Calla lilies brought to you by Duva Farm

Purchased from Hodgson Farms at Wednesday’s Union Square Market.  Hodgson Farms has every color tulip imaginable:  a dozen for $7.00.  Find them at the market and buy some to brighten up your apartment or office!

Chris Emmerich has been building greenhouses and growing plants for the majority of his life. Along with his wife, Ginny (a fellow Cornell graduate), and three full time workers, Chris runs Emmerich Greenhouses, in Warwick, NY.  His days are long, varied, and often challenging, yet throughout our interview, it was apparent that there is no job better suited for Chris.  His knowledge base, passion for plants and greenhouses, and ease with customers make growing plants and selling at various farmers’ markets a perfect fit.

Chris built his first greenhouse in 1974, when he was a junior in high school.  One of his high school friends had worked in a greenhouse and they both had the natural ability to “put things together”.  Realizing his passion and affinity for horticulture early in life allowed Chris to clearly direct his studies at Cornell University and subsequent career.  No one formally taught Chris to build greenhouses; he explained that he is mechanically inclined, which has ultimately saved his business a lot of money because he is able to fix a broken furnace or a leaky hose instead of calling someone else to make those repairs.

If you have a general questions about plants or need more specific guidance, look no further than Chris:  he is a true expert in his field.  He excelled at Cornell, joining Pi Alpha Zi, the horticulture honor society, and thriving in classes that required intense memorization and understanding of trees and plants.  One class’s exam was to identify the common and Latin names of 400 woody plants through a single stark twig. 

In the years since Cornell, Chris has worked to steadily grow his greenhouse operation.  A brief stint as a bulb salesman served to reconfirm that building greenhouses and growing plants was what he was meant to do.

Using 30 acres of family land (that had originally been a dairy farm), Chris officially started Emmerich Greenhouses in 1982.  The operation is now a 22,000 sq. foot greenhouse, with 2 acres of cut flowers.  Two years later, in 1984, Emmerich began selling at the 77^th St. and Borough Hall Greenmarkets.  He’s been selling at these locations ever since!  Unlike some farmers you might see at the NYC Greenmarkets, Emmerich Greenhouses is not a multi-generational family farm. It’s a thriving operation in its first generation.

In fact, Emmerich Greenhouses is thriving at a time when the economy is tough and the greenhouse business faces challenges.  As Chris says, “I’ve seen so many greenhouses go up and within a couple years they are empty. You’ve got to know what you’re doing.”

The key to Emmerich’s staying power seems to be their focus on Relationships andtheir ability to be Flexible.  These relationships span their customer base, the Greenmarket staff, fellow farmers, bulb salesmen, and even with me (Chris insisted on paying for my lunch!).  Operating a greenhouse full time means that the Emmerichs must remain flexible with the weather, with their customers, with their flowers and plants, and even with vacation time.  Instead of long vacations, Chris shared that he and his wife can occasionally squeeze in mini vacations with their son, Lee. 

Ultimately, Emmerich Greenhouses has become an extension of Chris’s family:  it’s their business, their truck, and their products. Both Chris and Ginny want to be present at the greenhouse and Greenmarkets.

Q: Can you share a sample daily schedule with me?

 Chris Emmerich:Today, Tuesday, at Borough Hall goes something like this: 

2:00 am:  Get up to add more wood to the furnace that heats the greenhouse

3:30 am:  The alarm goes off.  I leave Warwick by 4:30

6:00 am:  Arrive in Brooklyn at Borough Hall; if time, I take a quick nap in the truck

7:00 am:  I start setting up the stand

7:30-8:00 am:  The first customers trickle in

9:00 am:  First major rush of customers, as they head to work

12:00 pm:  Biggest rush of customers on their lunch breaks

3:00 pm-5:00 pm:  Business slows down.  I’ll stay until 5:00 no matter what, because if I leave between 3:00-5:00, I’ll sit in traffic and burn fuel.

Q:Tell me about your truck (and its importance). 

 C.E.: There’s heat and there’s insulation [in the truck].  I sell up until Christmas; I’ve left Warwick at 15 degrees and the heat in the truck was 65.  If it’s below 25 for a high, I won’t even bother [as] the poinsettias will freeze by the time people get them home.  But if it’s above 28 [degrees], I’ll set up a little greenhouse (10 x 10 with a little heater) and I carry on business.  The people expect me there. 

Q:Where does your passion for growing plants come from? 

 C.E.: Probably from my parents; not that they were farmers—my dad worked for New York City in advertising and my mom was a housewife of 5 kids.  We always had trees and we were planting.  A buddy of mine in high school and I built some greenhouses…it’s a really cool place to work on a January day when it’s sunny and cold out, you go in there. 

 Q: What is the best part at selling at the NYC Greenmarkets?

C.E.: I have customers that have been coming to me for 20 years; I’ve watched their kids grow up…they truly like me and care about me.  We share stories.  It’s something you don’t get at any other job or store.  I know I can’t be fired!  I’m my own boss: I can choose which 17 hours of the day I work!  Times aren’t great for us, but we have a job…it’s something we believe in. Our theory is that in a bad economy, people don’t buy big things or take vacations.  They hang around the home and buy plants to make themselves feel better.

Q:Which particular plants are specifically seasonal besides poinsettias? 

C.E.: Easter plants such as Easter lilies, tulips, daffodils, hyacinth. Mums in the Fall; Freesia:  I start that in November and it spends a lot of time in the greenhouse; both freesia and Easter lilies are heat intensive.

Emmerich Greenhouse’s Market Schedule:

Tuesday:  Borough Hall

Wednesday:  West Milford

Saturday:  Borough Hall

Sunday:  77^th St; Warwick Valley Farmers Market

Rockefeller Center for the 6 weeks the market is open

Sample Selection of Flowers:

 (To name a few)

Alyssums, Geraniums, Diascia, Argyranthemums, Pansies, Violas, Panola, Stocks, Snaps, Dusty Millers, Ivy, Verbena, Rosemary, Thyme, Oregano, Primroses, Ranunculus, and Oxalis. Cut flowers include Tulips, Daffodils, and Freesia

Stop by the market and see for yourself! Check Emmerich’s What is Fresh page for frequent updates.

The Union Square Greenmarket is alive today, full of colorful potted plants and cut flowers from Petal Flowers and Silva Orchids (to name just a few) and apples and pears from farmers like Breezy Hill Orchards and Migliorelli Farms. 

Some root vegetables still remain (potatoes and beets) at John D. Madura Farms and there are plenty of fresh microgreens and garlic to be had courtesy of Windfall Farms. 

Head over to the market to enjoy the Spring weather and excite your senses.

Happy Marketing!

-Meaghin