricing.

TRUiC's Startup Podcast

Welcome to the Startup Savant podcast , where we interview real startup founders at every stage of the entrepreneurial journey, from launch to scale.

Is this Business Right For You?

This business is best suited for someone who enjoys learning about and practicing the cultivation of plants. Nursery owners should also like sharing this knowledge with others. The right person for the job will also have solid business skills, an appreciation for the agricultural life, and a real interest in providing information and support for their local gardeners.

Want to know if you are cut out to be an entrepreneur?

Take our Entrepreneurship Quiz to find out!

Entrepreneurship Quiz

What happens during a typical day at a plant nursery?

As the owner/operator of a plant nursery, you need to be prepared to:

  • Care for a wide variety of plants in various stages of growth
  • Work a farmer's schedule from dawn to dusk
  • Maintain large greenhouses or acres of irrigated growing flats
  • Apply herbicides/pesticides to control disease and pests
  • Determine which and how many plants of each variety should be grown to meet demand without waste
  • Maintain retail storefront for sales to local gardeners
  • Carry out basic accounting/money handling
  • Maintain sufficient staff to care for plants and customers
  • Establish relationships with wholesalers to both buy and sell product
  • Provide information and support for your local customers

What are some skills and experiences that will help you build a successful plant nursery?

You need an excellent understanding of maintaining commercial greenhouses and supporting healthy plants. You should also have solid understanding of accounting and retail business practices that can help you decipher fluctuations in supply and demand in order to maintain profits through changes in the economy and customer base. An ability to build positive business relationships will also aid your growth in the business.

What is the growth potential for a plant nursery?

Through aggressive networking and the building of a large customer base of wealthy commercial clients, a plant nursery can continue to expand its operation as long as there is additional acreage to cultivate or build additional greenhouses on. Popular nurseries often open multiple locations in a region when they've achieved positive name recognition among landscaping and construction companies.

TRUiC's YouTube Channel

For fun informative videos about starting a business visit the TRUiC YouTube Channel or subscribe to view later.

Take the Next Step

Find a business mentor.

One of the greatest resources an entrepreneur can have is quality mentorship. As you start planning your business, connect with a free business resource near you to get the help you need.

Having a support network in place to turn to during tough times is a major factor of success for new business owners.

Learn from other business owners

Want to learn more about starting a business from entrepreneurs themselves? Visit Startup Savant’s startup founder series to gain entrepreneurial insights, lessons, and advice from founders themselves.

Resources to Help Women in Business

There are many resources out there specifically for women entrepreneurs. We’ve gathered necessary and useful information to help you succeed both professionally and personally:

If you’re a woman looking for some guidance in entrepreneurship, check out this great new series Women in Business created by the women of our partner Startup Savant.

What are some insider tips for jump starting a plant nursery?

Do your demographic research before breaking ground on a new nursery. If you don't know if your potential customers are going to buy a thousand trees or a thousand pots of pansies, you will waste time and money growing plants that nobody is going to buy. Reach out to gardening clubs, growers associations, and commercial clients to develop a plan for your first three harvests. If you live in the north, you need to start planning your growing season right after the New Year in order to grab advanced sales when the planting season begins.

How and when to build a team

You will need your staff as soon as you start receiving seed, soil, and pots. Most of the labor involved in a nursery is in the growing of the plants, not the selling. Emptying your storefront is really the easy part. You will want to hire individuals who are willing to get dirty, do lots of heavy lifting, love working with the earth, and are interested in building relationships with your customers.

Read our plant nursery hiring guide to learn about the different roles a plant nursery typically fills, how much to budget for employee salaries, and how to build your team exactly how you want it.

Useful Links

Truic resources.

  • TRUiC's Plant Nursery Hiring Guide

Industry Opportunities

  • Nurseries and Garden Centers Businesses for Sale

Real World Examples

  • Flora Grubb Gardens
  • Campbell’s Greenhouses
  • English Gardens

Further Reading

  • How to Start a Profitable Backyard Plant Nursery
  • 20+ Plant Nursery and Garden Center Tips

Have a Question? Leave a Comment!

backyard nursery business plan

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How To Start A Plant Business From Scratch

Man working in garden center

If you wish to be your own boss and have a green thumb, then a plant nursery business might be just right for you! Besides having an entrepreneurial spirit, you will need to acquire a decent understanding of plants, soils, labor management, packing, shipping, marketing, and many other things to thrive in your plant business.

This beginner’s guide will walk you through the process of starting your own plant business from A to Z!

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Benefits Of Having An Indoor Plant Care Business

Drawbacks of selling plants, creating a business plan, choosing your plant care services, starting a backyard nursery, running retail nurseries, starting wholesale nurseries, starting a landscape and interior design service, how profitable is a plant care business, what is the most profitable plant to grow indoors, final thoughts.

When having a plant business of your own, you gain independence and control over your life. This means you are free to choose what is best for your plant care business and are responsible for your own success!

In most nurseries, in comparison to other businesses, the start-up capital for an indoor plant care business is relatively minimal; your greatest expenditures will be insurance and transportation. You may handle your own bookkeeping, and if you can secure larger clients, such as office complexes or shopping malls, you’ll have a steady stream of cash.

backyard nursery business plan

Although it’s a growing industry, plant care is a luxury service. You will thus probably be first on the list for budget cuts when people’s wallets are tight. A steady income might be difficult to come by as a result.

Dealing with insect infestations is an additional burden. They may swiftly destroy plants, spoiling your effort and perhaps compromising your reputation, and it’s typically not your fault.

backyard nursery business plan

Beginners Guide To Starting A Plant Business

Though formal training is not needed to start a plant care business, these are a few basic steps to follow:

Do Your Research

You should have a look at the local market and check what the competition is doing to start a plant business. Analyze the market to see what services are already offered and where a gap could exist for you to fill.

Additionally, you should consider what trends exist in the plant world. Consider what locals are purchasing if you’re shopping for nursery stock.

backyard nursery business plan

Allocating Your Budget

Entrepreneurs need to invest money in order to start a plant shop. Therefore, plant businesses should think about several potential costs before opening any type of plant store, including:

  • Construction of greenhouses
  • Irrigation systems
  • Business license and permission
  • Space rental
  • Plantation sources
  • Tools & equipment required
  • Online platforms
  • Hiring employees
  • Marketing and advertising
  • Other supplies

You may save money by doing your own bookkeeping and customer management. That means you’ll need to set up:

  • An accountancy system
  • A customer relationship management database
  • A project management system of some kind
  • A business bank account

Business owners should consider the POS system while making plans for the plant shops. With the most complete POS app available, ConnectPOS will assist in integrating your sales channels. Additionally, to assist with data synchronization across digital and offline shops, it also enables your clients to simplify the payment process.

Enhance Your Plant Care Skill

Before you invest a lot of money, do your research. Purchase books and magazines about plants. Examine various locations’ plant nursery setups, talk to other nursery owners and join professional organizations.

Work with your local Small Business Center to learn about hiring procedures and other aspects of running a small plant business. Attend seminars, and classes, and learn everything you can about how to grow and cultivate plants.

backyard nursery business plan

New to gardening? Learn these 5 gardening tips for beginners .

Begin Promoting Your Plant Business

Consider creating a batch of unique business cards or fliers to put off around your neighborhood if you’re working with an in-person company, such as selling plants, where you’ll be at your client’s premises.

You should also consider:

  • Making a website
  • Taking stunning product photographs
  • Creating social media accounts

Don’t forget to create a marketing plan, or you risk having one hand in all the marketing cookie jars.

Plant care can be divided into three categories:

  • Backyard growers sell their plants, and they typically hold many monthly garage sales in their front yards.
  • Retail nurseries are often smaller businesses that sell plants mostly to homeowners.
  • Wholesale nurseries are often bigger operations that grow plants and sell to municipalities, growers, retail stores, and landscape architects.

Based on your knowledge, time availability, and desire to work on your plants full- or part-time, decide what sort of plant nursery you want to create.

Acquire The Proper Gardening Tools

If you have a green thumb, you may already have several of the essential gardening equipment to grow plants. Nevertheless, you should get any items you don’t currently have. If you’re going to be planting a lot, invest in a wheelbarrow so you can easily transfer the dirt according to the plants you’re cultivating.

Concentrate On 1-2 Plants Only

Your location and the climate there will affect the plants you decide to cultivate in your garden whether indoors or outdoor plants, so only select a minimum of two or three plant species that you are enthusiastic about.

Choose plants you are familiar with cultivating and that you believe will be well-liked by your neighborhood’s plant lovers. Invest in seeds, then sow them. As your plants grow, be sure to check in daily to give each plant the water, sunlight, and attention it needs.

backyard nursery business plan

Advertise Your Sales Online And In Your Community

Create a straightforward advertisement with the date, time, and place of future deals. Include a few pictures and the name of your own nursery. At least one week before a sale, post to local Facebook groups, Facebook Marketplace, and your other social media platforms.

Consider placing some advertising in your local newspaper or on its radio stations if you believe there are many potential customers there.

To let people know when you’re having a sale, print some flyers with the same information and put them up throughout your neighborhood to gain more loyal customers.

New to online advertising? Here are some digital marketing strategies your business might be missing out on.

Set Your Plant Prices

Even though plant prices might vary greatly depending on the species, you should base your pricing on local demand while also taking the cost of cultivating the plants into consideration.

Look at nearby flower shops and plant shops or the local garden center to see how much they sell plants for to get an idea of the market demand locally.

If you can undercut them and still make money, do it to make a significant entrance into the local market.

Revise Your Business Plan

Interact with your customers when you’re selling. Talk about what they’d want to see in the future, and offer out your business card or brochures with your contact information.

When you’ve finished selling your plants, total your profits and decide what to do next depending on your feedback from your existing customers and the money you made.

Top tip: Don’t adjust your prices if you sold out and are satisfied with your profit margin to encourage loyal customers to buy more plants. Otherwise, increase them to increase revenue or decrease them to increase inventory sales. Use additional promotions to spread the word if you’re underselling and can’t permanently cut your rates any further.

Renting Your Own Space

Start by looking for business properties in your neighborhood that are available for rent or purchase. When searching, keep your budget in mind and request that realtors and brokers show you rooms with plenty of natural light and ventilation.

Once you’ve rented a place, start to work organizing your area and ordering basic supplies.

Top tip: Do not rent spaces with carpets. You’ll be watering your plants to keep them healthy, and it’s impossible to keep carpeting from growing mold and generating a horrible and unpleasant odor if it’s constantly moist.

backyard nursery business plan

Plant Your Seeds In A Separate Spot

Purchase your seeds from reliable suppliers. When your plants reach maturity, dig around each one and remove it from the ground using gardening tools. Before placing the plants out for sale, if you have a storefront, bring the ones you want to sell and put them there in attractive pots.

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Attractive pots are our forte . In fact, our wholesale planters are above-class in durability, function, and beauty.

Learn more about Jay Scotts

Purchase More Plants And Supplies

When your store opens, you’ll need to hold some plant shows or start advertising your products and services. Purchase plants from the categories you can’t or won’t cultivate.

Buy some gardening equipment, pots, and soil from wholesalers in case your customers require them. Retail stores typically sell these items as well.

Related article: Best Potting Soil for Indoor Plants !

Hiring Employees

To save money when you are setting up, think about having the assistance of family members and friends. You’ll have an idea of your cash flow after you open.

Running a plant nursery by yourself is also possible, especially if you have a small operation

backyard nursery business plan

Adjust Prices And Refocus Your Efforts

If succulents are selling out quickly, change your growing practices to make room for additional succulents. Conversely, stop growing cactus plants if you can’t sell any. Depending on your sales, change your prices and nursery stock.

Contact Nearby Flower Shops, Retailers, And Vendors

Inform the local companies that you are opening a plant nursery by getting in touch with them. Ask them whether they’d be interested in doing business with you if you know that you’re going to concentrate on a particular species or type of plant. Ask what these shops and merchants have problems getting their hands on if you’re not sure what you’re going to cultivate.

Sign Agreements With Nearby Companies

Create a contract by writing it yourself or getting a lawyer to do it for you. Include your pricing for each sale, your duties, and any delivery instructions.

Wholesale contracts are often very valuable, so protect yourself by having a buyer sign them after they’ve committed to buying from you.

