The Lily Stone Gardens Greenhouse
Our specialty cut-flower retail greenhouse opened its doors for the 2024 season on May 1 this year and once again you guys blew us away with your enthusiasm for growing your own cut flowers! Opening week flew by in a flash and our team worked as fast as we could behind the scenes to restock as many varieties as possible so that you all could grow flowers near and far this year.
As in every agricultural business, every year is a little different based on the weather and other conditions out of our control. Such a cool spring meant that our plants stayed a nice size for longer, meaning they were still a perfect size by the time you were taking them home! The tricky part, however, was that the spring was to dang cold to get certain items planted in the garden. The waiting is always the tough part!
On a positive note, 2024 was perhaps the year to embrace the cool-loving flowers like snapdragons and ranunculus, as they loved this unusually long and cool spring. See, there's always something to learn from every season!
Our greenhouse is now CLOSED until next year. Thank you all so much for your love of flowers, your enthusiasm for growing in this crazy Manitoba weather, and your steadfast support of local, independently owned businesses.
If you're still looking to get in a dose of flowers this summer, be sure to visit our flower U-Pick!
Want to be alerted of all things greenhouse next year? Be sure to scroll to the bottom of this page and subscribe to our email newsletter. That is usually the first place we send out info about new events or offerings like the greenhouse opening date! Usually we send out 1-2 emails a month; we promise not to spam your inbox! Note that you will need to accept the subscription email that is send to your email address in order to continue receiving our newsletter messages.
- Hollyhock - Peaches N Dreams
- Asclepias / Butterfly Flower
- Varieties include Cinderella, Ice Ballet, and Hello Yellow
- Echinacea / Coneflower
- Varieties include Carrot Cake and Double Decker
- Eryngium - Blue Star
- Peonies
- Bowl of Cream, Joker, Lorelei, Many Happy Returns, Miss America, Mother's Choice, Pink Hawaiian Coral
- Poppies
- Varieties include Orientale, Harvest Moon, and Perry's White.
- Columbine / Aquilegia - Songbird Mix
- Scabiosa - Pink Mist
- Dahlias
- Varieties include Manhattan Island, Shiloh Noelle, Salmon Runner, Jowey Chris Ball, Totally Tangerine Anemone, and Mignon Dahlegria Tricolore
- NOTE: Dahlia tubers are not hardy to Zone 3 - meaning, if the tubers are left in the ground over winter, they will be rotten by spring time. Tubers must be dug up in fall for indoor storage.
- Echinops / Globe Thistle - Blue Glow
- Yarrow - Colorado Mix
- NOTE: Yarrow is a tough, low-maintenance perennial. Pollinators love it. Ensure that all florets are 100% open when cutting to ensure stems do not wilt after harvesting.
- Delphinium - Lily Stone Cutting Mix (NEW - a mix of white, light blue, and lavender purple from the Pacific Giants series)
- Pre-Started Ranunculus Mix - 6 Pack
- NOTE: Grab some pre-sprouted ranunculus and anemones to skip the soaking and pre-sprouting. These plants will benefit from being planted up fairly soon as they don't like their roots to be disturbed and enjoy the cool weather in early spring.
- Prestarted Anemones - 6 Pack
- Dianthus - 6 Pack
- Varieties include Amazon Lavender Magic, Amazon Neon Cherry, and Amazon Rose Magic.
- Gomphrena - Ping Pong Mix - 6 Pack
- NOTE: This mix produces purple, lavender, and white flowers and is one of the most robust/vigorous gomphrena varieties we've grown here on the farm. Gomphrena also make an excellent dried flower.
- Snapdragons - 6 Pack
- Varieties include Chantilly Light Salmon, Maryland Shell Pink, Madame Butterfly Series (Cherry Bronze and Ivory) and Potomac Rose.
- Feverfew - Magic Single - 6 Pack
- NOTE: This feverfew variety is one of the most cheerful flowers in the garden with a mustard yellow center and dainty white petals all around for a cheerful daisy look!
- Eucalyptus - Baby Blue - 6 Pack
- Craspedia - 6 Pack
- Godetia - Grace Mix - 6 Pack
- Trachel - Lake Michigan White - 6 Pack
- Lisianthus - All planted in 6 Packs
- Arena Series - Baby Pink and Red
- Blue Chateau
- Celeb Series - Beige Neo and Lavender
- Corelli Series - Deep Pink, Light Pink, Apricot, and Sugoi Lavender
- Mariachi Series - Grand White and Lavender
- Rosanne Terracotta
- NOTE: This variety is very similar to the Rosanne Brown that we have carried in past years; it is just a touch darker!
