Small Town News

Hooked on Plants grows into new locale

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Nursery also offers natural foods

There is no wrong way to grow a plant There are fundamentals, said Kathy Cherico, owner of fresh market and nursery Hooked on Plants, but beyond the basics, if s intuitive.

To accommodate the many ways to grow a garden, Hooked on Plants has moved to a new lo-cation on the corner of Old Landing Road and Airport Road, formerly occupied by Martin's Garden Center. Sitting inside the country store, Cherico said the high-vaulted building gives her room to teach growing fundamentals - something she'd always wanted to do, but never before had the space.

"I just want to be able to show and teach," said Cherico. "Some might call it a seminar."

She's still moving in - the walls are half-painted with summery pinks and limes, the businesses' signature colors - but already, the shelves are stocked with boxes of organic coffee, glowing jars of honey and small containers of fresh herbs, each sold for $L50.

Inventory manager Christopher Cox said Hooked on Plants keeps it local wherever possible. The shop's honey comes from Bee Natural, an apiary in Smyrna, and the free-trade coffee is roasted at Indian River Coffee Company in Millsboro.

"We stress local," Cox said. "Delaware. LocaL"

Cherico's husband, Joe, spends his days readying th nursery for the green rush of spring. There are a few growing pains: The dual blizzards of February killed their palm trees and helped crumple their greenhouse, he said That doesn't stop die business from selling sod, much in demand for snow-ravaged lawns, and mulch. .

As spring nears. Hooked on Plants will offer 35 different colors and varieties of pansies, as well as a full selection of annuals and perennials.

Joe said the business will also offer onion sets, pole beans and dozens of other species native to Delaware soil. If Hooked on Plants doesn't have it, he said, he can order and plant it in a custom poL

Greenhouse or no, Cherico said the business will be ready to supply flowers and arrangements for Easter Sunday. An instinctive gardener, Cherico's love of plants was cultivated on the estate of Bob Carpenter Jr, former owner of the Philadelphia Phillies. Cherico's father, a scout for the team, often brought her to Carpenter's vast grounds. She lost herself in the gardens, striking up conversations with the groundskeepers.

"I like to dig in the dirt," she said. "I like to get my hands dirty."

In 1995, she started a gardening business in Wilmington with die help of her sons. She moved her business south in 2007, setting up shop on Route 24 near Rehoboth Beach While moving in has its myriad stresses - faulty electric, blizzard damage - Cherico looks forward to being fully operational in late April

"I feel like it's home already," she said.

Call Hooked on Plants at: 227-3449





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