Create A Nursery Space And watch Your Plants’ Grow

The first batch of plants may take anything from a week to six months to grow, depending on what you’re planting. Plan 2-3 distinct nursery locations to grow in intervals so that you may transport your plants just before your customers need a new supply.

nursery garden

Top tip: Never underplant. Whether it’s due to the environment, pool pest control, or the weather, you’ll lose some of your plant stock over time. Have a few extra plants on hand as a backup.

Check out our article on 5 Best Tips For Indoor Plant Care .

Attend Local Garden Centers And Plant Shows

Attend local plant displays and conventions whenever possible to network with other farmers and potential customers.

Give your business card out and try to make as many connections as you can. This is a simple technique to make sure you’re advertising your plant nursery services to the most potential clients.

Because plants really do make the world more beautiful, more and more people and business owners are using indoor gardening to make their spaces seem better. This may be the ideal company for you if you have a talent for creating exquisite indoor plant arrangements.

You’ll design plant displays to connect a space as part of your indoor landscaping business. Even better, combine your gardening and maintenance offerings to convert one-time clients into devoted patrons.

Lack of ideas for your business? take a look at our blog on 10 Outdoor Designs and Commercial Landscaping Ideas .

About The Market

Commercial clients will pay you more money and need less driving time than residential clients, especially if you sign up with big enterprises, office parks, or buildings where you can serve a large number of clients at once.

Restaurants, hotels, and institutions are also potential targets. Deliver brochures by hand to potential clients. Place adverts in the local newspaper, or even establish a referral network at garden centers and nurseries to get started.

All you actually need are soil probes (normal size and maybe a 4-footer for those tall indoor palms), watering cans, a pair of plant snippers, chemical insecticides, plant fertilizers, and a trustworthy car to get you around.

You will also need to prepare:

  • Your company name. Pick one that is pertinent to your company and will make your company stand out.
  • A business permit.
  • You may advertise with business cards, flyers, or, if you have a limited budget, in the newspaper or the yellow pages.
  • You may build a website on a budget after you start earning a nice wage and, of course, let people know about your business.
  • Participate in neighborhood activities to spread the word about your company.
  • Dress professionally and be well-groomed by wearing uniforms. This shows prospects that you take your work seriously.

Smaller, backyard nurseries might make $7000 to $40,000 yearly. On a modest nursery scale, a potted plant may cost $1 while a specialty plant (such as a rare orchid) might cost $100s.

For large-scale nurseries, the yearly ranges range from $40,000 to $625,000. Large nurseries provide thousands of trees or acres of ground cover for sale. Japanese maples have been the most common plant in recent years.

how to start a plant business

According to a Money.co.uk study, the most profitable plants that you can find in your garden are the Monstera Thai Constellation, the Monstera Dubia, and the Alocasias and Caladiums…

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The most important thing when designing a garden aesthetic is using durable, reliable, and gorgeous planters.

Paired with your plants, our Jay Scotts professional-grade planters will ensure the happiness of your customers by offering a beautiful piece of functional decor that fits in any space or interior design. Using our planters, the botanic needs of your customers are met and exceeded.

Whether you’re supplying plants to homeowners or large commercial enterprises, Jay Scotts planters are ideal for any plant project big or small.

All of our planters come with an industry-leading warranty , highlighting our dedication to quality and the affordability of our fiberglass planters.

Want to offer our planters to your new customers? Contact us  today to learn more about the exciting opportunities our wholesale range can deliver!

Or better yet, give us a call and our sales consultants will be more than happy to walk you through any outstanding questions or requests you might have.

backyard nursery business plan

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Plant Nursery Business Plan

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Do you feel tired in the caught-up rat race, and just want to follow your passion for nature? Well, a plant nursery is an amazing idea that would help the environment while keeping your pockets full.

But to start a successful plant nursery or get funding you will need a solid business plan to guide you through the way.

Need help writing a business plan for your plant nursery business? You’re at the right place. Our plant nursery business plan template will help you get started.

How to Write a Plant Nursery Business Plan?

Writing a plant nursery business plan is a crucial step toward the success of your business. Here are the key steps to consider when writing a business plan:

1. Executive Summary

An executive summary is the first section planned to offer an overview of the entire business plan. However, it is written after the entire business plan is ready and summarizes each section of your plan.

Here are a few key components to include in your executive summary:

Introduction of your Business

Start your executive summary by briefly introducing your business to your readers. Then include a short description of all the other sections of the business plan.

In short, it is a summary of the whole business plan, which is why entrepreneurs choose to write this section at the end after having the full knowledge of the business plan.

You can introduce your business like this with the help of Upmetrics:

backyard nursery business plan

Marketing & Sales Strategies

Outline your sales and marketing strategies—what marketing platforms you use, how you plan on acquiring customers, etc.

Financial Highlights

Briefly summarize your financial projections for the initial years of business operations. Include any capital or investment requirements, associated startup costs, projected revenues, and profit forecasts.

Call to Action

Summarize your executive summary section with a clear CTA, for example, inviting angel investors to discuss the potential business investment.

Ensure your executive summary is clear, concise, easy to understand, and jargon-free.

2. Business Overview

The business overview section of your business plan offers detailed information about your company. The details you add will be like business name, type of the business, location, business history, and future goals of the business.

Business Description

Describe what kind of plant nursery business you run and the name of it. You may be running one of the below types of plant nurseries:

  • Tree nursery : Focusing more on the plantation and sale of trees for both residential and commercial customers.
  • Indoor plant nursery : This kind of business specializes in indoor and houseplant settings.
  • Aquatic plant nursery : Focuses on growing and selling aquatic plants commonly utilized in ponds and water gardens.

For example, here is the business description for a nursery with the help of Upmetrics:

backyard nursery business plan

Describe the legal structure of your plant nursery, whether it is a sole proprietorship, LLC, partnership, or any other. Explain where your business is located and why you selected the place.

List the names of your nursery’s founders or owners. Describe what shares they own and their responsibilities for efficiently managing the business.

Business History

If you’re an established nursery, briefly describe your business history, like—when it was founded, how it evolved, etc.

Additionally, If you have received any awards or recognition for excellent work, describe them.

Future Goals

It’s crucial to convey your aspirations and vision. Mention your short-term and long-term goals; they can be specific targets for revenue, market share, or expanding your services.

This section should provide a thorough understanding of your business, its history, and its plans. Keep this section engaging, precise, and to the point.

3. Market Analysis

The market analysis section of your business plan should offer a thorough understanding of the industry with the target market, competitors, and growth opportunities. You should include the following components in this section.

Target market

Start this section by describing your target market. Define your ideal customer and explain what types of services they prefer. Creating a buyer persona will help you easily define your target market to your readers.

Market size and growth potential

Describe your market size and growth potential and whether you will target a niche or a much broader market.

For instance, in 2022, the market size of the Nursery and garden Stores industry in terms of revenue was $50.3 billion .

Competitive Analysis

Identify and analyze your direct and indirect competitors. Identify their strengths and weaknesses, and describe what differentiates your plant nursery services from them. Point out how you have a competitive edge in the market.

Market Trends

Analyze emerging trends in the industry, such as technology disruptions, changes in customer behavior or preferences, etc. Explain how your business will cope with all the trends. For example here is how you should mention the market trends:

backyard nursery business plan

Regulatory Environment

List regulations and licensing requirements that may affect your plant nursery business, such as business registration, insurance, environmental regulations, state and federal regulations, etc.

Here are a few tips for writing the market analysis section of your plant nursery business plan:

  • Conduct market research, industry reports, and surveys to gather data.
  • Provide specific and detailed information whenever possible.
  • Illustrate your points with charts and graphs.
  • Write your business plan keeping your target audience in mind.

4. Products And Services

The product and services section should describe the specific services and products that will be offered to customers. To write this section should include the following:

Describe your products and services

Mention the plant nursery products or services your business will offer. This list may include:

  • Fertilizers
  • Pots and containers
  • Landscape designing
  • Garden Decor
  • Delivery services

Quality measures

This section should explain how you maintain quality standards and consistently provide the highest quality service.

This may include regular maintenance of plants and quality fertilizers.

Additional Services

Mention if your plant nursery offers any additional services. You may include services like delivery services, landscape designing, consultation, planting, etc.

In short, this section of your plan must be informative, precise, and client-focused. By providing a clear and compelling description of your offerings, you can help potential investors and readers understand the value of your business.

5. Sales And Marketing Strategies

Writing the sales and marketing strategies section means a list of strategies you will use to attract and retain your clients. Here are some key elements to include in your sales & marketing plan:

Unique Selling Proposition (USP)

Define your business’s USPs depending on the market you serve, the equipment you use, and the unique services you provide. Identifying USPs will help you plan your marketing strategies.

Marketing Strategies

Discuss your marketing strategies to market your services. You may include some of these marketing strategies in your business plan—social media marketing, Google ads, brochures, email marketing, content marketing, and print marketing.

Sales Strategies

Outline the strategies you’ll implement to maximize your sales. Your sales strategies may include direct sales calls,  partnering with other businesses, offering referral programs, etc.

Customer Retention

Describe your customer retention strategies and how you plan to execute them. For instance, introducing loyalty programs, personalized service, discounts on repeat orders, etc.

Overall, this section of your plant nursery business plan should focus on customer acquisition and retention.

Have a specific, realistic, and data-driven approach while planning sales and marketing strategies for your business, and be prepared to adapt or make strategic changes in your strategies based on feedback and results.

6. Operations Plan

The operations plan section of your business plan should outline the processes and procedures involved in your business operations, such as staffing requirements and operational processes. Here are a few components to add to your operations plan:

Staffing & Training

Mention your business’s staffing requirements, including the number of employees or gardeners needed. Include their qualifications, the training required, and the duties they will perform.

Operational Process

Outline the processes and procedures you will use to run your plant nursery business. Your operational processes may include seeding, cultivation, plant care, inventory management, etc.

Equipment & Machinery

Include the equipment and machinery required for the plant nursery, such as cultivation & planting equipment, pest & disease control, tools & implements, etc.

Explain how these technologies help you maintain quality standards and improve the efficiency of your business operations.

Adding these components to your operations plan will help you lay out your business operations, which will eventually help you manage your business effectively.

7. Management Team

The management team section provides an overview of your plant nursery business’s management team. This section should provide a detailed description of each manager’s experience and qualifications, as well as their responsibilities and roles.

Founders/CEO

Mention the founders and CEO of your company, and describe their roles and responsibilities in successfully running the business.

Key managers

Introduce your management and key members of your team, and explain their roles and responsibilities.

For example, you can write down your management team like below with the help of Upmetrics:

backyard nursery business plan

Organizational structure

Explain the organizational structure of your management team. Include the reporting line and decision-making hierarchy.

Advisors/Consultants

Mentioning advisors or consultants in your business plans adds credibility to your business idea.

So, if you have any advisors or consultants, include them with their names and brief information consisting of roles and years of experience.

This section should describe the key personnel for your plant nursery business, highlighting how you have the perfect team to succeed.

8. Financial Plan

Your financial plan section should provide a summary of your business’s financial projections for the first few years. Here are some key elements to include in your financial plan:

Profit & loss statement

Describe your projected revenue, operational costs, and service costs in your projected profit and loss statement. Make sure to include your business’s expected net profit or loss.

Cash flow statement

The cash flow for the first few years of your operation should be estimated and described in this section. This may include billing invoices, payment receipts, loan payments, and any other cash flow statements.

Balance Sheet: Create a projected balance sheet documenting your plant nursery’s assets, liabilities, and equity. For example, see the below-projected balance sheet for a nursery with the help of Upmetrics:

backyard nursery business plan

Break-even point: Determine and mention your business’s break-even point—the point at which your business costs and revenue will be equal.

This exercise will help you understand how much revenue you need to generate to sustain or be profitable.

Financing Needs: Calculate costs associated with starting a plant nursery business, and estimate your financing needs and how much capital you need to raise to operate your business. Be specific about your short-term and long-term financing requirements, such as investment capital or loans.

Be realistic with your financial projections, and make sure you offer relevant information and evidence to support your estimates.

9. Appendix

The appendix section of your plan should include any additional information supporting your business plan’s main content, such as market research, legal documentation, financial statements, and other relevant information.

  • Add a table of contents for the appendix section to help readers easily find specific information or sections.
  • In addition to your financial statements, provide additional financial documents like tax returns, a list of assets within the business, credit history, and more. These statements must be the latest and offer financial projections for at least the first three or five years of business operations.
  • Provide data derived from market research, including stats about the plant nursery industry, user demographics, and industry trends.
  • Include any legal documents such as permits, licenses, and contracts.
  • Include any additional documentation related to your business plan, such as product brochures, marketing materials, operational procedures, etc.

