HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1992-05-13, Page 299-tome & Q ar den 1992
THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, MAY 13,1992. PAGE 29.
Maitland Manor, a budding enterprise
A growing interest
and contracts with temperature
allowing new bark to form under
neath.
Mailland Manor Nursery encour
ages tours for 4H groups, local
school classes and environmental
groups to come out and see their
planting and pruning operations.
c~Huron
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In addition to his own stock, Donald Henry of Maitland Manor Nurseries also purchases stock
so his customers will have a larger inventory from which to make their selections.
BY LARRY CARDIFF
Dissatisfied with the uncertainty
of agriculture, Donald S. Henry of
RR 1, Bluevale decided it was time
to start a new enterprise.
It was 12 years ago, when Mr.
Henry contacted the Ministry of the
Environment, asking them to plant
about 7,000 white pine and spruce
trees along the river flats on his
property. In his quest for more
knowledge and to research his idea
of starting a nursery, he went from
wandering and pruning the area to
attending landscape and trade
shows.
His interest continued growing
over the next six years until he
eventually ordered two acres of
various varieties, to plant for com
mercial use. He wanted to see what
would grow best in what soil con
ditions and in this type of environ
ment.
"It was a process of learning as
much as we could," Mr. Henry
says.
He continued adding trees until
he had 25 acres of cultivated land
with every type of tree, shrub and
evergreen he could find.
Then the "real game plan" began.
He decided to wait for five years
before retailing so he could gain
more experience and see what
would grow. He wanted, not only
to have a good handle on the prob
lems he'd encounter, but those of
his customers as well.
Then he established Maitland
Manor Nurseries at RR 1, Bluevale.
Mr. Henry knew he would have
to draw people from afar to make
his new business work, and that he
must have a big inventory.
"By having more volume and by
using a lot of smaller existing busi
nesses, we have less equipment
expenses," he says.
In addition to his own stock, Mr.
Henry also purchased stock, giving
him perhaps the largest selection of
nursery products within 25 miles.
Last year, his first retail year, Mr.
Henry decided on a three-prong
marketing technique. First, he built
up a spring bare root stock, then
made sure his product was cheaper
and finally retailed wholesale from
home and on consignment to other
retailers.
He continued pushing his territo
ry further afield, always keeping in
mind to keep his retail customers
close enough to service them.
Last year they did a little land
scaping and planting, but plan on
going after that market more this
year. Maitland Manor has been
tending for a few government con
tracts, including Maitland Valley
Conservation Authority and The
Ministry of Environment.
At present, Maitland Manor
Nursery has 12 employees, which
will continue for the next couple of
months. He tries to hire the best he
can find locally and everyone must
be able to play the part of salesman.
"This is a business that is very
labour intensive for a short period
of time," he says.
To aid in his production, he has
installed a drip irrigation system.
Water is drawn from the river, fil
tered, and then released every cou
ple of feet through hose emitters.
"We find it very efficient this
way. The water goes directly to the
root and we use a lot less water," he
says.
He admits that although spring
weather so far has been far from
desirable, it is ideal for planting
and establishing trees and shrubs.
Because of an upswing in rabbit
populations this past year, a lot of
people have lost trees over the win
ter, especially fruit trees and
maples. For trees ravaged by rab
bits, Mr. Henry recommends an
European product, Lac Balsam. It
is an artificial bark that expands
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