Paul Sansone and Susan Vosburg decided to go into the cut flower business because it was economically feasible. Profits could be generated with cut flowers from a small farm much easier than producing food crops.
From the beginning, the pair focused on cut crops that wouldn't be in direct competition with imports. Specialty cuts, especially perennials, are their focus since these are more difficult to ship.
"It has to be something that can't be shipped in from Latin America, particularly Colombia and Ecuador. They have a major labor advantage and we simply can't compete," Sansone said.
The name Here & Now Garden symbolizes that it sells cuts that are naturally flowering during that time of the year.
Many of Here & Now's varieties are bred overseas. In the last 10 years, fewer cut flowers have been imported into the United States from the Netherlands. The Dutch growers no longer view the United States as their major competition, so the breeders have offered American growers access to their better cultivars.
Here & Now Garden also sells rooted cuttings and dormant bare-root liners, including Bartles Stek varieties from Holland, of these varieties. Sansone said starter material has become 50-60 percent of his business.
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