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Relentless Rains A Drag On Local Garden Centers

Posted at 5:09 PM, Jun 19, 2019
and last updated 2019-06-19 17:38:39-04

LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — June is usually an ideal month for planting, but the owner of a local garden center says that the consistent rain in the last week has not been good for business.

“It has been difficult. The rain chases off the retail customer. They don’t want to be out in the rain,” said Chris Redmond, owner of Redmond’s Garden Center in Lexington.

When it comes to flowers and other potted plants, heavy downpours weigh them down and can cause them to droop. Blooming flowers such as roses are losing petals. The consistent rain is also affecting the soil.

“We have a lot of clay soil here. You need to mend the soil and with the heavy, heavy rains like that, plants can be sitting in puddles and if they don’t have enough drainage, they could rot,” said Redmond.

That can lead to having to get rid of plants.

Redmond’s also does landscaping, but Wednesday was the first time this week that workers were able to get out, taking advantage of the break before the rain came back.

“If you’re mowing, you’re going to rut yards. if you’re planting, if you have any kind of equipment in the yards, you’re going to rut. The customers don’t want to see that,” said Redmond.

Redmond said he’s hoping they can bounce back from the challenges once this long rain pattern ends. He said that rain isn’t the only challenge because recent winds have been knocking over and damaging trees and plants.