The Blogging Nurseryman by Trey Pitsenberger

It would appear that some of the shine has come off Starbuck’s. Store visits are down 1% (this is the first time store visits have dropped). In addition the stock price is dropping. So what’s their solution? Start advertising, which they haven’t done on a large scale before.

What I find interesting is that Starbucks has made changes to its stores over the last few years that you might not have noticed. Did you know they use “flavor locked packages” of coffee instead of freshly ground. Now the smell of fresh ground is gone. They also stopped “hand pulling espresso shots” in favor of automated machines. Finally they have streamlined the stores so they all start to look the same. They have lost the “funky”. One more thing, it’s now possible to make a cup of coffee at home that competes with the taste of Starbucks. While its still doesn’t make cappuccino or espresso that competes, our Tassimo one cup coffee maker makes regular coffee just as good .

While the problems Starbucks is having are one most of us could deal with it serves as a reminder that its still the cutomer experience that makes the difference. They don’t seem to realize this or they have just gotten to a point that it doesn’t seem relevant to them. Public traded companies must keep those shareholders happy and one way to keep the growth is build more stores and cut costs. Something to consider when we talk about places like Urban Outfitters opening garden shops. They may pull off the corporate “cool” like Starbucks, the question of whether they can really be original and funky remains to be seen.

I couldn’t resist posting once more on the “Black Friday” phenomenon. It turns out it wasn’t the slowest day of the year at the nursery like I predicted in my last post. Some people actually came in and Monica and I looked at each other and we’re happy we opened. Let me assure you though that its wasn’t busy like the malls.

Little things that will pay off down the road did happen. Example, a young couple moving here from Berkley stopped in and bought a couple of kiwis and the fertilizer and planting mix for them. What’s neat is they we’re in a couple of weeks ago looking for grapes when we started talking about the kiwis. Didn’t know if anything would come of it but here they we’re. As they left they said they will see us soon! Another connection made!

I came across this report at Yahoo Finance. It looks like every report we get every year. Yes, deep discounts brought in people but it must continue through the holidays to be a success. Some people are doing they’re part like Tina Dillow of New Richmond, Ohio who said “‘I’m really looking for the bargains this year because I’m losing my job; they’re moving our plant to Mexico after the first of the year, so I have to be careful.’” She had “camped out at a Best Buy store near Cincinnati at 3 a.m. because of a great deal on a laptop.”

Let me see, she is loosing her job but needs a laptop. I guess I just don’t get it. If I was loosing my job I think spending money on a laptop is the last thing I would be doing. You know they have free internet access art the library here. I wonder how many people are in the same situation as this women that shopped at these sales. The consumer has been so throughly brainwashed that they believe that spending money at a sale is somehow smart even when you source of income is about to dry up.

This year the goal we have at the nursery and home is to reduce our debt. I am tired of carrying debt, even though much of it is for the business. I tell my kids the same thing, don’t get us anything that involves paying for it with credit. If you can’t afford it we don’t need it!

P.S. The Golden Gecko gladly accepts Visa, Master Card, American Express, Discover, and Paypal.

P.P.S. We don’t want you to use your credit card is it means going broke! We want our customers to be around for the long haul.

On this so called “Black Friday” shopping day we will be open. I don’t know about other nurseries but this day is traditionally one of our slowest days of the year. It would appear that most people would rather shop the malls with the crowds than shop the nursery. We decided to open because I have to work off yesterdays huge meal, and we just enjoy going to the nursery and enjoying ourselves.

I think if you asked most of the people shopping today if they could honestly afford what they are purchasing they would say no. Its almost like the stores and credit card companies invented today to help everyone get further in debt. I love the holidays but the push to shop for things that could be bought any time of the year simply because its the holidays turns me off.

There are others like me out there. They look at today and just shake their heads. Oh well, it takes all kinds to make the world go around. I prefer more authentic experiences than are available at the mall. I would rather receive a hug and a visit from my kids and granddaughter than have them spend money they don’t have (credit) to buy stuff that I really don’t need. When you get down to it there is little that I need. I have food, shelter, clothes, and friends and family which is more than most have in the world.