- Voyage Series - Blue, First Love, Pink, and Champagne
- Statice - 6 Pack
- Varieties include Rose and White
- NOTE: Statice is an excellent option for dried floral projects as it holds its shape and colour perfectly.
- Scabiosa - 6 Pack
- Varieties include Snowmaiden, Black Knight, Oxford Blue, Merlot Red, and Salmon Rose.
- Asters - 6 Pack
- Varieties include King Size Apricot and Lavender
- Ammi - White Queen Anne's Lace - 6 Pack
- Dara - Chocolate Lace - 6 Pack
- Rudbeckia - 6 Pack
- Varieties include Indian Summer and Sahara
- Strawflower - 6 Pack
- Varieties include Silvery Rose, Bright Rose, White, Apricot Peach, and Raspberry Rose
- Zinnias - 6 Pack
- Varieties include Queen Lime Series (Blush, Orange, and Red), Candy Mix, Cactus Mix, Oklahoma Series (Salmon and Mix), Senora, and Benary Giant Series (Purple and Mix).
- NOTE: Zinnias are one of the workhorses of the summer cutting garden. They are a cut and come again flower, so the more you cut from them, the more they will send out new growth! Zinnias are cold-sensitive, so only plant them out once all risk of frost has passed.
- Cosmos - 6 Pack
- Varieties include Apricotta and Seashells Mix.
- NOTE: Cosmos are another cut and come again flower which benefit from regular cutting. They give a cheerful and carefree look to arrangements.
Our specialty cut-flower greenhouse is now closed for the season. For updates about greenhouse information in future years, feel free to subscribe to our email newsletter (scroll to the bottom of this page) or by following along on social media. Thank you for your interest; see you next year!
If you can't wait until 2025, come join us in the garden for our flower U-Pick!
Lily Stone Gardens is located along Highway #422, just outside of Rosenort, MB. Our driveway number is #28084 and you will see a brown Lily Stone sign out by the road. Follow the driveway up the the top of the hill to our retail Shop & greenhouse.
We are approximately a 5 minute drive away from the Lily Stone Cafe; the Greenhouse is on a separate property outside of the sweet town of Rosenort. If you are planning a trip out here, make a day of it and make a reservation for you and some girlfriends at the Lily Stone Cafe!
If you need a visual of our two locations in relation to one another, click HERE for a map.
NOTE: Sometimes when making the trip out to Rosenort, Google Maps may suggest alternate routes down gravel or dirt roads. Rarely are these alternate routes any faster or more efficient. In most cases, you can get here while remaining on paved highways. We strongly encourage you to remain on paved roads, unless you are looking for a scenic tour of the Red River Valley.
We know many of you make the trip out to Rosenort a full occasion with friends and family and we absolutely LOVE that!
Load up the car with your gals or your littles and come on down to Lily Stone Gardens where you'll find our greenhouse, our retail and florist Shop, and our event venue! Zip into the venue and grab yourself some iced coffee to-go from our on-site Pop-Up Cafe to fuel you while you peruse the lisianthus. Once your greenhouse trays are filled, come visit us in the Shop where you can find any last direct sowing seeds for your garden (e.g., sunflowers, sweet peas, etc!) or other little treasures.
Now - the real smooth move is to head down to the Lily Stone Cafe back in town to end your day with some lunch (ps: be sure to try out the new Cinnamon Bun Iced Latte if you're into that kind of thing)! Or if you feel like booking ahead, maybe you could kick back and enjoy High Tea - finger sandwiches, quiche, and dainty desserts, served with your choice of local Cornelia Bean loose leaf tea.
Whatever your day has in store, we are so excited to see many returning faces making the trip back out to Rosenort. See you all soon!!
WHEN WILL THE GREENHOUSE OPEN? | We typically open for the season towards the end of April or early May. The exact opening date varies a little year to year. For exact opening information, we suggest subscribing to our email newsletter (by scrolling to the bottom of this page) or by following us on social media.
IS THE GREENHOUSE OPEN ALL YEAR? | Our greenhouse is seasonal, meaning we open in the spring-time and once all of our plants are sold out, we are done for the season (until next year...). Keep an eye out in fall for our annual corm launch and in the early new year for our seed launch via our online store.
WHEN SHOULD I PLANT THESE FLOWERS OUTSIDE? | Please note that some flowers, like zinnias, are cold-sensitive, meaning they may be damaged by late frosts. You may want to wait to plant them until all threats of frost have passed. Other flowers, like ranunculus and anemones, thrive on the cool spring temperatures. When in doubt, you can always Google more growing information about the specific flower type. Regardless of what flower you have, it's always a good idea to harden off or gradually transition them to outdoor conditions after leaving our greenhouse. This helps plants adjust to wind, full sunlight, and other environmental conditions.