Use clear headings and labels for each section of the appendix so that readers can easily find the necessary information.

Remember, the appendix section of your plant nursery business plan should only include relevant and important information supporting your plan’s main content.

This sample plant nursery business plan will provide an idea for writing a successful plan for your plant nursery business, including all the essential components of your business.

After this, if you still need clarification about writing an investment-ready business plan to impress your audience, download our plant nursery business plan pdf .

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Frequently asked questions, why do you need a plant nursery business plan.

A business plan is an essential tool for anyone looking to start or run a successful plant nursery business. It helps to clarify your business, secure funding, and identify potential challenges while starting and growing your business.

Overall, a well-written plan can help you make informed decisions, which can contribute to the long-term success of your plant nursery company.

How to get funding for your plant nursery business?

There are several ways to get funding for your plant nursery business, but self-funding is one of the most efficient and speedy funding options. Other options for funding are:

  • Bank loan – You may apply for a loan in government or private banks.
  • Small Business Administration (SBA) loan – SBA loans and schemes are available at affordable interest rates, so check the eligibility criteria before applying for it.
  • Crowdfunding – The process of supporting a project or business by getting a lot of people to invest in your business, usually online.
  • Angel investors – Getting funds from angel investors is one of the most sought-after startup options.

Apart from all these options, there are small business grants available, check for the same in your location and you can apply for it.

Where to find business plan writers for your plant nursery business?

There are many business plan writers available, but no one knows your business and ideas better than you, so we recommend you write your plant nursery business plan and outline your vision as you have in mind.

What is the easiest way to write your plant nursery business plan?

A lot of research is necessary for writing a business plan, but you can write your plan most efficiently with the help of any plant nursery business plan example and edit it as per your need. You can also quickly finish your plan in just a few hours or less with the help of our business plan software .

How detailed should the financial projections be in my plant nursery business plan?

The level of detail of the financial projections of your plant nursery business may vary considering various business aspects like direct and indirect competition, pricing, and operational efficiency. However, your financial projections must be comprehensive enough to demonstrate a complete view of your financial performance.

Generally, the statements included in a business plan offer financial projections for at least the first three or five years of business operations.

What key components should a plant nursery business plan include?

The following are the key components your plant nursery business plan must include:

  • Executive summary
  • Business Overview
  • Market Analysis
  • Products and services
  • Sales and marketing strategies
  • Operations plan
  • Management team
  • Financial plan

Can a good plant nursery business plan help me secure funding?

Indeed. A well-crafted plant nursery business plan will help your investors better understand your business domain, market trends, strategies, business financials, and growth potential—helping them make better financial decisions.

So, if you have a profitable and investable business, a comprehensive business plan can certainly help you secure your business funding.

What's the importance of a marketing strategy in a plant nursery business plan?

Marketing strategy is a key component of your plant nursery business plan. Whether it is about achieving certain business goals or helping your investors understand your plan to maximize their return on investment—an impactful marketing strategy is the way to do it!

Here are a few pointers to help you understand the importance of having an impactful marketing strategy:

  • It provides your business an edge over your competitors.
  • It helps investors better understand your business and growth potential.
  • It helps you develop products with the best profit potential.
  • It helps you set accurate pricing for your products or services.

About the Author

backyard nursery business plan

Upmetrics Team

Upmetrics is the #1 business planning software that helps entrepreneurs and business owners create investment-ready business plans using AI. We regularly share business planning insights on our blog. Check out the Upmetrics blog for such interesting reads. Read more

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How To Start Backyard Plant Nursery – A Full Guide

Table of contents, location to start a backyard plant nursery, few basic tools to start a backyard plant nursery, propagation techniques to start a backyard plant nursery, process to start a backyard plant nursery, planting your plants in backyard nursery, tips to start a backyard plant nursery.

Introduction on How to Start a Backyard Plant Nursery

Creating a backyard plant nursery is an amazing way to turn your hobby of gardening into a business. It is one of the best methods to earn money without any added stress. Starting a backyard plant nursery can be a wonderful way to turn your plants into cash and it is also a profitable business. It is easy to start a nursery in the backyard as it doesn’t require tractors, expensive equipment, or greenhouses. It is a fact that a plant nursery in the backyard can turn your hobby into a profitable business.

The secret to making good money with a backyard nursery business is to specialize in plants that are in demand and select container-grown plants to save space. A relatively new development in container growing is called the “pot-in-pot” system, allow growers to produce larger trees and shrubs without the back-breaking hand digging and high water consumption required by field growing. For growing smaller plants, container growing saves time, water, and transplanting. Pot-in-pot is mainly used for the production of caliper-sized shade trees, flowering trees, and large shrubs.

A Step by Step Guide on How to Start a Backyard Plant Nursery

A successful nursery in the backyard offers a wide variety of young plants to their customers who purchase the plants individually or in bulk quantities. The quality, selection, and size of the products formed by the nursery will be dictated by the demographics of their location. A nursery’s selection is influenced by business relationships the owner has established with main landscaping businesses.

The primary step to start a plant nursery is the availability of land. The backyard can be utilized for more profit, than hiring land for growing plants. The basic qualities of land for nursery should be present. These qualities denote soil fertility, nutrition present, moisture content, and non-toxic nature. With all these factors which decide the growth of the plant, the land is perfectly suitable for you to start the process. If you prefer to plant two to three varieties of woody plants, the use of varieties of soil might be a condition. In such cases, you can spend your investment on soil purchase. After purchasing the soil, the land can be subdivided for different species.

In addition to your plant starts, some basic tools, and a water source, also you’ll need additional supplies. You’ll require a good soil mix (you can make you own or buy a pre-made mix), quality fertilizer (a slow-release fertilizer is a preferred method for most commercial growers), different-sized containers for growing plants, and plant labels (you need to know which plants are in which containers).

A few basic hand tools required to start a backyard nursery are;

1. Containers – Plant containers are fairly cheap. Also, you can get them free from landscapers. Get the sizes you’d like to try.

2. Potting Soil Mix – It’s very important your plants grow up healthy and strong, so a good soil mix is essential. You can buy pre-mixed potting soil or also make your own. A basic formula for soil mix is;

  • Six parts topsoil or compost
  • Three parts peat moss
  • Two parts of sand

3. Fertilizers – Controlled-release fertilizers are also known as slow-release or time-release fertilizers. Don’t buy these fertilizers at the local garden center and buy these fertilizers at a wholesale nursery supply in 50-pound bags.

4. Plant Labels – It’s very important to know just what type of plant is in each container, so a plant label will help provide that information. You can even put another type of information on there, such as when it was planted. There are two kinds of plant labels that are normally used;

  • Stake tags are put in the soil next to the plant
  • Slip-a-tags get attached to the branch of the plant

Once you gather all these supplies and obtain any licenses or permits you need, and then your backyard nursery is in business.

Ground Covers – This is one of the methods where you can easily get the ideal backyard nursery crop. The ground cover is becoming one of the smartest methods to create a landscape. This ground cover can offer you profit in a year and it requires little maintenance, no mowing, and water conservation. It saves the soil from erosion and keeps it cool, thus reducing the need for water.  Ground covers are becoming the low-maintenance way to the landscape due to high labor costs and water shortages. Most growers like ground covers, as they are easy to propagate, grow, and sell. Ground covers are an ideal cash crop to start a smaller backyard plant nursery.

Ornamental Grasses – Ornamental grasses are popular nowadays and it ranges from low-growing to the tall ones. Landscapers adore them as they can be used in different ways as specimen plants, ground covers, and privacy screens, etc. As an added feature, the low maintenance grasses add color to the landscape much longer than flowers. Because these are drought-tolerant and low maintenance, landscapers are using more and more of them, as are homeowners. It is easy to get started growing ornamental grasses, as you simply buy the “mother” plants and then divide the root clump into new plants as it grows. Using pots, it’s possible to grow thousands of plants in a backyard nursery.

Trees and Shrubs Landscapes – Several backyard nurseries specialize in container-grown trees and shrubs. It is surprising to see the number of pots that can fit in the small area of the nursery. It is one of the secrets of a small nursery where finding your niche would help to maximize your business.

The process of starting a backyard nursery includes some steps – planning, designing, production, and marketing.

Planning is an essential and key element in everything from designing the layout of the living room to estimating the volume of sales and expenses. Find out what kind of plants are suitable for the climate conditions in your location. First, look around the gardens, both indoors and outdoors, of your friends and neighbors. Check out the price tags of these plants in the garden centers, at the farmer’s market and see what plants are being sold. The choice of plants for the garden nursery will depend mainly on the gardener. Growing “mother” plants is a clever idea that requires no investment at all and you can propagate them by cuttings or root division.

Ground covers are always in demand as they are ideal for landscaping. The fact that they do not need mowing and the watering and maintenance are minimal makes them extremely popular. These plants are easy to propagate and do not require much care.

Ornamental grasses are other popular plants suitable for a garden nursery. These are a popular choice for landscaping and are used as pond decoration, in rock gardens, and as patio decor. Growing trees and shrubs is another idea which you can develop in a backyard garden nursery.

Herbs and spices are the perfect choices for beginners and you can start with Basil, Thyme, Mint, Cilantro, Parsley, Oregano, Sage, Lovage, and Chives any of these can be planted both in pots and in soil.

Another good idea for beginners to grow cacti, air plants, or succulents. These are plants that need practically no effort to grow and propagate and can be grown in a small plant nursery.

You should not miss this: Terrace Vegetable Garden Ideas .

Step 1) Acquire the proper materials to begin planting in the nursery. While you may already have a lot of gardening tools if you have experience growing plants, purchase whatever tools you don’t have yet.

Step 2) Now you’re ready to begin planting your plants in the nursery. It’s a good idea to begin planting once your land is thawed. Be sure to give the plants enough room to grow and don’t plant them too close together. Keep the weeds under control. Check your plants for any diseases or other problems. You’ll probably need shears, sprayers, and pots. Most backyard nurseries don’t sell ceramic pots, so only purchase the materials that you want to grow the plants. Purchase plant seeds from a reputable dealer and keep the receipts.

Step 3) Focus on 2 to 3 popular plants to start and grow your nursery. Then, the plants you select to grow in the backyard nurseries are dependent upon where you live and what the climate is like. Choose 2 to 3 species of plants that you’re passionate about to start with. Pick plants that you have experience growing and you think will be popular based on the local market. Buy your seeds and plant them. Then, check-in every day to provide each plant with the necessary water, sun, and care as you’re growing.

Step 4) Succulents are easy to take care of and they’re relatively cheap, so they’re a good choice for a younger market. Some flowers like roses and orchids are always a safe bet. Track your growing cycles so that it’s easy to figure out when plants are going to be ready. Then, this will make it easier to figure out when you need to host some sales.

Step 5) Advertise when you’re hosting sales in the neighborhood and online. Write a simple ad for your nursery that includes the time and location of upcoming sales. Also, include a few photos and your nursery’s name. If you think your area has a lot of potential buyers, consider taking out some ads in the local newspaper or on local radio stations.

Step 6) Price your plants based on demand and what your growing costs are. While the prices for plants can vary wildly based on the species, focus your prices on the demand in your location while taking the growing costs into account. Also, visit the local flower and plant shops and look at their prices. If the demand is high in your area, consider raising prices to test the waters and see what you can make.

Step 7) Host your sales by setting your plants up in your backyard and talking to customers. Before your sale starts, move 30 to 40 plants to your front yard. Then, arrange the plants on the ground in rows, or on top of benches and folding tables to signal to people passing by that you’re open for business. Be visible and walk around your backyard so that customers can easily find you. Introduce yourself to people and explain how to care for your nursery plants. A lot of nurseries save some time by giving each species of plant at the same price. Revise your strategy based on conversations with customers and sales. When you’re selling, interact with your customers. Ask them what they’d be interested in seeing in the future, and hand out a business card with your contact information.

Step 8) Licenses and permits – You’ll most likely need licenses and permits for a backyard nursery business. You’ll need a business license. Also, you need a resale license if you live in a state that has a sales tax. This requires you to collect sales tax and gets you an exemption certificate from purchasers who resell the items they buy from your business. As with all of these licenses and permits, talk to the state to find out their laws and regulations.