Gardening is going to be coming back strong as more people look to enjoy the simple things that don’t require large amounts of debt. I believe that vegetable and fruit tree gardening is going to lead the way. Some people want to re-connect to the earth and the source of their food. Most of all they are discovering the wonderful flavor of home grown as well as the pride that comes with producing your own gourmet food.

You can sense it. There is great change in the air. I don’t subscribe to the negativity that some people hold about theses changes. I instead look positively to what the future holds. Some feel the change needs to be mandated and political. I feel the change needs to come from within each of us. We each hold within us the power to change “our” world.

My world today will consist of no shopping. I’ll be working in the garden.

Around this time every year someone comes out and says “save a tree” and buy an artificial Christmas tree. I guess these people imagine folks going through the woods chopping trees down wily nilly as Bambi and friends scurry away in fear.

These ideas are usually forwarded by people divorced from the realities of the natural and agricultural world. The places where these trees are grown are farms. We live in the mountains where Christmas tree farms abound and can assure you the farms are not destroying the environment, rather its one way to make the farm profitable and prevet the spread of urbanization into the foothills and mountains.

So where does this “save a tree” concerning Christmas trees thinking come from? I have been hearing this since the 70’s and it so “played.” Don’t get me wrong, there are many trees that do need to be saved, just not Christmas trees which are a crop like carrots or soy beans, which are replanted every year.

I have no opinion on weather a living Christmas tree, cut Christmas tree, or artificial Christmas tree is a better choice. I see no harm in any of them. So let’s quit picking on Christmas tree growers who have many of the same concerns as the rest of us in agriculture, one of which is a consumer so removed from the natural world that decisions are made based on poor information.

The author of the post mentioned above claims ” in support of our country’s effort to go GREEN, I would like to dedicate this post to the wonders of “Indoor Artificial Christmas Trees !!!” My suggestion is to help the country go green by supporting your local Christmas tree growers who’s farms are suppling needed oxygen and green space rather than increased urbanization.

According to Open Register Pike Family Nurseries is filing for Bankruptcy Chapter 11. This is no small deal as it consists of 20 retail outlets scattered about Atlanta. Pikes is the largest independent retail chain in The United States with over 700 employees. Having been founded in the late 1950’s it as well as other nurseries are feeling the effects of the historic drought plaguing the area.

I have been through this before here in Nor Cal and the feeling of helplessness is overwhelming. Every nursery should look at this and ask themselves what they would do in the same situation. I am not sure what those nurseries could do in Georgia but we should at least ask the question.

One thing Pike Family Nursery should do is address this via their web site. I know its not a pleasant thing to talk about but it would be better if they air this stuff in the open and explain what they plan to do to come out of bankruptcy.

Here in California the next drought is always right around the corner. We haven’t had a major drought in over ten years, we’re due. Just not next year, please!

Hanna at This Garden is Illegal says “I know why gardening shows fail”. She compares the popular cooking shows to the not as popular garden shows. This isn’t the first time this stuff has been talked about in the blogosphere. We have all asked why most garden shows don’t hold a candle to the popular cooking shows. Hanna nails it when she says, “Gardening should be fun but most of the time… on the TV… it just looks like work. Who wants to watch that?” I found this post interesting since we have been talking about having fun at the nursery.

When Emeril Lagasse’s show was first conceived and someone said, “why don’t you have a live band in the kitchen” people would have thought the idea CRAZY! Yet the band is a big part of the show now. Its taken the time between dishes and turned it into a party. The whole show is a party! Audience members are given food and wine to nibble on while Emeril entertains. Notice I say entertains, not cooks. Sure Emeril is a chef, but he’s really an entertainer.

When I fill out an application and it asks “occupation” I usually either write “nurseryperson” or “business owner”. Maybe next time I’ll write “entertainer”. That will get some attention! When I think about what the most important thing I do at work its entertaining people. Every store needs to have people who can “entertain”. Sure we sell plants, water plants, and do all sorts of gardening activities, but the area where we make our money is in the entertaining of our guests. They have taken the time to enter our world and we need to make sure that visit is “entertaining”. Entertaining does not mean having to be “on” all the time, its more about being aware of the “vibe” your business has and being able to enhance the positives to the benefit of the our guests.

Our business, like gourmet cooking is a luxury that people choose to enjoy, not because they have to. There was a time when the knowledge of how to garden was a life or death concern. Didn’t grow enough root crops to make it through winter? The family might go hungry. Not anymore.

