You’ve probably seen those signature dark-green Monrovia containers filled with lush plants around your garden center this spring. Probably lots of them, in fact.
Have you ever wondered how Monrovia grew from a single plant nursery in 1926 to four locations across the country in 2019, offering more than 4,000 varieties and selling more than 22 million individual plants annually?
It’s a story of firsts that begins and ends with a family dedicated to making the world a bit more beautiful by growing the most beautiful plants.
It all starts in 1926 when Harry Rosedale, a young, visionary immigrant from Denmark, opens Monrovia Nursery Co. on a modest 10-acre plot in Monrovia, California. Harry had the genius idea of growing plants in containers which meant they would transplant better with less stress.
Over the next few decades, Monrovia expands its nursery’s CA footprint and build a first-of-its-kind dedicated in-house research department to develop new and better growing methods. They develop 40 custom soil blends to serve the special needs of each plant type. And, they began to patent their ground-breaking plants.
93 years later, Monrovia has crossed lots of first off of its bucket list (see just a few below). Looking beyond providing the best plants to garden centers, Monrovia works to develop innovative new tools to help home gardeners find landscaping solutions. It remains a family-owned company.
What’s next for the innovative grower?
As they search the world and work with the best breeders to develop plants, look for new and improved varieties in those famous green containers.For more information: www.monrovia.com
Explore the June 2020 Issue
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