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Tips to Start a Backyard Plant Nursery

  • Starting a plant nursery in the backyard is a huge challenge that mainly requires dedication, long hours, and hard work, day in and day out. It’s not enough to know about plants; successful nursery owners have a working knowledge of equipment, soil types, labor management, packing, shipping, and much more.
  • Site selection in the backyard is very important in the early stages of the planning process. Your choices will directly affect your nursery’s success in growing and selling plants.
  • The first step to start a plant nursery is the extraction of seeds and seeds must be extracted without being destroyed from a fully grown fruit for the harvesting of seeds. Then, the extracted seeds for plantation and the seeds should be sowed in seedbeds or germination trays for their future growth.
  • You should keep a track of everything, like what plants grow faster and what are the required elements in the soil, and which season is best for growing which species of plants. Now that everything is done, your plants are ready to be sold in the nursery. 
  • Find unique plants to increase your profits and to compete with bigger nurseries. Try to establish yourself as a specialist of a particular variety, like tropical plants, frost hardy plants, and edible plants, etc.

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Profitable Plants

High-Value Crops for Small Growers

How To Start a Backyard Plant Nursery For $400

5:52 pm by Craig Wallin

Growing Plants For Profit

Starting your own plant nursery isn’t too difficult, and the financial benefits can be quite rewarding. Plus, it shouldn’t cost you a huge amount of money. In fact you can start your own backyard plant nursery and be growing plants for profit for $400. Here’s how:

First you’ll need to take care of some legal things. Talk to your state about acquiring a business license. Having a license will help you be able to buy supplies and plants at wholesale prices. Next, you might need a special license or permit to operate a plant nursery. Again, check with your state to find out what their rules and regulations are. Finally, you might need a resale license if you live in a state with a sales tax. This requires you to collect sales tax, and also gets you an exemption certificate from purchasers who plan to resell any plants they buy from your plant business.

Now you need to think about what you’d like to grow. Visit nearby retail nurseries to see just what they are stocking and selling.. Pay attention to what pot size they’re selling their plants in and the different varieties they have to offer.

Okay, so you’ve picked out some plant possibilities. Hopefully you have a few basic hand tools and a water source. Here’s what else you’ll need:

1. Containers – Plant containers are fairly cheap. You can also get them free from landscapers. Get the sizes you’d like to try.

2. Potting Soil Mix – It’s important your plants grow up healthy and strong, so a good soil mix is essential. You can buy pre-mixed potting soil or make your own. A basic formula is:

  • Six parts topsoil or compost
  • Three parts peat moss
  • Two parts sand

3. Fertilizers – Controlled-release fertilizers (also known as slow-release or time-release) do just that – they slowly release nutrients over a period of time, easing the amount of work on you. Don’t buy these fertilizers at your local garden center. Instead, buy them at a wholesale nursery supply in 50 pound bags. The price might seem high, but on a per plant basis it’s quite reasonable, as they will last for months.

4. Plant Labels – It’s important to know just what type of plant is in each container, so a plant label will help provide that information. You can even put other information on there, such as when it was planted. There are two kinds of plant labels that are commonly used:

  • Stake tags, which are put in the soil next to the plant
  • Slip-a-tags, which get attached to the branch of the plant

Once you gather all these supplies and obtain any licenses or permits you need, your backyard nursery is in business. It shouldn’t take you long to assemble these supplies, and it shouldn’t put you into debt either. You should be able to get your basic supplies for $400 or less. Soon your profitable plants will cover any start-up costs you had, and your backyard nursery business could be the business of your dreams. To learn more, read How to Start a Backyard Plant Nursery.

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Start a Backyard Plant Nursery Business, Part 1: Choosing What to Grow and Unique Plants

backyard nursery business plan

Years ago, although it feels like yesterday, my husband, Dan, and I were given two small cacti. We’d just traveled around Europe and decided to settle in Australia’s Queensland, so we never had a garden of any kind before. The cacti belonged to Dan’s grandfather and was aptly named “Jaws”.

These small cacti sparked something, a flame of passion for things that grow. All of a sudden, we noticed other succulents and cacti around us, and we visited the cacti show at the Mount Cootha Botanical Gardens. We came home with another 15 or so cacti. These plants had little hangers-on, tiny offsets, which we learned could be replanted and would grow.

I’ve always had an entrepreneurial mind. For some reason, I can’t have a hobby without it becoming a business venture of some form or shape. My mother would tell you a story of me, at 7 years old, giving horse riding lessons on my pony to neighborhood kids for 10 cents per go!

This led me to sell the cacti offsets on eBay and it was the start of a nursery business that would serve us well for over 10 years.

There are many ways of starting a plant nursery. My story is just one way to get into it, but it’s a great way to start without any overhead or cost upfront. Yes, I think we spent about $30 at the cacti show, but I’m not talking about huge bank loans. We built it up as we went along. We didn’t start with shade houses, irrigation systems, potting houses, great big setups that cost a fortune to run. We found people selling second-hand pots for peanuts, and used an old shower head as watering wand.

How to Choose What to Grow for a Backyard Nursery

Most advice I’ve read so far is to “grow what you love”. To an extent, I agree with this, but you can’t sell something you can’t source. Meaning, not only do you need to like the plants you’re going to grow, you also need to be able to source either seeds or plants for that variety. There’s no point focusing on a variety that’s so obscure it becomes impossible to get a hold of.

Although, that said, if you do happen to find a source for this incredibly rare plant, and there’s a market looking for it, you’ve got a winner. We did OK with our cacti, but realized quite early on that we didn’t actually like spiky plants very much. I started becoming interested in edible plants and stumbled upon coconuts. Most coconuts grow over 30m tall, but I found out that there’s such a thing as a dwarf coconut, which is much more suitable for home growers.

I tenaciously researched, trying to find a supplier and, although it was hard, found a grower (who, admittedly, didn’t do a lot of online marketing, making him super hard to find!) and negotiated a deal with him. We met his truck on the highway somewhere, and we were now proud owners of 100 dwarf coconuts.

They sold like hot bread. Not only were we one of the very few nurseries offering the Dwarf Coconut, there was also a huge demand for it. Mind you though, we did need to do some educating, as would be the case with a lot of rare plants. People often don’t know this type of plant, and you’ll have to teach them why it’s a good choice for them and the benefits of growing this particular variety.

This education is a science on its own, but if you can pull it off, it’s really great. Our supplier for the Dwarf Coconuts was incredibly passionate about them and this made it a joy to work with him. We worked together on preserving the purity of the different varieties of the coconuts, and managed to spread the word on the benefits of coconuts. Did you know coconut water is used as a replacement for traditional IV’s in emergency situations?

For us, it was trial and error. I started researching wholesale plant suppliers and found a great many of them, nearly all selling the same plants. That wasn’t what we wanted, I suppose we wanted to be special, different, and unique — it’s no fun selling what everyone else is selling! And besides, if you’re a small fish in the nursery world, you can’t compete with them unless you have something different to offer.

We also wanted to grow organically and, besides some of the herb nursery, there weren’t any organic plant wholesalers. We dabbled in some native Australian plants for a while, after finding someone on eBay who sold big lots of them for a good price. We tried to grow them up, failed miserably, and kept looking for other plants.

You need to be flexible, go with the flow. If you can’t grow something, don’t persist with it. We realized that we needed to research our climate, and make sure we selected plants that suited not only our style of growing (meaning, without a lot of horticultural experience) but also our climate and limited setup. We didn’t have hothouses for picky plants, nor did we have special irrigation systems with separate areas for plants with different water requirements.

Choose plants that have similar watering needs. It gets really hard to properly grow cacti and tropical plants in one area. If you use a sprinkler, like we ended up doing (just a big lawn-type

sprinkler in the middle of the plant area), you’ll end up with either over-watered, rotten cacti, or under-watered, drooping tropical plants.

Eventually, we found a palm tree supplier who supplied us with tiny palm seedlings, minimum buy of 100 per variety. This was great. We’d buy 1000 (10 different varieties) and pot them up. One hundred seedlings would cost around $30, so $0.30 per plant. We’d sell them in 5-inch pots at $5 to $10, depending on variety, which is a great markup.

We also started planting seeds, which was both amazing (we felt like miracle workers planting a seed, and growing a whole new life!) and amazingly frustrating. There are lots of critters that love eating seeds. Then there’s rot, and damping-off (a fungal disease), and mold.

We sold all our plants online, which was a must because we lived in a small town, population 280, with the nearest biggish town being an hour away. Our town did have a post office, so mailing them was the way to go for us. I’ll cover this subject, as well as propagating seeds, cuttings, and offsets in one of the next articles.

Find Something Unique for Your Home-Based Nursery to Specialize In

Although the palm seedlings worked out OK, they were slow to grow and we lost a great many of them to all sorts of bugs (and other wildlife, but that’s not just for palms). It was also hard to compete with the many specialist palm nurseries around us. Another downside is that you need to keep buying seedlings, unless you have a mature palm of your own and you can propagate the seeds it produces.

To make decent money as a nursery operator, you need high-value plants. That much we realized early on. At $5 a plant, you need to sell 10,000 plants a year to make an annual income of $50,000, and that’s before costs and tax. That is a LOT of plants. Now, if you can grow a plant with a value of $25 or $50, or even $100 (yes, we’ve had those, and no, they weren’t 20 feet tall, they were just rare and we were the only nursery supplying them), you can do much less work for more money. Plants are a labor of love but, in the end, you also want to provide for your family.

Finding a unique plant with high value is, admittedly, a bit like winning the lottery, but nowhere near as unlikely to win. Look for plants with the potential of cuttings (you’d be amazed how many plants will grow readily from cuttings) or offsets. I wouldn’t touch seeds again. Be wary of sellers offering seeds of a “guaranteed” color or variety. Most seed throws back to its roots, and you won’t get that special purple and pink Adenium, nor will you get ‘Darwin Sunset’ Frangipanis from seed. Cuttings and offsets are the only way to make sure you’re getting a definite clone of that variety.

Good places for finding unique, rare plants, are eBay (we found some beauties there!), Bunning’s (or Wal-Mart), local markets, friends and family, garden clubs, and plant shows at local botanical gardens. Do a Google search for a particular variety, like “Buy African Gardenia online”. If you can’t find a supplier, or there’s only one and that particular plant is out of stock, you might be on to a winner. Particularly if there are forums where people are discussing the plant and asking where to buy it.

The good thing with many of these plants is that you can buy one, or two, and work your way up from there. It may cost you $100 initially, but once you get it home, you’ll take five cuttings of it, or 5 offsets, and now you have six plants. You keep all of those, grow them for a few months, and take another 10 cuttings or offsets. You grow those as well, plant them out in your mother stock garden (which, of course is enriched with lovely organic matter, tons of mulch, and buckets of seaweed solution, or your own liquid microbe enhancer (Dan formulated the best-ever liquid microbe fertilizer, I’ll share it with you in the future) and now you have a ready supply of big plants to propagate, and sell its offspring.

These plants didn’t cost a lot, they don’t take a lot of work once they’re established in your garden, and the plants you’re going to sell have a huge profit margin.

Initial Lessons Learned for Home-based Nursery Businesses

Research your climate. If you regularly get frost, choose cold-hardy plants, unless you’re going to build a hothouse.

Think about water requirements. If you water with a hose, you can look at each individual plant to see if they need water that day, but it’s much easier to choose plants that have similar watering requirements so you can water the whole lot in one go.

Find unique plants to increase your profit margin and to compete with bigger nurseries. Try to establish yourself as a specialist of a particular variety, like tropical plants, frost hardy plants, edible plants, etc. The more niche you are, the easier to market.

Choose plants you like. You’re going to look at them every day all day, and your garden will be full of them (for mother stock).

Choose plants you can propagate , eliminating the need for buying more stock, thus reducing overhead. Look for plants with offsets (gingers, for example, are great, as are Canna) or with the potential for cuttings.

Visit plant shows , collector’s gatherings, local garden clubs, and yes, even Walmart, to find unique plants.

Photos by Dan and Elle Meager, Outdoor Happens

Elle Meager is an Australian homesteader and natural remedy creator in the Pioneer Valley. She promotes vegetarian homesteading principles on her 10-acre farm shared with four horses, three dogs, 11 chickens, cattle, kangaroos, snakes, kookaburras, native bees, eight 100-year old mango trees, over 40 different types of fruit trees, 12 gardens, and two children. Connect with Elle at Outdoor Happens , on Facebook and Pinterest . Read all of Elle’s MOTHER EARTH NEWS posts here .