We need to show people that gardening is not a “serious” business. Its the exact opposite, or should be. It should be the antidote for a world that tends to see everything as “serious”. Experimentation should be encouraged, and a sense of playfulness maintained. The impression that our customers have of us should be anything but serious. I generally don’t like hanging with serious people unless the situation calls for it. Gardening shouldn’t.

We had our first non-gardening oriented workshop on Saturday. Betsy Afdenkamp held the class and fun was had by all. I took the Tassimo Coffee Maker out to our new event tent so everyone could make coffee as they wanted. Great idea as soon the ladies were hyped up banging away on the tin.

We had one lady come all the way from Davis which is about an hour away. The next class will be taught by Monica and will be making a ginger bread house for the holidays.

Its fun coming up for ideas for workshops when it doesn’t have to be just garden oriented. The main thing is it get people into the store and sure enough buying stuff before they leave. Even if we didn’t sell anything the idea behind the workshops is to raise the visibility of the nursery as a resource for the community.

Today is our Tin Punch Workshop with Betsy Aufdenkamp and Monica. Its our first workshop in out new events tent. While Tin Punch really has nothing to do with gardening, so what. People are signed up, coffee and snacks will be served, and tin will be punched.

We are going to try and have a workshop at least every two weeks. This year we are going to try and get more help putting these on. While Monica and I enjoy teaching these classes it will be helpful to have experts like Betsy, to help hold some of these. In addition these workshops do not have to be about gardening. Tin punch, BBQ cooking class, home wine making, etc. as well as fruit tree pruning and other garden related subjects will all be part of the plan.

When your business deals with gardening you tend to group activities around that subject since we assume thats the reason people come to us. I think a lot of people come to the garden center looking for inspiration, not necessarily a certain plant or fertilizer. I think we need to think beyond the conventional and do the things that we find fun, since it would appear that our tastes are not that much different than many others.. I think a sense of discovery and fun is the key to keeping things lively and fresh at the nursery.

Of course this all dovetails with my goal of building a really cool BBQ and smoker so I can retire the Weber. I love cooking BBQ and sharing it with our friends (customers). Why not have a regular Friday after work BBQ and wine tasting featuring one of the local wineries? As a matter of fact we want it to be a local only produced event. Meat, vegetables, and drink can all be local. Why shouldn’t our garden center be the place to discover and enjoy all the things that brought us to the foothills in the first place?

I know this sounds crazy as just running a garden center can be taxing, but this stuff is fun. It seems like when we are having fun the business just flows. My goal is to create a place that is fun for Monica and I to work at since we are here so much. When we are having fun the people around us tend to also have fun. Its weird, but when we focus on trying to make money we don’t, but when we focus on having fun the money seem to flow better. The secret is to get beyond the fear of failure, which raises its head now and then. Since we are going on our fourth year now the fear of failure is a little less menacing. Now its time to focus on whats important, enjoying life and spreading that joy to our friends (customers)!

Angela had asked how the talk at The Sacramento Organic Club went. When I left I had told Monica that if just two people came to the nursery from the talk it would be a success. Yesterday the second person showed up at the nursery. It takes about 35 minutes to make the drive to the store from Sacramento so I consider it a GREAT success. The fact that they also bought some of the things that we had talked about was a bonus. The main thing is connections have been made and now the word will continue to spread. The club also mentioned that the talk was one of the best they had in recent memory, which was also very cool.

I think the one thing I always take away from these talks is how beneficial they are for getting the word out. If you can get over the fear of public speaking the opportunities for the business and yourself are endless.

So there you go, need a speaker for your next event? You know who to call.

Monica and I went down to San Francisco on Monday. I grew up here, so we like to check out the places that get missed by most tourists. This is a shot of a small garden tucked into a alley with skyscrapers rising up all around. Somehow just enough sun squeak’s through to keep things alive.

It’s located in Fella Alley. If you know where this is you REALLY know “The City”.

All in all “The City” seems much the same as it was twenty years ago except that now I have a car with automatic transmission, which makes driving on these insane hills a lot easier now than my ‘68 VW Bus with the manual transmission did then. I realize how crazy I was to drive that car some of the places I did.