We’re Jason and Lisa, and about a dozen years ago we took the plunge and bought a small acreage on Nicomen Island. Money was tight at the time, the girls were young, the learning curve was steep, and the property needed some major TLC. It was hard to see at first, but even in those tough early years we were forming the impression of what Fraser Valley Rose Farm could be. Although we had to hold our day jobs to make ends meet, make no mistake: from the time we sold our first plants from a folding table at the farmers market, we were no longer a part of the “9 to 5” work force. It took me nearly another decade to hand in my resignation, and now I’m so excited to invite the world to our little farm.

Whether you can only visit through Youtube, or if we eventually get to meet you face-to-face, Lisa and I want to thank you for your ongoing support. We couldn’t do this without you, and there’d be no reason to try.

Our Plants

Mainly, we sell roses and companion plants for the local market. I know that this is a bit of a disappointment for viewers and potential customer in far-away places. We do offer a limited mail-order offering within Canada of smaller own-root roses (in a 9cm/4″ pot) in late winter each year, but we’re in no headlong rush to expand beyond the local market in a major way. Read on for a minute, and I think you’ll understand why.

Growing is local. Or at least it should be. The plants and growing practices that work well in my northern pacific coast climate may not be a good fit in regions with different temperatures, daylength, precipitation or soil. In some places, soil pathogens require grafted roses to be successful, while all of my roses are propagated and grown on their own roots. One of the local food movement’s ethics that rubbed off on me while vending at the farmers market: large-scale production and shipping over long distances isn’t always the most sustainable or sensible answer. Could there be a local rose grower in New Brunswick who does a great job of propagating roses to thrive in their local climate? Of course there could be, and in fact there is! We don’t want or need to be the largest supplier in any particular market. In fact, I think the hobby is best served by more local growers close to their own communities.

That said, I’m mindful that some of the roses we’ve collected are hard-to-find, and so we’ll do our part to keep them in the trade. If that means expanding our mail-order offering in a thoughtful way, we’ll definitely consider it.

As mentioned above, we propagate our roses on their own roots from our collection of mother stock. We also buy in some roses from other suppliers to round out the assortment, but that something like 5% of our business. One of our goals this year is to expand our variety in annuals, perennials and shrubs – great companions for roses which are, after all, very social creatures in the garden.

We maintain our plants with minimal spraying (sulfur, baking soda) and absolutely none of the hard stuff. My family lives here, so it’s out of the question for me. So if you see a little blackspot or some aphids on our roses, that’s why.

Our Business

I’ll fill in details in the other sections of the site as we get into the season, but here’s an overview of what you can expect to see from us over the coming season:

• In February we’ll evaluate the own-root roses in 9cm/4″ liners, and add them into their own section of the online store for shipping across Canada.
• At the beginning of March we expect to open our farm on Fridays and Saturdays for retail sales. On-farm shopping now includes the two greenhouses for roses and our new outdoor selling areas for companion plants. Customers are welcome to roam our gardens and stock roses for inspiration.
• We’ll be adding loads of roses and perennials to the online store for local curbside pickup. This has been a popular and convenient option for customers to shop our online store in advance of a Saturday visit to pick up their pre-paid order.
• We’ll be adding in-person events (speaking engagements, plant sales, etc) as they are confirmed.
• This past year we remained open in a more “relaxed” capacity through the fall and winter, and I expect we’ll do the same this coming season.
• Believe it or not, Youtube has become a serious part of our business. I’ll try to post videos at least weekly even during the selling season. I already have some great road trips and topics lined up.

Thank You

I probably can’t say it enough times. Our local customers, mail order customers and viewers on Youtube have helped to make this dream possible. Some people have questioned why we would allow visitors so much access to our property and gardens. This is the reason: your interest and support has shaped this property, and I’d love for you to see the changes as they happen.