All MOTHER EARTH NEWS community bloggers have agreed to follow our Blogging Guidelines, and they are responsible for the accuracy of their posts. To learn more about the author of this post, click on their byline link at the top of the page.

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Plant a better retirement

Plant Nursery Business Plan

Why write a 5 or 10 year plant nursery business plan for your retirement or backyard nursery? Good question! After you have learned how to start a plant nursery it becomes time to plan. Here are some key reasons to plan in 5 to 10 year blocks of time.

  • Plants take a long time to grow. Our average planting to sale time is 2 to 3 years. In many cases this can be even longer!
  • You may want to project your future revenue.
  • If you are a current or soon to be retiree, you may want to focus on a ramp up periods and then an end date for you nursery.

Our video on starting a Nursery Business Plan

Our main Plant Nursery Business goals have been as follows.

In our case we wanted to scale up around age 60 and are likely to start winding down around age 70 to 75. At some point we may slow or even stop planting new plants. This was our plan by age and our plan to generate a reliable income:

  • 60 to 65 – generate some strong supplementary income before retiring. Use the money to cancel off some debt, increase savings, build plant inventory, and establish the nursery infrastructure.
  • 65 to 67 – Generate a specific income to delay Social Security until age 67,
  • 67 to 72 -Continue to enjoy the nursery business while adding to our income and savings.
  • 72 to …. Take it as it comes and likely downsize a little by not replanting as heavily.

Plant nursery business plans work backwards

When planning a nursery you might find it easier to plan backwards. Decide what you want to make per year in profit and count back the number of years your plants will need to grow. This will give you the number of plants you need to plant. Example if you will net $20.00 per plant after cost and want to make $20,000 per year, you need to plant at least 1,000 plants.

In the chart below you can see that to earn around $10,000 per year in profit, you would need to be growing about 1,000 plants per year. This plan includes 2 years of investment, growing and assumes a $14.00 plant sale price. You do get your investment back after turning a profit in year 3. You also get some bonus profits the last 2 years of operation as you stop buying plants, pots,and dirt.

Nursery Plant $10,000

A more aggressive 10 year plant nursery business plan

If you want to build a larger income you may need to grow larger plants and more varieties. In this example the target annual net income is $28,000. The assumptions are that you now grow 2,000 plants per year. In order to have an average plant sale price of $22.00, you may also buy larger pots, use more plant soil mix, and possibly buy larger plants upfront. Instead of selling plants in year 2, we show sales starting in year 3. Likewise the last 3 years of the plan shows an increase in profit as you can stop replanting. Your investment also increased to $12,000 but your total 10 year plan grows to total sales of $280,000. A very nice return on investment.

Plant Nursery Business Plan

A More Detailed Plan is a Must!

Keeping more detailed records is must if you really want to attain your income goals. You also want to track how certain vendor’s plant do, a loss ratio, costs before loss. Projecting out total sales and profit is also important. You can’t sell plants you haven’t grown or propagated.

The most important projection is how soon the plants will be ready to sell. We plant a lot of Spruces and Arborvitaes and grow them out for 2, 3 and sometimes 4 years. Keeping track of when these plants can be sold plus if planted in the Fall or Spring can become a real headache without records. Mixing in other plants that will be sold in more or less time makes it even harder. Here is a simplified sample of 3 years of planting, selling and profits.

Detailed Planting and selling plan for a nursery

What does this planting and selling plan tell you.

There is a lot of information collected in a plan like this including:

  • Plant type and Size
  • The vendor or grower you purchased from
  • The number of plants you ordered and then a calculated 5% rate of loss (This is proven to be a good number)
  • All your costs for the plants, soil mix, pots, and fertilizer = total costs for the 95% surviving plants.
  • Pot size used and years you plan to grow the plant.
  • Expected sale price, when you will sell, anticipated total sales and profit after expenses, by year.

Note: No plants shown planted for 2024 and you can see this drops 2026 sales down. Assuming you keep planting or increase planting your profits would stay the same or increase.

Having a 10 year nursery plan is also good if you are younger

You may have some specific goals such as:

  • To start a profitable side hustle.
  • Move toward a goal of running a full time nursery business.
  • Meet some specific income or savings goals.
  • Establish your property as an agricultural use property to capture any available tax reductions.

Whatever your specific goals are we would encourage you to start planning as early as possible, and keep revising your plan.

A plant nursery business plan for pre-retirees and retirees is important

We have found the following to be good advice:

  • Start a business before you retire . We started our plant nursery 5 years before we planned to retire.
  • You can cover start up costs out of your working cash flow.
  • You can write off some start up expenses against your current salary income.
  • You should have nice profits even before you stop working. You can stash more away in savings just before retiring which is good and have confidence in future income.
  • You might use any extra nursery income while still working to reduce any debts you may have before retiring. This could include your mortgage, car loans, or credit card debt.

Here is a potentially great idea. With a reliable extra retirement income established you can potentially postpone your Social Security payments. This is good for many and will boost your income when you are older and possibly unable to work. For example leave your stressful day job at age 65 and use your nursery income instead of taking Social Security. Take your SS at full retirement age of 67 and then decide how long you want to work at the nursery business. You will have raised your SS income a meaningful amount and created an extra stream of income.

Likewise you can postpone some or all withdrawals from your retirement nest egg for a few years. This will preserve your nest egg and even give it several more years to grow. Remember your nest egg may need to last you until you are 100! Working in your nursery is great exercise too that may help you live longer!

Plant propagators really need a Plant Nursery Business plan.

Plant Propagation Business

Starting your nursery 2-3 years before you retire or plan to have a reliable income is ideal. Much depends on if you are propagating, what you are growing, and what size starter plants you bring in. On the other hand if you are growing out perennial starts, maybe you can be selling just one year after starting. Either way you need a plan to eliminated surprises.

The bottom line. If you can start just part time on weekends only 2 years before, you will be way ahead. Start 3 years before if you plan to start with very small cuttings.

How we started with an initial nursery plan and income goal

We didn’t have a plan until about a year after starting. The first year was about experimenting and learning although we did eventually sell every plant we started that year.  By the next spring, just a year from starting we potted up over 2,000 plants for a total of 3,300 plants potted in the first 12 months of really being in operation. In addition we rooted about 200 new plants the first year but probably failed on about 200 more. From there we are buying and planting about 1,500 to 2,000 plants each spring and fall. In addition the goal is to root at least 500 new plants per year. Ok, this is ambitious but it doesn’t take all that much time potting up plants once you have some practice. We now hope to maintain a planting schedule of 4-5,000 plants per year.

Once we gained an understanding of buying and planting bare root trees and plants , buying pots and how to make your own potting soil mix we realized we could scale up our operation pretty quickly. Adding in propagating even more plants and we started running out of time. We still work full time but find planting 4,000 plants per year an attainable goal. Just wait until we go full time! In our plan we also expect to scale back as we enter our 70’s, knowing us that probably won’t be a major slow down. Maybe we just drop the 5 gallon plant sizes!

Adjust your Plant Nursery Business Plan as you go.

After a year of learning how to start a plant nursery you may find you want to adjust some of your initial plans. Factors that can cause you to change your plans:

  • You find you are better at growing or prefer growing some plants over others.
  • Customers may ask for plans you are not growing.
  • You find you can grow more or less plants than you initially planned. Generally you will find you can handle a lot more than you thought.
  • As you start making sales and get your initial investment back, you may decide to reinvest portions or all of your profits into a larger than planned nursery.

Now it is up to you to time to take the fist step. If you feel hesitant, read our article in what is holding you back from starting a plant nursery business.

For more backyard nursery tips and ideas see:

Backyard Plant Nursery Tips for Success How to Start a Plant Nursery Make a Retirement Investment in Nursery Plants How to Make Money With Plants in your Retirement

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How to Start a Plant Nursery Business from Home for Profit

A plant nursery is a profitable business for any individual having vacant space in the backyard of a home. If you have a hobby of gardening, you can transfer your hobby into a profitable venture. Additionally, the low infrastructure cost makes the business revenue-wise more lucrative. Furthermore, you can start this business not only in metro cities but also in small towns.

This article is not about how to grow different plants. Because growing plants depend on several localized factors. Here in this post, we provide a detailed backyard plant nursery business plan for your ready reference.

If you have some space in your backyard , you can start this business with a small startup capital investment. Additionally, this is a lucrative income opportunity for housewives, moms, and students also.

There are numerous ways, you can start this business. However, you must craft the business model according to your investment capacity and skill. Generally, people prefer to buy their domestic plants from a small nursery rather than big corporates.

7 Steps to Start a Home-Based Plant Nursery Business

1. create a business plan.

Crafting the business plan is most important. Here you have to determine the business model, investment, and marketing strategies. A tiny and small business also demands a business plan for a smooth operation.

If you are starting small from the backyard of your home, some of the important topics that need to be addressed in your plan are the following:

  • Initial and running costs
  • Target customers
  • Pricing strategy
  • How and where to sell?

2. Make your Plant Nursery Business Legally-Compliant

This is the first step in your business. First of all, you have to register your home-based plant nursery business. It hugely depends on the location where you are starting the business, So, you have to check the local laws. As an example in the United States, you can start a plant nursery as a proprietorship or form an LLC .

Plant nursery business demands licenses and permissions from the legal authority. However, a home-based backyard plant nursery business doesn’t attract as many licensing issues as a commercial establishment.

3. Calculate the Cost of Starting a Home-Based Plant Nursery

The cost and investment will depend on the size and scale of your nursery. Broadly the costs can be categorized into land cost, and retail storefront. and supplies like plants, and soil.

Additional costs will come if you plan to make a greenhouse plant nursery. on average, the cost of opening a plant nursery is estimated to be in the range of $25,000 to $50,000 for setting up a small-scale plant nursery business.

4. Plant Nursery Resources

In this business, resources play a big role. You have to arrange the resources properly to run the business properly. First of all, check the soil quality and irrigation facility. These are a must. Then you have to procure the seeds or seedlings. According to the market demand and agro-climatic conditions, you have to select the plants.

Additionally, check what plants offer more profits. Finally, you have to procure fertilizers, equipment, and medicines for plant protection.

Also, check what are the plants that offer more profits. Finally, you have to procure fertilizers, equipment, and medicines for plant protection. Additionally, you have to hire employees. On a larger scale, it will be difficult to run the business only with sole effort.

5. Setup Office

You must have an office space with your nursery. Because you have to prepare bills and money receipts for customers when they buy your plants. In your office, you will need to have a computer and printer with a table and chairs.

6. Identify Products to Sell

Apart from the plants, you can sell several products from your backyard plant nursery. Additionally, it helps to enhance the overall profitability of your business. Some of the lucrative items are seeds, nutritious soil, plants with pots, plants without pots, decorative pots, micronutrients, and a wide range of gardening equipment.

Also Read: How To Start a Home-Based Floral Business

7. Promote Your Plant Nursery Business

Local fairs are the best places for promoting this business. Additionally, you can give local paper advertisements. Giving an advertisement in a lifestyle magazine is a great way of reaching target audiences. Also, you can talk to the local landscape experts. Establish a business tie-up with them.

As your business grows, you can start selling from a small retail space. Create your own website . Make your business available in Google My Business. Additionally, you can sell the plants from your own online store. Nowadays, it is not difficult to have your own online store. Additionally, you can contact the local florist. And sell the flower of your plant nursery to them.

backyard nursery business plan

About the Author: 99businessideas.com led by Rupak Chakrabarty is committed to helping beginners, entrepreneurs, and small business owners in starting, managing, and growing their businesses.

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Plant Nursery Business Plan [Sample Template]

By: Author Tony Martins Ajaero

Home » Business ideas » Agriculture Industry » Crop Cultivation » Plant Nursery

Plant Nursery Business

Are you about starting a plant nursery? If YES, here is a complete sample plant nursery business plan template & feasibility report you can use for FREE .

Okay, so we have considered all the requirements for starting a plant nursery . We also took it further by analyzing and drafting a sample plant nursery marketing plan template backed up by actionable guerrilla marketing ideas for plant nursery businesses. So let’s proceed to the business planning section.

It is without doubt that starting a plant nursery can be a very sure way to use your love of plants and gardening to gain or make money. When people think of a plant nursery, the local garden centre usually comes to mind. But it is important to note that most garden centres produce very few of the plants they sell.

