Welcome to the new Garden Party!!   We are Peter and Theresa.  We started Garden Party in 1985 (I suspect before you were born.)
At first Garden Party was a home-based plant business. But then nurseries and box stores exploded, and we couldn’t match that pricing.
So we switched to growing organic vegetables and ran a CSA (aka ‘food box) farm for 20 years or so.   Then Theresa injured herself on the farm and so farming was too painful.  So we retired (the first time).  Theresa went back to school and completed her doctorate in Human Geography at the University of Waterloo (in local food systems).  The she received a Postdoctoral position at the Laurier Center for Sustainable Food Systems.  That inspired her to launch Open Food Network Canada.   While she was doing all that academic stuff,  miraculously her injury repaired itself.   So – she retired the second time (from academics this time) and started farming again.
BUT we wanted to do something different this time around,  so we started growing specialty cut flowers.  We met the most AMAZING community of flower farmers and floral designers who just keep inspiring us. But flower farming is physically very demanding,  and honestly we just couldn’t keep going at this scale and pace.
So – we retired for the third time.
But we realized that Theresa is very sad and can’t think if her hands are not dirty.  We both need to keep feeling the nature around us.   So….   we are still doing some cut flower production –  for local designers and for flower lovers who want sustainable flower options.   AND we are gradually returning full circle to where we started –  with little plants and seedlings.
We are gradually scaling up our boutique (primarily online) flower seedlings, bulb, tubers and root sales.  We sell both wholesale (shipping to flower farmers across Canada)  and retail (on-farm pickup – to anyone who wants to try new and exciting cutting flowers in their gardens.