Volunteers In Corrections

RCCF/Volunteers in Corrections Spring 2025 update – Pre-sale

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Hello once again from the RCCF Nursery managers office! We are trudging through a much more typical Minnesota winter this year. We just got through a brutal week with every single morning starting below zero. It actually altered our planting plans here as we needed to push everything back a week due to the extreme cold! But after 28 days of sub-zero starting temperatures, it looks like the weather is moderating and we will get much more normal temps going forward. In fact, I don’t see any sub-zero temperatures in the forecast for the rest of the season.

 

Our 2024 season was very successful again, setting another new sales record, but a little “different” at the same time. I think the extremely mild winter last year kind of dampened the appetite for spring flowers and it took a little longer to sell our product. As a nursery guy, we always like to see these more typical, colder winters as it leads to people really looking forward to spring by the time May rolls around. We are hoping to have as successful a year this year, with a little more of a compressed season.

 

Once again, this season we are partnering with RS Eden (www.reseden.org) (Sentenced to Serve), the Ramsey County Master Gardeners (www.ramseymastergardeners.org), and the Ramsey County Volunteers in Corrections (www.vicboard.org), as well as many friends and family members. Thank you all in advance for all your continued hard work in making this annual event a huge success.

 

Following, are a list of the “rules” I like to send out before every season. We are not that different from most other nurseries and garden centers, but if you can keep some of these in the back of your mind, it can make your experience here enjoyable and stress free.

 

We are growers here, everything that you see in a finished pot, basket, or flat was started from a seed, small plug or rooted cutting purchased locally. We do not buy any finished product for resale. We start planting our annuals in late February and finish in early April typically, so we have about a 6-week planting window. The items we plant first are the ones that are ready first; some of the things planted later may not be ready until the 2nd or 3rd week of the sale. Much of that depends on the weather. For this reason, many of our customers come more than once, and I suggest that if it is not an inconvenience, that you make several visits, as things that you may be looking for may not be ready week 1, but will be ready later in the sale. We are typically open 18-20 days in order to get to the 95-97% sold out point we shoot for. The sales area is only a portion of our actual growing range, so we are constantly bringing new and fresh material up to the sales areas as stock is sold. Here are some important things to remember:

 

- we specialize in mixed species, mixed color items, particularly in the baskets. Many combinations are unique, with only several of each produced. Some are “one of a kinds”.

 

- when things are gone, they are gone. Since we don’t buy in finished product, when we run out of a certain size, color, combination, etc., it is done for the season. I make adjustments annually to try to stay current with trends, but those change quickly in this industry.

 

- we adjusted pricing to have fewer price points, making the checkout process easier and quicker hopefully. Our new price sheet lists the costs of individual items. There will be a list in each greenhouse with a general idea of what is inside each one to help with knowing what prices are as well.

 

- as I wrote earlier, NOT everything is ready week 1. We bring product up as I deem it ready for sale. However, I do sometimes bring things up that may not have much or any color, or are a bit undersized, if the demand for those particular items is higher than expected.

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- if you are looking for something in particular, and do not see it, do not hesitate to ask a volunteer, or myself if you see me, to check to see if we have anymore down below. It may take us a few minutes to check and see if we have it, but if we have the time, we will do that. Sometimes we just don’t have the time, or a particular plant you are looking for. Please understand that. We do our best to accommodate all customers.

 

- HAVE FUN - our sale is meant to be fun! It is a place you can take your time and find unique planters without any pressure or rush; feel free to browse around and look. We will try to answer any questions you may have. We are getting better with signage and information on certain plants and species as we do not tag everything individually. Just be patient, have fun and remember that almost everyone “working” at the sale is a volunteer, a Master Gardener, a STS client or a family member! They are always trying their hardest to make your experience a good one. We certainly appreciate your patronage over the years.

 

As always, 25% of the proceeds from this sale go to support the Volunteers in Corrections (VIC). You can visit www.vicboard.org to read about their mission and what they do. 25% of your purchase is tax deductible. Please visit this site and their Facebook page for additional plant sale information and any updates during the course of the sale. I look forward to seeing you all in April. Our opening day will be Thursday April 24th, open from 8:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. Please check back and look to the VIC website, the VIC Facebook page and the Ramsey County Home page for a list of all the exact dates and times.

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Lt. K. Sean Uslabar

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RCCF Nursery Manager/Coordinator

 

 

 

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P.S.  KMSP TV ran a story on our 2022 plant sale, check it out HERE!

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