Instead, they buy their plants from specialty nurseries, which actually grow the plants. There are many specialty plant nurseries starting from tiny backyard nurseries to very large regional wholesale nurseries, who might supply retailers in several states.

One awesome fact about the business is that the industry is still very much open to contain a large variety of farms and individuals. The best way to achieve brand awareness and make substantial money in the plant nursery business is to choose a niche and specialize in plants that are in demand and can be container-grown to save space.

A relatively new development in container growing – called the “pot-in-pot” system, gives farmer the chance to grow  larger trees and shrubs without the back-breaking hand digging and high water consumption needed by field growing, and for smaller plants, container growing saves time, water and transplanting.

One’s need or a supplier’s need of having your own plant nursery is being able to buy wholesale at deep discounts. There are hundreds of wholesale nurseries that specialize in what are called in the trade “plugs, liners & whips”, which are different types of plant starts.

If you think this sound like the kind of business you would want to start, then you can begin to look into writing a business plan. If the idea of writing a business plan sounds scary, then you may want to work with a sample business plan like the one below;

A Sample Plant Nursery Business Plan Template

1. industry overview.

It is worthwhile to note that businesses in the plant nursery industry grow nursery plants, such as trees and shrubs; flowering plants, such as foliage plants, cut flowers, flower seeds and ornamentals; and short rotation woody trees, such as Christmas trees and cottonwoods.

These plants can either be grown under cover or in an open field. It is a known fact that the industry has survived poorly in the past five years. The influx of low-cost cut flower imports from Colombia and Ecuador has without argument had a direct negative effect on domestic farmers, reducing the revenue of the industry.

We believe that in the coming years, the revenue of the industry will reduce, held down by the weak demand from florists and nurseries and by import competition.

We all know that the economy of the united states is no longer in a recession, weak discretionary spending will continue to strain flower sales throughout the year. It is also important to note that businesses in this industry are located throughout the United States, and their distribution varies slightly from the population distribution.

Most products of the plant nursery industry grow better in some climates and a concentration of growers has developed in a given area. Demand in the industry we believe is moved by consumer income, home sales and new home construction, and commercial real estate construction.

The success of individual companies rests on anticipating demand for various types of plants, efficient distribution, and competitive pricing. Bigger ventures in the industry have economies of scale in distribution, and little businesses in the same industry can compete successfully by raising specialty plants or serving a local market.

2. Executive Summary

Ostrander Nursery is a new plant Nursery in the heart of Oregon that is dedicated to provide quality choice for individuals searching for plant and garden supplies, as well as serving contractors who need a reliable source of products.

We at Ostrander Nursery hope to offer a wide variety of plants, trees, vegetable plants, along with a selection of garden supplies.

We believe that most of the plants we will be selling will be grown in our greenhouses. We also believe that with a suitable and convenient location, Ostrander Nursery will successfully market its products to the residential customer, as well as contractors and renters.

We at Ostrander Nursery would love to see and acknowledge a five to ten percent increase in our customer base annually, which will serve as a factor to dictate our success. Our marketing strategy includes providing a knowledgeable staff, affordable prices, a great location, and top notch customer service.

We also plan to experience a growth rate of 20% in sales for the second year of operation and build upon that as our Nursery grows. We believe that with adequate, creative marketing and a quality choice of plants and garden supplies for our customers, we will be able to achieve success and make our presence known in the nursery community.

Ostrander Nursery has been the long time dream of owners Oscar and Alexander Grant for many years, and has been a project in the making for the last five years.

Oscar and Alexander Grant, two brothers with a precise goal and visions, will manage all aspects of the Nursery. Alexander, we believe will manage the staff and be involved with the ordering of merchandise, while Oscar will be in charge of the ordering of the garden supplies and tree stock, as well as the maintenance of the greenhouses.

3. Our Products and Services

We at Ostrander Nursery plan to offer a wide variety of bedding plants, shrubs, trees, and vegetable plants along with many garden accessories such as fountains, stepping stones, garden tools, fertilizers, and potting soils. We believe that most of our plants will be grown on-site in state-of-the-art greenhouses. First and foremost, we plan to buy full grown plants for our first few months of inventory.

Our main source of revenue stream at Ostrander Nursery will come from the direct sale of plants and trees from our outdoor and indoor greenhouse facility.

We hope to carry a number of seasonal and year round (perennial) species. We also plan to sell to both individual customers and landscape contractors. We will also generate secondary revenue streams by organising the transportation or big orders of trees and plants on behalf of individual customers and landscape contractors.

4. Our Mission and Vision Statement

  • Our vision at Ostrander Nursery is to become one of the leading ventures in the Plant Nursery Business and in the whole world, starting from the United States.
  • We at Ostrander Nursery are very much dedicated to provide a wide variety of plants and trees in an aesthetic setting. We understand that the customer service we provide is extremely important, because we want each customer to have a pleasant shopping experience, and it is the intention of our staff to answer questions with expertise and to offer advice when we feel it is needed.

Our Business Structure

Ostrander Nursery has been a long time dream of brothers Oscar and Alexander Grant, and has been a project in the making for five years.

We believe and hope that our opening date will be within next year March, Oscar and Alexander Grant is seeing the dream of operating a nursery to become the leading figure in the industry. Located in the outskirts of Salem, Oregon at 98983 Orchards Heights Rd, opposite the famous Sundance Lavender farm.

We also plan to focus on providing quality bedding, hanging, and vegetable plants, along with a variety of potted trees. Our major aim at Ostrander Nursery is to serve both residential customers and landscaping contractors, and provide a variety of garden accessories such as ponds, statues, potting soils, fertilizers, and garden tools.

Outlined below are the portfolios we wish to start Ostrander Nursery with:

Chief Executive Officer

HR and administrative Executive

  • forest nursery worker
  • forest assistant nursery
  • greenhouse worker

Marketing and Sales Manager

Security guard

5. Job Roles and Responsibilities

  • His in charge of Overseeing all other executives and staff within the organization.
  • He is Tasked with board of directors and other executives to determine if company is in accordance with goals and policies.
  • Charged with encouraging business investment.
  • He also promotes economic development within communities.
  • His in charge of directing the organization’s financial goals, objectives, and budgets.
  • Implement the organization’s guidelines on a day-to-day basis.
  • Preside over quality control.
  • In charge of Hiring, training, and terminating employees.
  • In charge of developing and implementing strategies and set the overall direction of a certain area of the company or organization.
  • Provides visionary and strategic leadership for the organization.
  • Collaborate with the board of directors to develop the policies and direction of the organization.
  • He makes sure that the members of the Board of Directors have the information necessary to perform their fiduciary duties and other governance responsibilities.
  • He also Provide adequate and timely information to the Board to enable it to effectively execute its oversight role.
  • Directs staff, including organizational structure, professional development, motivation, performance evaluation, discipline, compensation, personnel policies, and procedures.
  • In charge of overseeing the running of HR and administrative tasks for Ostrander Nursery
  • Monitors office supplies by checking stocks; placing and expediting orders; evaluating new products.
  • Ensures operation of equipment by completing preventive maintenance requirements; calling for repairs.
  • Stays updated on job knowledge by participating in educational opportunities; reading professional publications; maintaining personal networks; participating in professional organizations.
  • Builds the ventures reputation by accepting ownership for accomplishing new and different requests; exploring opportunities to add value to job accomplishments.
  • States job positions for recruitment and managing interviewing process
  • Organizes staff induction for new team members
  • In charge of training, evaluation and assessment of employees
  • In charge of arranging travel, meetings and appointments
  • Oversee the smooth running of the daily office activities.
  • In charge of overseeing the smooth running of HR and administrative tasks for the organization
  • Tasked with defining job positions for recruitment and managing interviewing process
  • Carries out staff induction for new team members
  • In charge of preparing financial reports, budgets, and financial statements for the organization
  • In charge of financial forecasting and risks analysis.
  • In charge of developing and managing financial systems and policies
  • In charge of administering payrolls
  • Ensures compliance with taxation legislation
  • Handles all financial transactions for the company
  • Serves as internal auditor for the company

Forest Nursery worker

  • Plants, sprays, weeds, fertilizes, and waters plants, shrubs, and trees, using hand tools and gardening tools.
  • Plants crops, trees, or other plants.
  • Applies chemical solutions to plants to protect against disease or insects or to enhance growth.
  • Harvests plants, and transplant or pot and label them.
  • Marks agricultural or forestry products for identification.
  • Harvests agricultural products.
  • Records information about plants and plant growth.
  • Maintains operational records.
  • Feels plants’ leaves and note their colouring to detect the presence of insects or disease.
  • Evaluates quality of plants or crops.
  • Sells and delivers plants and flowers to customers.
  • Transports animals, crops, or equipment.
  • Sells agricultural products.
  • Operates tractors and other machinery and equipment to fertilize, cultivate, harvest, and spray fields and plants.
  • Operates farming equipment.
  • Fills growing tanks with water.
  • Inspects plants and bud ties to assess quality.
  • Digs, cuts, and transplants seedlings, cuttings, trees, and shrubs.
  • Cuts trees or logs.
  • Ties and bunches flowers, plants, shrubs, and trees, wrap their roots, and pack them into boxes to fill orders.
  • Packages agricultural products for shipment or further processing.
  • Regulates greenhouse conditions, and indoor and outdoor irrigation systems.
  • Operates irrigation systems.
  • Digs, rakes, and screens soil, filling cold frames and hot beds in preparation for planting.
  • Prepares land for agricultural use.
  • Dips cut flowers into disinfectant, count them into bunches, and place them in boxes to prepare them for storage and shipping.

Forest assistant nursery

  • Moves containerized shrubs, plants, and trees, using wheelbarrows or tractors.
  • Sows grass seed, or plant plugs of grass.
  • Cleans work areas, and maintain grounds and landscaping.
  • Cleans equipment or facilities.
  • Maintains inventory, ordering materials as required.
  • Maintains inventories of materials, equipment, or products.
  • Hauls and spreads topsoil, fertilizer, peat moss, and other materials to condition soil, using wheelbarrows or carts and shovels.
  • Prepare land for agricultural use.
  • Maintain and repair irrigation and climate control systems.
  • Builds agricultural structures.
  • Cuts, rolls, and stack sod.
  • Provides information and advice to the public regarding the selection, purchase, and care of products.
  • Advises others on farming or forestry operations, regulations, or equipment.
  • Folds and staples corrugated forms to make boxes used for packing horticultural products.
  • Traps and destroys pests such as moles, gophers, and mice, using pesticides.
  • Captures or kills animals.
  • Grafts plants and trees into different rootstock to reduce disease by inserting and tying buds into incisions in rootstock.

Greenhouse Worker

  • Grafts plants.
  • Inspects facilities and equipment for signs of disrepair, and perform necessary maintenance work.
  • Negotiates contracts such as those for land leases or tree purchases.
  • Positions and regulates plant irrigation systems, and program environmental and irrigation control computers.
  • Prepares soil for planting, and plant or transplant seeds, bulbs, and cuttings.
  • Provides information to customers on the care of trees, shrubs, flowers, plants, and lawns.
  • Assigns work schedules and duties to nursery or greenhouse staff, and supervise their work.
  • Determines plant growing conditions, such as greenhouses, hydroponics, or natural settings, and set planting and care schedules.
  • Determines types and quantities of horticultural plants to be grown, based on budgets, projected sales volumes, and/or executive directives.
  • Identifies plants as well as problems such as diseases, weeds, and insect pests.
  • Manages nurseries that grow horticultural plants for sale to trade or retail customers, for display or exhibition, or for research.
  • Selects and purchases seeds, plant nutrients, disease control chemicals, and garden and lawn care equipment.
  • Tours work areas to observe work being done, to inspect crops, and to evaluate plant and soil conditions.
  • Applies pesticides and fertilizers to plants.
  • Confers with horticultural personnel in order to plan facility renovations or additions.
  • Constructs structures and accessories such as greenhouses and benches.
  • In charge of Identifying, prioritizing, and reaching out to new markets for our agriculture produce, processed food, new partners, and business opportunities within the agro – allied industry
  • In charge of Developing, executing and evaluating new plans for expanding increase sales of all our agriculture produce and processed foods
  • Tasked with documenting all customer contact and information.
  • Represents the company in strategic meetings
  • Aids to increase sales and growth for the company
  • In charge of protecting the farm and its environs
  • Controls traffic and organize parking
  • Tasked with giving security tips when necessary
  • Patrols around the farm on a 24 hours basis
  • Presents security reports weekly

6. SWOT Analysis

Ostrander Nursery is a standard plant nursery started to be exceptional and not as a trial and error, which is why conducting a proper SWOT Analysis became a necessity. We at Ostrander Nursery believe that getting our things right from the start would mean that we have succeeded in creating the foundation that will help us establish a successful plant nursery.

