From: Bill McDorman <bm@seedsave.org>Date: June 5, 2006 9:49:24 AM CDTTo: permaculture <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>Subject: [permaculture] Paradise lost: Heronswood uprootedReply-To: permaculture <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org> By Christine ClarridgeSeattle Times staff reporterFans of Kitsap County's internationally acclaimed Heronswood Nursery --which iscredited with putting the Pacific Northwest on the horticulturalist'smap byintroducing thousands of exotic plants from around the world -- areabout tosuffer transplant shock.Horticulture giant W. Atlee Burpee & Co., which bought Heronswood in2000, toldemployees Tuesday it was shutting down the Kingston nursery and movingtheresearch and retail operations to company headquarters in Pennsylvania.Thecompany said it will retain the Heronswood name and catalog and willcontinue tooffer a similar variety of plants.For the founders of Heronswood as well as the thousands of gardenerswho visitedthe lush nursery over the years, the news was devastating."This has been like dealing with a death in the family," said Daniel J.Hinkley,who began Heronswood with his partner Robert Jones nearly 20 years ago."We'resad because we believed in Heronswood and believed it was more thanjust anursery. We were trying to contribute to the horticultural communityand thecommunity as a whole."Valerie Easton, a gardening expert and frequent contributor to TheSeattleTimes, said the gap left by the nursery's departure will not be easilyfilled."Heronswood is a Mecca for gardeners around the world, and it'squintessentiallyNorthwest," Easton said. "Without Dan Hinkley or its Northwest setting,I don'tknow what Heronswood is."A plant explorer, Hinkley traveled the world to find unusual and exoticspecimens that would thrive in the Pacific Northwest. He brought themhome toHeronswood, planted them, grew them and sold them through a highlyanticipatedand richly detailed catalog.It was through Heronswood that hardy orchids and many species ofhellebores wereintroduced to the U.S., according to Richard Hartlage, a landscapearchitectwith AHBL Inc."This is a disaster," Hartlage said. "Everyone is just shocked."When the sale was announced six years ago, many local garden loversfeared thatHeronswood's homegrown charm and emphasis on Northwest cultivars wouldbeswallowed by the profit needs of the much larger and older Pennsylvaniacompany.But those fears receded as years passed and Heronswood and Burpeeseemed tocoexist peacefully. Heronswood remained a plant lovers' paradise thatcountedMartha Stewart among its fans, a world-renowned garden with 10,000plantspecies, and two dozen dedicated employees dubbed "Heronistas."Burpee President George Ball said the decision to close the Heronswoodgardensand move the nursery operations was a financial one."We tried for six years and it just wasn't profitable," said Ball, whowas inKingston on Tuesday to break the news to Heronswood employees.Ball said the move, which is expected to take place over the next threemonths,will enable the company to expand its product line to include varietiesbettersuited to flourish in other parts of the U.S."The plants we've collected from around the world will be tested underconditions more similar to those of our customers," he said.Burpee operates a 50-acre nursery in Willow Hill, Pa., and a similarlysizedtest-and-display garden complex at Fordhook Farm in Doylestown, Pa.Ball offered an apology to local gardeners who were grieving the loss."I'm sorry for that," he said. "If I could bat a thousand, I would, butnobody'sperfect, and I did the best I could."Of the 26 employees at Heronswood, seven have been asked to workthrough thesummer. The others were told their jobs were gone, Ball said.The gates to Heronswood were locked shortly after the announcement andworkersbegan packaging plants for transport, Hinkley said."The hardest thing for me to swallow right now is that this is whatpeoplefeared would happen," he said. "It was my decision to sell to a largecorporatenursery, and it was not a decision that was made lightly, but I madeit, soultimately I am the person to blame."The closing will leave a gaping hole in the local horticulturallandscape,several experts said, and gives rise to speculation about whethersomeone willstep in to fill the void.Hinkley said that while he has several years remaining on a noncompeteclausewith Burpee, he is not ruling out the possibility of starting anew.Ball said the 15-acre Heronswood property, which he called the bestprivatebotanic garden in the U.S., will be sold to someone who will honor it."We'renot going to just sell it to a developer who will tear it apart," Ballsaid.Hinkley said he hopes that's true."One thing I want to tell the people at Burpees is that the garden isfilledwith some extraordinarily rare things, and I hope that whoever acquiresitvalues it."Christine Clarridge: 206-464-8983 or cclarridge@seattletimes.com __o _'\<,____________(_)/ (_)_______________Bill W. McDormanSeeds Trust, High Altitude GardensPO Box 596Cornville, AZ 86325928.649.3315bm@seedsave.orghttp://www.seedstrust.com
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