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4 CapitalPress.com Friday, August 6, 2021 Stoller Farms: Two generations operate nursery By BRENNA WIEGAND For the Capital Press Stoller Farms Stoller Farms Eden Taylor of Stoller Farms Nursery has a ready helper in her 3-year-old daughter, Victoria. The family busi- ness specializes in zonal and calliope geraniums. They opened Stoller Farms, the nursery, in 1997 with one greenhouse and a propagation area. Stoller Farms now encompasses nine greenhouses totaling 18,000 square feet, three of them added in the six years since Eden quit her day job to join the family business. Stoller Farms produces more than 2,500 lush hanging baskets a year and, in addition to geraniums, grows a variety of annuals. Contacts made over decades of attending farm- ers markets has served the family well in the wake of COVID-19. Stoller Farms has been a fi xture at Beaverton Farm- ers Market for 20 years, takes part in its hometown Molalla Farmers Market and has more contacts from stints at the Lake Oswego and Wilson- ville farmers markets. “We have an interesting booth, a lattice canopy setup with a canopy we hang our baskets from; that makes it really stand out,” she said. “We have our regulars at the farmers markets,” Eden said. “The Clark County Home & Garden Show and the Clackamas County Mas- ter Gardeners show were both shut down due to COVID, but we’ve had a good following Stoller Farms is a regular at area farmers markets and other events. of the market. He went into the fryer chicken business for a short time and while explor- ing options he decided to turn his greenhouse hobby into a business. “I saw the potential in plant sales, and farmers mar- kets were really developing in the mid- and late 1990s,” said Marvin Stoller, who supple- mented his knowledge with horticulture classes at Clacka- mas Community College. 503-678-2700 info@ovg.com * www.ovg.com 20357 Hwy 99 E * Aurora, OR 97002 GREENHOUSES, HIGH TUNNELS, GROUND COVER, POLY FILM, HEATERS, SHADE CLOTH, CORRUGATED POLY CARBONATE, EXHAUST SYSTEMS, ROLL-UPS, CODE STRUCTURES, PRE-FAB END WALLS, WIRE LOCK, CIRCULATING FANS, TWIN WALL POLY CARBONATE, RV COVERS, SHADE STRUCTURES, LIVESTOCK SHELTERS, COMMERCIAL AND RESIDENTIAL, CUSTOMER SIZES LEE’S DIESEL & MOBILE REPAIR Rickreall, OR • 541-936-9146 • www.leesdiesel.com Pivot & Linear Irrigation Systems Parts & Service - TL, Pierce, Valley, Reinke & Zimmatic Linear, Corners, and Pivots Guidance Systems Submersible & Line-Shaft Turbine Pumps, VFD’s Sukup Grain Bins, Dryers, Fans & Heaters Grain Handling Equipment TL Sales, Parts & Service call Brian 503-983-6251 Cell/Text S225729-1 S234034-1 MOLALLA, Ore. — Time, economic trends and consumer preference have combined to transform Stoller Farms of Molalla, Ore., from a turkey farm into a large- scale nursery. Owned by Marvin and Linda Stoller, their daugh- ter, Eden, and her husband, Simon Taylor, with her brother, Mark, the nursery produces some 5,000 zonal and calliope geraniums a year. “We just started selling them and as they became pop- ular, added more and more,” Eden Taylor said. “We have a large variety of colors and our geraniums are larger than most; they make a great all-summer fl ower.” Marvin Stoller had a tur- key farm from 1979 until 1992 when the bottom fell out from the shows and the mar- kets with people driving an hour-plus to come out here to the farm. “It was scary last year,” she said. “We weren’t sure if we were going to have to close all our houses so it’s been pretty gratifying to see people com- ing on out here themselves.” The nursery is part of the Molalla Farm Loop that includes 12 farm stops fea- turing nurseries, vineyards and other value-added ag businesses. “We help each other out,” Eden said. “I like to hand out brochures to our visitors and recommend other places in the area. It helps when you’re off the beaten path.” Eden can often be seen making the rounds with her 3-year-old daughter, Victoria, in tow. “She loves helping in the greenhouse and has started identifying plants, which is fun,” Eden said, adding that the farm was part of her child- hood as well. “I have been selling at farmers markets since I was 9 years old and we still use my grandpa’s old Ford truck to get there,” Eden said. “I was excited when I got my driv- er’s license so I could start driving a truck and working on our booth.”