We at Ostrander Nursery plan to offer a large number of products, we have no plans for failure but a well situated plan that will help us to maximizing our strength and opportunities and also make our threat and weakness an advantage for us. Properly explained below is a summary of the result of the SWOT analysis for Ostrander Nursery;

According to our SWOT Analysis, our strength rest on the fact that we have built and established a well based rapport with a handful of major players (agriculture merchants) in the agro – allied industry; both suppliers and buyers within and outside of the United States.

We have also purchased some of the latest modern machines, tools and equipment that will helps us manage our plant nursery. We also have experienced and best hands for the business in the whole industry

The SWOT Analysis perceived that the time it will take to gain customers and boost our brand will be our major weakness. It explained the unimaginable competitive industry and how industry players are keen on their advertising strategies.

  • Opportunities

The opportunities that we at Ostrander Nursery have are the amount of homeowners, and industries that will come for our plants and also industries that will come for the raw materials from our plant Nursery.

One of the threats that was perceived during the SWOT Analysis is the probability of global economic downturn that will affect us negatively, bad weather cum natural disasters (draughts, epidemics), unfavourable government policies and a new competitor ( a plant nursery that cultivates few or almost all the crops we cultivate ) as our nursery within same location.

We believe in our strength and know that we will overcome any available threat with ease through handwork and consistency.

7. MARKET ANALYSIS

  • Market Trend

It is a known fact that most businesses in the farming industry are no longer relying only on non – organic farming. They have now added both organic crop cultivation and non – organic crop cultivation and despite that organic food are costly; they are steadily increasing in demand.

Also we all know that the agricultural industry is as old as man’s survival on planet earth, but that does not in any form make it over saturated or filled; ventures in the industry keep exploring new ideas technologies in order to improve cultivation processes and also food preservation process; mechanized farming has without doubt increased the level of foods and crops that are being produced. The industry will always be needed for the survival of man and his family.

Farmers are now growing crops in large numbers in a country where such crops could never survive before now and in locations where there are little or few farming land due to the advancement of technology. Individuals can now make use of rooftops (basement) of their houses to plant crops even at large quantity.

8. Our Target Market

Our target market strategy at Ostrander Nursery will be relying on becoming an attractive choice for homeowners and landscape contractors in the city of Salem Oregon. We believe that the target markets we are going to be chasing are the residential consumers searching for a large variety of plants and trees to beautify their residences.

We also believe that the Landscape contractors will be attracted by competitive prices and a diverse inventory. We understand that individuals will want to shop at our location because of the superior customer service we hope provide. We at Ostrander Nursery would like to see a five to ten percent increase in customers annually, and the profile of our customer consists of the following demographic information:

  • Male and Female.
  • Married and Single.
  • Combined annual income in excess of $50,000.
  • Age range of 25 to 80 years, with a median age of 40.
  • Own houses or townhouses valued at over $150,000.

Our competitive advantage

There are approximately more than 17,000 businesses that operate one or more facilities that sell plants and trees to both individual customers and contractors.  It has been estimated that in each of the last five years, the plant nursery industry has generated in excess of $27 billion while providing jobs to more than 150,000 people.

Aggregate payrolls in each of the last five years have exceeded $3.5 billion. This goes to show that the industry is a matured industry, and the future expected growth rate is expected to mirror that of the general economy.

We at Ostrander Nursery believe that we have one of the most extensive and affordable plant and flower selections in the entire State of Oregon, and a very knowledgeable staff ready to give out unparalleled customer service. We believe that contractors looking for a reliable nursery will find we at Ostrander Nursery very supportive and easy to work with. The ease and convenience of our location is a very big plus and a competitive advantage to us.

9. SALES AND MARKETING STRATEGY

  • Sources of Income

Our main source of revenue stream at Ostrander Nursery will come from the direct sale of plants and trees from our outdoor and indoor greenhouse facility. We hope to carry a number of seasonal and year round (perennial) species.

We also plan to sell to both individual customers and landscape contractors. We will also generate secondary revenue streams by organising the transportation or big orders of trees and plants on behalf of individual customers and landscape contractors.

10. Sales Forecast

We at Ostrander Nursery have been able to analyse what our sales or the income we will be generating in the next three years. We have put plans in place and we believe in our strength and the way we plan to run Ostrander Nursery, and we believe we will achieve these goals and figures.

We have also perfected our sales and marketing strategies to help us achieve our aim and goals, we have employed experienced hands and individuals we believe can help us be what we want, when we want.

Our sales projections was analysed from two main revenue streams: the general public, and contractors. We believe that our sales projections for the upcoming year will be based on a modest growth rate for sales. We are Ostrander Nursery being a new plant nursery business we are projecting a growth rate of 20%, believing our advertising will bring in new customers daily. Outlined below are the sales projections of Ostrander Nursery:

  • First Year -: $650,000
  • Second Year -: $1,100,000
  • Third Year -: $3,000,000

Note : it is worthwhile to note just like we stated above that this forecast was done based on what is obtainable in the industry and with the believe that none of the threats we mentioned above will be a hindrance or may likely appear.

  • Marketing Strategy and Sales Strategy

We at Ostrander Nursery plan to make use of a number of marketing strategies that will allow our Plant Nursery to easily target individuals within the target market. We believe that these strategies will include traditional print advertisements and ads placed on search engines on the Internet.

We believe that we need a functional marketing and advertising strategy to be able to boost our business. Which is why we will also use an internet based strategy. We believe that this is very important as many people seeking local retailers, such as plant nurseries, now make use of the Internet to conduct their preliminary searches.

We at Ostrander Nursery also plan to register our business with online portals so that potential customers can easily reach the business. Ostrander Nursery will also develop our own online website showcasing the operations of the business, our inventory, hours of operation, and other services offered by the business.

Finally, we will also develop ongoing relationships with landscape contractors that will need inventories of trees and plants from Ostrander Nursery in bulk on a regular basis. In time, these contractors will become an invaluable source of business for us at Ostrander Nursery.

11. Publicity and Advertising Strategy

We at Ostrander Nursery believe that our marketing strategy will be based on becoming an option for contractors and the general public to fill their plant and shrubbery needs. We also intend to maintain an extensive marketing campaign that will ensure maximum visibility for the business in our targeted market. Below is an overview of the publicity and advertising strategies for Ostrander Nursery:

  • Establish relationships with landscape contractors within the target market.
  • We hope to place adverts on both print (community based newspapers and magazines) and electronic media platforms; we will also advertise Ostrander Nursery Consultants  on financial magazines, real estate and other relevant financial programs on radio and TV
  • Ostrander Nursery will also sponsor relevant community based events / programs
  • We also plan to make use of various online platforms to promote the business. All these will make it easier for people to enter our website with just a click of the mouse. We will take advantage of the internet and social media platforms such as; Instagram, Facebook , twitter, YouTube, Google + et al to promote our brand
  • We also plan to mount our Bill Boards on strategic locations all around Salem, Oregon
  • We at Ostrander Nursery also plan to engage in road show from time to time
  • We also plan to distribute our fliers and handbills in target areas all around Salem
  • We plan to make sure that all our workers wear our branded shirts and all our official vehicles are well branded with our company’s logo et al.

12. Our Pricing Strategy

Our strategy at Ostrander Nursery will based on serving our customers with expert service and product knowledge, to build our marketing plan to reach homeowners, renters, and contractors, to focus on satisfying the needs of our customers, and to focus on providing quality plants at affordable prices.

Ostrander Nursery believe that to get the right pricing for our plants, we need to make sure that we choose a good location for Plant Nursery, choose a good breed / seeds that will bring forth bountiful harvest, reduce the cost of running our plant nursery to the smallest minimum and make sure we attract buyers to our business, as against taking our plants to the market to source for buyers.

With this, we would have successfully removed the cost of transporting the goods to the market and other logistics from the equation.

  • Payment Options

We at Ostrander Nursery after our extensive research and thorough discussion understand efficiently that different customers prefer different payment options as it suits them but at different times and ways. We plan to make sure that we provide them with payment options that will make their transactions less stressful and very open.

Listed below are the payment options we at Ostrander Nursery plan to making available to our customers;

  • Payment via bank transfer
  • Payment with cash
  • Payment via online bank transfer
  • Payment via check
  • Payment via bank draft
  • Payment via POS

We have also chosen to partner with a known bank in the United States in order to give our customers the best they can ever get in the agricultural sector of the United States.

13. Startup Expenditure (Budget)

Our major objectives at Ostrander Nursery is to maintain an average gross margin at or above 50%, generate an average of $1,000 of sales each business day of each month, and realize an annual growth rate of 10% in Year 2. We believe that these objectives and goals are very much reachable.

Which is why we are being very detailed about all information penned down in our business plan? We have also decided on the possible factors to spend our start up capital and they include:

  • The price for incorporating our farm in United States of America – $750.
  • Our budget for key insurance policies, permits and business license – $4,000
  • The cost of acquiring / leasing a nursery facility and land – $55,000
  • The budget for preparing the soil (for planting et al – $25,000
  • The price for acquiring the required working tools and equipment / machines / tractors et al– $600,000
  • The price of Launching an official Website – $600
  • The budget for paying our workers for 1 year – $500,000
  • Other business requirements (Business cards, Signage, Adverts and Promotions et al) – $2,000
  • Miscellaneous – $5,000

From our detailed cost analysis above, we will need $1,192,350 to start Ostrander Nursery and make the nursery ready to serve the needs of our customers. Here also are the few equipment we believe that are necessary in starting Ostrander Nursery:

  • Propagation Containers
  • Tillers and spades
  • Wheelbarrows
  • Compost bins
  • Irrigation systems
  • Hoes and Hand held pruners
  • Harvest baskets
  • Rain collection barrels

Generating Funding / Start-up Capital for Ostrander Nursery

We at Ostrander Nursery understand that having the required finance for your business; will go a long way to make sure you achieve your desired goal. Finance basically is a very crucial factor when it comes to building any business, and building a successful business is not a one day job but a continuous job that requires consistency and hard work.

Ostrander Nursery is a privately owned farm that will be solely finance by the owners and their immediate family. Outlined below are the possible means we plan to raise funds for Ostrander Nursery

  • Raising part of the start – up capital from personal savings
  • Raising part of the start – up capital from family members and friends (soft loans and gifts et al)
  • Raising a larger chunk of the start-up capital from the banks (loan facility).

14. Sustainability and Expansion Strategy

Oscar and Alexander Grant are the founders and operators of Ostrander Nursery. Oscar has worked in the nursery industry for over fifteen years (with 10 years managing Age rock Nursery). While Alexander has a degree from the University of Oregon in agronomy and has worked for the Green Nation Agency as a plant specialist advising the local population on the purchase and care of a wide range of plants.

We believe they have the adequate experience and combine knowledge to lead Ostrander Nursery to limelight and success.

We also understand that the plant nursery industry is highly competitive, and how important it is to maintain a high level of customer service, offer quality products, and give our prospective clients a large variety of choices when shopping for plants and trees.

We believe that our business approach will be to offer a diverse selection of plants, trees, and garden supplies. We also believe that exceptional customer service will be important in meeting the needs of our target markets. Healthy plants will be a top priority at Ostrander Nursery, and we will display the plants artistically.

We also believe that our immediate geographic market which is the capital of Oregon has the adequate population we need to flourish and that a 100 mile geographic area would want our services, as we become a well known nursery. We also believe that what will make us successful and attract enough clients for us will be based on the following services:

  • Sell products of the highest quality with excellent customer service and support.
  • Retain customers to generate repeat purchases and make referrals.
  • Continue to expand daily sales by adding to the variety of plants we sell.
  • Communicate with our customers through creative advertising.

