CAMAS, Wash. — In Camas, a small garden nursery business says they’ve experienced record sales as more people grow their own food while staying at home.
Jada Fritz and her husband Eric have owned Grown in Camas on Northeast Everett Street in Camas for 20 years.
“We were just doing little dinky tomato starts,” recalled Jada Fritz. “We've grown because of our friends, they wanted more and then their friends—that’s how we started.”
From herbs to vegetable starts, Fritz said 98% of what they sell at their nursery, her husband grows from seed; a point of pride for the Fritzes.
“It's not been something that's been snipped off and put into a growth hormone,” said Fritz.
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This season, Fritz said customers seem to be more conscious than ever about where their food is coming from amidst the coronavirus outbreak.
“Everyone's worried about their food situation,” said Fritz. “They're listening to the news.”
Fritz said she believes that’s one reason they're selling more vegetable starts now than any other time over the last 20-years.
‘It’s very, very overwhelming,” said Fritz, “Because it's just my husband and I.”
The Fritzes wear gloves and masks as they work. They ask customers to do the same as they peruse the small tables and green house laden with plant starts.
Fritz said she’s grateful for the opportunity to continue doing business during the COVID-19 crisis. She and her husband have always relied upon word of mouth to generate customers and up until last year, didn’t have a Facebook page for their business. They don’t take credit or debit cards, just cash or check.
“In all honesty, I am not a computer geek,” admitted Fritz.
But ask her about tomatoes and she has all the answers and tricks for growing a bumper crop.
“One of the first things is we fertilize with a liquid fertilizer religiously,” advised Fritz. “We use Tums, we use Epsom salts and you can google some of that!”
Grown in Camas is open seven days a week from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. through June.