From a half-acre to 8 acres
Rootstock Garden Center opened in 2004 on a rented half-acre off Chinden Blvd, selling bare-root fruit trees out of sawdust bins each spring. The trees did well in Treasure Valley clay because we grafted them onto rootstock chosen for it, and word moved yard to yard.
Twenty-two seasons on, the lot runs to 8 acres with 700+ plant varieties, and 4 staff horticulturists work the floor every day. We still graft a share of our own fruit trees, harden veggie starts off outdoors before sale, and back every tree with a 2-year guarantee. The rule from the sawdust-bin days holds: if it will not live in a Boise yard, it does not go on the lot.
Twenty-two seasons of repeat visits
I bring photos of the beds each spring and leave with plants matched to the light. The tags mean what they say for our west-side wind.
Tom B.Garden City, ID
Their grafted apples fruit here where the box-store trees never set. The horticulturist even labeled which two to plant near each other.
Karen S.Kuna, ID
The raised-bed mix and compost by the yard beat anything I hauled from the chains, and the crew loaded it into my truck.
Mike D.Meridian, ID