Checklist/Milestone

  • Business Name Availability Check: Completed
  • Business Incorporation: Completed
  • Opening of Corporate Bank Accounts various banks in the United States: Completed
  • Opening Online Payment Platforms: Completed
  • Application and Obtaining Tax Payer’s ID: In Progress
  • Application for business license and permit: Completed
  • Purchase of All form of Insurance for the Business: Completed
  • Conducting feasibility studies: Completed
  • Leasing, renovating and equipping our facility: Completed
  • Generating part of the start – up capital from the founder: Completed
  • Applications for Loan from our Bankers: In Progress
  • Writing of Business Plan: Completed
  • Drafting of Employee’s Handbook: Completed
  • Drafting of Contract Documents: In Progress
  • Design of The Company’s Logo: Completed
  • Graphic Designs and Printing of Packaging Marketing / Promotional Materials: Completed
  • Recruitment of employees: In Progress
  • Purchase of the Needed software applications, furniture, office equipment, electronic appliances and facility facelift: In progress
  • Creating Official Website for the Company: In Progress
  • Creating Awareness for the business (Business PR): In Progress
  • Health and Safety and Fire Safety Arrangement: In Progress
  • Establishing business relationship with banks, financial lending institutions, vendors and key players in the industry: In Progress

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Make money selling plants from your own backyard nursery

A backyard nursery can be a profitable home business for the new grower or would-be small farmer. I found out this spring that people seem to pay more for ornamental plants than the ones they can eat! You can take advantage of this odd fact by growing and selling plants for money. I ventured into the backyard nursery business on a small scale a couple years ago; I wanted to test the waters before I bet the farm on a new business (to mix a metaphor.) Here's what appealed to me about growing plants for money:

  • I could start on a small scale and learn without a huge investment
  • The equipment requirements and start-up costs were low, and most of the equipment was reusable
  • I was growing my own transplants for the market garden anyway, and could make use of the same infrastructure
  • Selling plants could bring in additional money before my regular season
  • And of course, the somewhat surprising fact that plants you can't eat seem to sell for more than those you can. Higher margins, more cash in my pocket.

backyard nursery plant stand

These facts convinced me to give the business a try. Here's some pointers if you are thinking about starting your own home-based nursery business.

market garden guide

The consumer demand for fresh local organic food has never been higher. Bad news on the supply chain is good news for local growers.

Get my free Organic Market Gardener Start-up Guide and see if this is the right time to launch your CSA market garden business.

Getting started in the backyard nursery business

If you've read anything on my site about starting a market garden you know that I strongly recommend a four-step process to start any business. The four-step process is Planning -> Marketing -> Management -> Production. This process is no less valid when starting a backyard nursery business. The planning phase is where you set targets for your business, estimate your sales and expenses, research the kinds of plants that are popular in your area, and what they sell for. You also need to to look into local bylaws and zoning restrictions that may affect your business, as well as any licensing requirements. Don't neglect the fact that you will probably need liability insurance .

DO NOT start without taking this step; you don't want your fledgling business shut down by the guv'mint just as you are making some money. It would be a good idea to go to a couple local farmer's markets or flea markets that have plant sellers. Take a look at their stock, and see what advice they can give you.

backyard nursery business plan

Selling your plants

Let's say you've figured out that you would like to start your backyard nursery business by selling 100 each of the 10 most popular bedding plants in your area. Based on our research, we grew marigolds, nasturtiums, sweet pea and a miniature sunflower that turned out to be our bet seller.

Marketing is all about finding the buyers for your plants. Where will you sell your plants? When will you sell your plants? Will you sell plants all season, or just try to hit the peak early summer period, and sell out in a few weeks? ( That's what I did, by the way. ) With these goals in mind, now comes management . This is all about figuring out your schedules and location and methods for growing and selling your plants profitably.

When do you need to start your plants to have them at optimum age for display and sale? What kind of care will they need? Who will do the work? Finally, with all this figured out, you start production: the day to day care and feeding of your nursery plants.

CAUTION: do not start this process the other way around; that is, by growing a bunch of plants and then trying to figure out how to sell them . This is a sure way to failure for your small business.

backyard nursery business plan

Growing your backyard nursery business

Once you have ( at least ) one season under your belt, you might be thinking about expanding your business. This will be a lot easier if you kept good records of sales to find out which plants were most popular. (In my case this was a beautiful little dwarf sunflower; I wish I had grown a thousand of them!) Before you re-launch your empire, make sure your market can accept more of your nursery plants. Will you have to sell at more than one market to make your sales goals? Remember that time spent at the market is time you don't have for caring for your plants. Also, be aware that growing a few hundred plants of limited varieties is very different than growing the many thousands of plants that are found in a commercial nursery.

backyard nursery business plan

Your home-scale growing techniques may not be efficient at a larger scale. You may have to invest in a greenhouse, automation e.g. irrigation systems, misting boxes, thermostatically-controlled fans. Be sure this investment will pay off.

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IMAGES

  1. Nursery Business Plan Template [2024 Updated]

    backyard nursery business plan

  2. How to start a nursery business in your backyard for under $1,000 NOW

    backyard nursery business plan

  3. Nursery Business Plan Template

    backyard nursery business plan

  4. Plants Nursery Business Plan Template

    backyard nursery business plan

  5. Backyard Plant Nursery Business Plan

    backyard nursery business plan

  6. Garden Nursery Business Plan [2020 Updated]

    backyard nursery business plan

VIDEO

  1. Starting a Small Nursery

  2. Backyard Nursery Tour

  3. Nursery Supply Haul!! What are some common nursery business expenses?

  4. Nursery Business opened 6 weeks ago. How are we doing??

  5. Rebuilding Our Nursery Entrance

  6. Overwintering Plants, Wholesale Plants, Nursery Business

COMMENTS

  1. Starting a Backyard Plant Nursery

    How to start a nursery business in your backyard for under $1,000 NOW!! // Step By Step Table of Contents What is a Plant Nursery? Make a Plan When Should You Start Building a Nursery? Do your Research Start Small Start Growing Plant Care The Backyard Nursery Business Side of Things Plant Nursery FAQ What is a Plant Nursery?

  2. Backyard Plant Nursery

    Ground Covers With profits of up to $20 per square foot, it's easy to see why a ground cover nursery could provide you with the ideal backyard nursery crop. With today's high labor costs and water shortages, ground covers are becoming the smart way to landscape.

  3. Starting a Plant Business

    92 Comments Starting a plant business is much easier than you think. It requires a lot less of a commitment than you think. Getting started growing and selling small plants from home is as simple as this; Start propagating some plants from cuttings, get some pots and potting soil, start selling some plants.

  4. Garden Nursery Business Plan Example

    1.1 Objectives Maintain an average gross margin at or above 50%. Generate an average of $1,000 of sales each business day of each month. Realize an annual growth rate of 10% in Year 2. 1.2 Mission Rose Petal Nursery is dedicated to providing a wide variety of plants and trees in an aesthetic setting. Customer service is extremely important.

  5. How to Start a Profitable Backyard Plant Nursery: A Complete Guide

    1 How to Start a Profitable Backyard Plant Nursery 2 Ensure you have everything you need 2.1 Do a SWOT analysis 2.2 See whether you have finances 2.3 Apply for a business license 2.4 See whether you have enough land 2.5 Gather supplies 3 Choosing the Correct Plants for Your Backyard Plant Nursery 3.1 1. Bamboo 3.2 2. Flowers 3.3 3.

  6. How to Start a Successful Plant Nursery in 2024

    $2,050 - $105,100 Revenue potential $70,000 - $1,000,000 p.a. Time to build 6 - 12 months Profit potential $65,000 - $400,000 p.a. Industry trend Growing Commitment Flexible Outdoor living spaces are just as important to most people as indoor spaces. Plants and flowers of all types can make those outdoor spaces look and smell amazing.

  7. How to Start a Plant Nursery Business: Expert Tips

    5. Attend local garden and plant shows to network with other growers and market your plants. Whenever there's a plant show or convention in your area, attend it to meet other growers and potential buyers. Hand out your business card and do your best to develop as many relationships as possible.

  8. Plant Nursery Business Plan Template & Guidebook

    How to Write a Plant Nursery Business Plan in 7 Steps: 1. Describe the Purpose of Your Plant Nursery Business. The first step to writing your business plan is to describe the purpose of your plant nursery business. This includes describing why you are starting this type of business, and what problems it will solve for customers.

  9. How to Start a Plant Nursery

    Start a plant nursery by following these 10 steps: Plan your Plant Nursery Form your Plant Nursery into a Legal Entity Register your Plant Nursery for Taxes Open a Business Bank Account & Credit Card Set up Accounting for your Plant Nursery Get the Necessary Permits & Licenses for your Plant Nursery Get Plant Nursery Insurance

  10. How To Start A Plant Business From Scratch

    Though formal training is not needed to start a plant care business, these are a few basic steps to follow: Creating A Business Plan Do Your Research You should have a look at the local market and check what the competition is doing to start a plant business.

  11. Plant Nursery Business Plan Template + Guide [Updated 2024]

    Retail, Consumers & E-commerce Plant Nursery Business Plan Are you thinking of starting a Plant Nursery business We have prepared a solid Plant Nursery business plan sample that guides you on every stage of your business plan writing Download Template Create a Business Plan

  12. How To Start Backyard Plant Nursery

    Planting your Plants in Backyard Nursery. Step 1) Acquire the proper materials to begin planting in the nursery. While you may already have a lot of gardening tools if you have experience growing plants, purchase whatever tools you don't have yet. Step 2) Now you're ready to begin planting your plants in the nursery.

  13. How To Start a Backyard Plant Nursery For $400

    In fact you can start your own backyard plant nursery and be growing plants for profit for $400. Here's how: First you'll need to take care of some legal things. Talk to your state about acquiring a business license. Having a license will help you be able to buy supplies and plants at wholesale prices. Next, you might need a special license ...

  14. Starting a Profitable Backyard Nursery Business

    Organic Gardening Articles Starting a Profitable Backyard Nursery Business By Michael J. Mcgroarty The McGroarty family starts a profitable backyard nursery business on an acre of land. Growing...

  15. Start a Backyard Plant Nursery Business, Part 1: Choosing What to Grow

    To kick off the Start a Backyard Plant Nursery Business Series, find out how to choose plants to grow in your new plant nursery, specializing in unique plants, and the varieties that deliver a ...

  16. Plant Nursery Business Plan for your backyard plant nursery

    This plan includes 2 years of investment, growing and assumes a $14.00 plant sale price. You do get your investment back after turning a profit in year 3. You also get some bonus profits the last 2 years of operation as you stop buying plants, pots,and dirt. A more aggressive 10 year plant nursery business plan

  17. How to Start Plant Nursery Business from Home in 7 Steps

    7 Steps to Start a Home-Based Plant Nursery Business. 1. Create a Business Plan. Crafting the business plan is most important. Here you have to determine the business model, investment, and marketing strategies. A tiny and small business also demands a business plan for a smooth operation. If you are starting small from the backyard of your ...

  18. Plant Nursery Business Plan [Sample Template]

    1. Industry Overview It is worthwhile to note that businesses in the plant nursery industry grow nursery plants, such as trees and shrubs; flowering plants, such as foliage plants, cut flowers, flower seeds and ornamentals; and short rotation woody trees, such as Christmas trees and cottonwoods.

  19. Start a backyard nursery business

    The four-step process is Planning -> Marketing -> Management -> Production. This process is no less valid when starting a backyard nursery business. The planning phase is where you set targets for your business, estimate your sales and expenses, research the kinds of plants that are popular in your area, and what they sell for.

  20. Master Plans

    Facilities Master Plan 2015 (PDF) Paradise Path Master Plan 2008 (PDF) Parks and Recreation Master Plan 2013. Parks and Recreation Master Plan Update 2019. See a variety of master plans.

  21. Notify Me • Moscow, ID • CivicEngage

    The purpose of the Commission is to promote and improve the development of a path system in and around Moscow, embracing three (3) important community concerns: (1) active transportation; (2) recreation; and (3) resource conservation / enhancement, and to otherwise act in an advisory role to the Council.

  22. Harvest Share

    Saturdays 8am-1pm May-October | Backyard Harvest stand at Moscow Farmers Market | Main Street in downtown Moscow. And if you can't make it to us, we will do our best to come and pick it up: Call 208-669-2259 or click here to send an email. Size of donation and location (on the porch, near the garage, etc.) Leave produce unwashed and place into ...

  23. Moscow Farmers Market

    Physical Address. 206 E 3rd Street. Moscow, ID 83843. Phone: 208-883-7132. The Farmers Market is a popular Moscow tradition that was established in 1976.