Big Grower July 2021 - 4

COVER STORY
my great-granddad, he's always got a cigar in his
mouth and a plant in his hand, " Jennifer says.
After more than a decade of operating their
family farm, Ed and Ruth decided to become
wholesale growers and built a 100-square-foot
greenhouse to grow cut flowers and potted crops
for grocery stores and floral shops in the region.
In the early days, the company established
itself as one of the best orchid growers in the
country thanks to their attention to detail and
the ideal growing conditions in Idaho.
The company really began to grow when
Generation Two, DeWitt and Carolyn Moss
(Ed and Ruth's daughter and husband/Jennifer's
grandparents), joined the family business
in 1973. The company continued to build
greenhouses to produce bedding plants for its
existing customers while adding new customers
every year.
Ten years later, Kevin and Dana Moss (DeWitt
and Carolyn's son/Jennifer's parents) returned
to the Magic Valley to help with the company's
latest greenhouse construction project. Kevin was
instrumental in the launch of Moss Seedling to
produce plugs for other growers back when there
were not too many growers specializing in plugs.
PROVIDING
A SOLUTION
FOR GARDEN
ANSWER
This year, Moss Greenhouses became the official
annual grower for the popular Garden Answer
YouTube channel hosted by Laura LeBoutillier along
with her husband Aaron.
The connection was made, in part, because Moss
Greenhouses had been providing plants to Laura's
parents' (Susan and Mike Kurth) garden center,
Andrews Seed Co., in Oregon.
After running a successful pilot program during
a pandemic year to see if it worked for Moss
Greenhouses and for the LeBoutilliers, they decided
to proceed with the partnership in 2021.
Jennifer Moss says it has been a learning experience
but there have been additional benefits for their IGC
customers when they see the additional exposure
that their plants get on the Garden Answer videos.
" So far, it has been a really fun partnership to
explore, " remarks Jennifer.
The senior management team at Moss Greenhouses. From the left, Dave Holley, general manager, Dewey
Moss, director of operations, Jennifer Moss, director of sales and marketing, Dana Moss, purchasing agent/
R&D, Kevin Moss, president and CEO, and Molly Moss, chief furball in charge of smiles and scratches.
In 1996, Kevin and Dana purchased the
company from Dewitt and Carolyn and
continued their expansion with the addition of
even more greenhouses. They also made the
decision to exit the plug production business
following the transition as the company grew.
Today, Moss Greenhouses has more than
380,000 square feet of greenhouse production
with an additional 3 acres of outdoor production
space to serve customers in seven states in a
600-mile radius of Jerome (Idaho, Colorado,
Nevada, Montana, Wyoming, Oregon and Utah).
Approximately 85% of the company's revenue
is wholesale growing, while the remaining 15%
is the company's retail operation that is open
four months (March-July) of the year.
TALKIN' 'BOUT THEIR GENERATIONS
Ownership of Moss Greenhouses has passed
The retail operation at Moss Greenhouses operates
four months out of the year and provides valuable
feedback on different plants and programs.
4 JULY 2021
The high desert altitude of Jerome, Idaho, provides
Moss Greenhouses with ideal growing conditions.
through three different family generations and
now Kevin and Dana's children, Jennifer and
Dewey, are preparing to lead the company into
the future. The Moss family has developed a
well thought-out and gradual succession plan for
the company. " We've already been talking about
succession for four years now, and we've got
another two years to go. That's not a short road
to walk down. "
Like their father and grandfather before them,
after graduating from college, both Jennifer and
Dewey pursued careers outside the horticulture
industry before returning to the family business.
This provided them with additional perspectives
about the plant business and about themselves.
" You had to work for someone else before you
came back to the family farm. And after you
came back, you have to learn how to do every
single job on this farm and be willing to do so, "
Jennifer says.

Big Grower July 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Big Grower July 2021