During the Bud ‘n Bloom Garden Club’s recent tour, Barnes Greenhouses employee Joe Granata demonstrated the automatic planting machine.

On a chilly spring day in March, the ladies of the Bud ‘n Bloom Garden Club visited the Barnes Greenhouses in Sheridan for a tour of their facility. The Barnes Greenhouses is a family-owned and operated business since 1959.

There they were met by the dedic https://www.observertoday.com/wp-admin/post-new.php ated staff, headed by Chere and Jarratt Turnstall, the third generation of the Barnes family. Sharon Welles and Brian Barnes represented the second generation of the family.

The Barnes Greenhouses is a leading wholesale supplier of liners and plugs including vinca, and vernalized perennials. A wide variety of plants is available for retail customers in May and June.

The Garden Club makes an annual trip in April to plant small plants in their pots and urns.

The Barnes family waters and cares for their creations until May when the Club members take them home to decorate their surroundings, at a sizable savings.

On Saturday, April 1, Barnes Greenhouses hosted a “behind the scenes” greenhouse tour. Participants can learn about the growing process, automation used and can simply enjoy being surrounded by plants.

Bonnie, a longtime member of the greenhouse family, lost her husband, Dick Purol suddenly last month. All the proceeds from the tour will be donated in his name to the East Dunkirk Volunteer Fire Department which Dick served for over 50 years.

The gardeners from Bud ‘n Bloom Garden Club got a preview of the planned benefit tour for Purol.

The club members were fascinated by the volume of plants, the glow lights in pink and blue that shine on the plants to help them grow, and all of the automation they observed.

There are about nine large greenhouses on the premises that are filling up quickly. Each greenhouse has four wide movable racks (some that are heated} that hold hundreds of plastic trays with various sizes of plants. Above the racks are plastic hanging baskets that each have a water drip system attached. A computer-run watering “boom” (pipe with nozzles) sprays a light mist over the plants on the racks as it moves over the rows of plants. A cistern system supplies the water needed and on occasion, water is pumped up from a nearby irrigation pond.

The ladies were mesmerized as automated machines filled trays with prepared soil mixture. A conveyor belt glides the trays to the “seeder” and then covered them with vermiculite and then watered.

Another machine lifts rows of tiny seedlings from their trays and replants them into larger sections automatically. Here the greenhouse ladies stand by to quickly insert an occasional seedling that was missed by the machine.

Most of their plants are shipped to wholesale buyers across the country by Fed Ex.

The retail shop is open from May to June. After June, the shop closes, but planting continues. Remaining plants are donated to public places like the Fairgrounds and parks.

The ladies enjoyed the organized tour greatly with various members of the team explaining different parts of the operation.

The Club members enjoyed a luncheon meeting after at Buddy Brewsters on Route 60 in Dunkirk.

Sadly, they recognized the recent passing of former members Mary Ann Metro and Judy Kawski. Also remembered was the passing of member Sallie Muscato’s husband Joe recently.

A list of upcoming events was shared with the members:

April – Ange Leone’s daffodils – Karen Ryder co-hostess

May – Banquet – Shorewood Country Club

June – Westfield Nursery/St. Stephen’s Hotel lunch

July – Graycliff Mansion Tour – lunch after

August – Urban Garden/Sue Drag, hostess

September – Chautauqua Institute Gardens – Sue Lamb, hostess

October – Peapod & Juniper, Lakewood/Brigiotta’s

November – Invasive Species presentation

December – Holiday banquet

Anyone interested in gardening, conservation and fellowship who might be interested in becoming a member of this active group is asked to call President Judy Wilcox at 716 672-6161.