CAN I GROW ANY OF THESE FLOWERS IN POTS OR RAISED BEDS? | Yes, many of the cut flower varieties from the greenhouse can be grown in pots or raised beds. Likely any of the annual varieties could be grown in a pot or raised bed setting (e.g., zinnias, ranunculus, lisianthus, dahlias, snapdragons, etc); we recommend planting perennials in the ground where they can establish more permanent root systems. When growing in pots, larger pots or containers are typically best as they retain moisture better in the high heat of summer. Smaller pots will require much more frequent attention and watering.
I'VE NOTICED THAT THE PLANTS IN YOUR GREENHOUSE HAVEN'T STARTED BLOOMING YET. WHY IS THAT? | Great question! Often when you walk into a typical greenhouse, you are greeted with a wall of colour, coming from traditional bedding plants like petunias. Our greenhouse is unique in that we specialize in flower varieties that are bred for cut flowers - varieties that are tall, have longer vase life, are productive, produce unique colours, etc.
We plant our seedlings in extra-deep containers to allow the plants to develop robust root systems and prevents any plant from becoming rootbound. This means that once you are planting them in your own garden, they already have well-developed healthy roots and are more likely to adjust happily to their new homes.
Our greenhouse plants are not yet in flower because they are focusing their energy on crucial root development and are saving their showy floral display for later in the season once they are settled into your gardens. Is it fun to be able to see what your flowers will look like at the time of purchasing? Of course! But we would rather the plant save its energy and bloom even stronger once it is in its proper home.
DO YOU ACCEPT PRE-ORDERS? | We will not offer any pre-order forms to reserve plants as we have done in past years. We do not offer pre-orders of wholesale plugs. Thank you for your interest!
DO YOU SELL VEGETABLES AND HERBS AS WELL? | We do not offer any pre-started vegetables or herbs at this time. For these items, please reach out to our friends at Prairie Grove Acres near Domain, MB. Click HERE to visit their website.
SOMETHING I WANTED IS OUT OF STOCK. WILL YOU RESTOCK IT? | The short answer is, maybe. For things like the perennials, we only receive a certain number each year; once those are sold out, they are gone for the year (i.e., there are no back-ups to pull from). For some of the annual 6-packs, we may restock small quantities of select items by taking from our own stock intended for our flower farm use.
Any restocks are at Lily Stone's full discretion; no notice period will be provided. Typically our recommendation is that if there is something you really have your heart set on, please don't wait too long to pick it up.
I BOUGHT A CERTAIN FLOWER LAST YEAR, BUT YOU'RE NOT OFFERING IT THIS YEAR. WHY IS THAT? | Our offerings change from year to year depending on the availability of seeds, plugs, and roots, and with our community's interests! Some years we experience seed shortages where we are unable to obtain seed to produce a certain flowers from seed (for example, fires in Australia several years ago disrupted the availability of eucalyptus seed for several seasons). Other times, there are crop failures of certain plugs; said another way, they were on our order initially but were cancelled beyond our control due to crop failures at the growing facilities.
Another important factor in determining our greenhouse offerings is space. Given that we only have a limited amount of space in our retail greenhouse, as a team we have to make tough decisions about what makes the cut each year, while still ensuring there's room to bring in fun, new items!
WHAT IS YOUR RETURN POLICY? | Certain types of items cannot be returned or refunded including perishable goods like greenhouse items (including but not limited to tubers, roots, rhizomes, corms, seeds, plants, etc.). Due to many factors such as access to moisture, access to light, soil quality and conditions, temperature, pests, and other environmental factors surrounding the care of plants/seeds, Lily Stone Gardens is not responsible for failed or poor growth and/or death any plants.
Once these perishable items leave the farm, Lily Stone Gardens is not responsible for any damage or deterioration due to improper care and handling. Any and all responsibility of continued care is solely assumed by the buyer and Lily Stone Gardens holds no responsibility for the future growth of the plants, seeds, corms, tubers, roots, rhizomes, etc.
We understand it is always disappointing when a plant dies or doesn't grow exactly like you think it will. Unfortunately, this is part of the unpredictable nature of gardening and flower farming. Trust us - we have many plants die under our care every single year too despite our best efforts. If you have a question about an item, please get in touch to discuss.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION | For any greenhouse questions, please call our team at the Lily Stone Shop at 1 (204) 712-6678 or email us at orders@lilystonegardens.com
See you soon!
- Kelly & the Lily Stone Team