Johansen Greenhouse and Nursery still growing strong under family’s care in Norfolk
On Highway 275, 14 storage houses, four acres and a storefront make up Johansen Greenhouse and Nursery. They’re responsible for filling up the flower pots on the streets of Norfolk. Johansen Greenhouse and Nursery, owned by Richard and Rhonda Hoeffer, is still thriving under their family ownership in Norfolk, Neb. The business, which started as a produce farm in 1987, now covers 14 storage houses, four acres and a storefront. Rhonda's maiden name is Johansen. Her mother, Mardelle Tech, still works at the greenhouse. The Johansens initially grew produce in their backyard before moving towards greenhouses in 1990. Mardell learned about plants and installed automated systems in their greenhouses. Richard joined in with the family business after his wife's husband passed away in 1997. Despite starting out as a producer farm, today Johansen is known for its beautiful zonal geraniums.
Veröffentlicht : vor einem Jahr durch Grace McDonald in Environment
NORFOLK, Neb. (KOLN) - On Highway 275, 14 storage houses, four acres and a storefront make up Johansen Greenhouse and Nursery. They’re responsible for filling up the flower pots on the streets of Norfolk.
The business is owned by Richard and Rhonda Hoeffer, but Rhonda’s maiden name is Johansen. She has many memories selling sweet corn on the side of the road and planting rows of melons by hand.
“(My dad) me come out to look at my row, and I thought, ‘Oh no, I did something wrong,’ but no,” Rhonda smiled. “I didn’t have a miss in my row, and he said, ‘You should be doing something with planting.’ So that was kind of neat.’
Rhonda’s parents started the business before her, and her mother, Mardelle Tech, still works at the greenhouse.
“We began with our first little greenhouse,” said Mardelle Tech, who used to be Johansen. “It was just a hoop off of one of our buildings.”
Initially, the Johansens grew produce in their backyard in 1987, but they moved toward greenhouses in 1990.
Mardelle learned as much as she could about plants, even attending a short course greenhouse school in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Her husband, who was an electrician, took the classes alongside her and used his abilities to install automated systems in their greenhouses.
“Don’t ask me where I got the research, but I held onto papers I collected in class,” Mardelle said. “And I used them like a rigid tool.”
When Mardelle’s husband passed away in 1997, her daughter Rhonda was in between jobs.
“I came in and started working side by side with Mom,” Rhonda said. “And that’s when I knew that I had the love for this. I had the knack for this.”
She and her husband Richard took the same classes that her parents did. Richard left his job working for the county to join in with the family business.
“I just grew up on a farm - a dairy farm,” Richard said. “I farmed most of my life. I felt the love for it, and I just don’t see myself doing anything else.”
Richard finds immense joy in watching the hand-planted seeds and making sure the roots are strong. For 17 years, Rhonda and Richard managed two locations - one at their home in O’Neill and one at Rhonda’s childhood home outside of Norfolk.
When their children grew up, they decided to move the entirety of Johansen Greenhouse and Nursery to Norfolk.
“We tore (the greenhouses) down and put them back up here and even moved two buildings within three and a half years,” Richard said. “And it just kept getting bigger every year.”
Even though this family business started out as a produce farm, today Johansen Greenhouse and Nursery is known for their gorgeous zonal geraniums. The owners start out by growing about 8,000 plugs, and by the time June rolls around, they’re picked over to about 1,000.
But they also offer shrubs, trees, hanging baskets, grasses, vegetables, melons and classes where people can arrange pots.
In the meantime, Mardelle keeps using her vast knowledge of plants alongside her second husband Kenneth Tech. She enjoys seeing her daughter and brother-in-law continue the business she helped start.
“I love working with my daughter,” Mardelle said. “I’ve never had any problem. She and I have been joined together like twins.”
If you would like to visit Johansen Greenhouse and Nursery, it’s located outside of Norfolk at 55063 US-275. They’re open year-round, and you’ll probably leave with a little bit of gardening advice.
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