CAROLS GREENHOUSE Growing up in Pennsylvania, Carol Coley knew that someday she wanted to either raise horses or grow plants in her own greenhouse. At the age of 19 she moved to Oregon and began working for Nike in the marketing department. But her dream of growing plants motivated her to go back to school to receive an associate's degree in horticulture from Clackamas Community College. After working 25 years for other horticulture companies in Oregon, including Klupenger's Nursery & Greenhouses, Al's Garden Center and Fessler Nursery, Coley felt she had acquired the business and technical knowledge she needed to start her own company. In addition, Coley took small-business classes at a community college. Coley started her business, Carol's Greenhouses & Gardens, in 2004 with one 30-by-90-foot greenhouse in Molalla, Ore. At the time she was still working full time as the main grower and propagator at Fessler Nursery. She sold her plants at the Beaverton Farmer's Market. "I started growing part time just to see how things would go," Coley said. "I was growing bedding plants, mixed baskets, unusual perennials and tropical's including alocasia, colocasia, and euphorbias. I was looking to find a niche." In 2006, Coley was approached about purchasing a 2.6-acre property in Salem, Ore., that was in foreclosure. Before making the decision to move, Coley determined how much money she needed to operate the first year in business. She made her projections based on information she received from Juillards, a small nursery in Canby, Ore.

"They (Judy and Larry Juillard) encouraged me that I could do this based on their size," she said. "They operated four greenhouses and sold wholesale and also retailed at the Beaverton Farmer's Market. Most of my planning was based on their books and projections. I had to figure out how much money I was going to need to run the business for a whole year and set that money aside. I looked at the business from a worst-case scenario."

Coley used money from the sale of her home in Molalla to finance the property in Salem and to purchase the materials she needed to start the business. One change she would have made in the relocation process was the time of year she moved. She moved in May, taking her existing greenhouses with her.

Coley has two FarmTek greenhouses covering 10,000 square feet that are equipped with Horticultural Services benching systems and Dosatron injectors. BioTherm bench heating has been installed in the propagation house. One production adjustment she had to make is to inject citric acid into the irrigation system to lower the pH of the well water.

Coley said she would eventually like to add three more structures to increase the covered production area another 10,000 square feet.

"I'm at a point where I want to establish the business and organize what I have before I add any more greenhouses," she said. "I'm trying to maximize the space I already have. I'm also looking at what can be grown outside."

Coley's product mix is 70 percent perennials, 20 percent annuals and 10 percent tropicals. One of her goals is to reduce numbers or remove a plant when it starts to become more common.

Since most of Coley's finished plant sales occur during April and May, she is looking to expand sales by starting a liner division with about 50 varieties of perennials and tropical's. The liners are produced in 105-cell trays and 2 1/2-inch pots. Coley said the 2 1/2-inch pots allow growers to transplant the plants into gallon containers for quick turnover. She said liner sales start in August and extend through February.

When Carol Coley, owner of Carol's Greenhouses & Gardens in Salem, Ore., is looking for new plants, she always has the end consumer in mind.

"I want non-fussy plants," she said. "Plants that are easy to maintain and grow well in this area. I'm also looking for plants that flower and/or have foliage with color or unique textures or fragrance. Plants that have a multipurpose, not something that blooms once and it's done."

Founded: In 2004 by Carol Coley.

Location: Salem, Ore.

Crops: Annuals, perennials and tropical's and hanging baskets. Propagates vegetative liners.

Market: Retail and wholesale. Finished crops are sold to independent garden centers and directly to consumers at farmer's markets and area plant sales.

Production space: 10,000 square feet of greenhouse space and 10, 000 square feet of outdoor production.

Employees: Five part time from January through May. Additional employees are needed in peak production and shipping periods.

For more: Carol's Greenhouses & Gardens, (503) 399-7187