Nursery Celebrates 50 Flourishing Years

If Dale Bergquist had one wish after 50 years of operating Green Thumb, the plant nursery he founded, it would be to go back and do it all over again.

Though Bergquist, 78, admits he no longer spends the time he used to at the business and is hard pressed to answer questions about the day-to-day operations, he said he would like to start over again, with only a few plants, a shovel and a hoe.

“When you’re doing something you like, you wouldn’t mind doing it again,” Bergquist said.

The nursery he founded, on the corner of Sherman Way and Jordan Avenue, celebrates its half-century anniversary this weekend. It has grown from a small, 25-foot-wide shop that Bergquist bought for $1,000 to a three-acre indoor/outdoor site, selling patio furniture, fountains and, of course, flowers to residents looking to spruce up their yards.

The nursery is now primarily run by Bergquist’s son, Bud. His daughter, Nancy Bergquist-Underwood, runs the store’s 20-acre growing grounds nearby. But when asked when he relinquished control over the shop, Bergquist is coy.

“My kids would say I haven’t,” he said.

He said the secret to the longevity of the shop is its location. Back in 1946, Canoga Park consisted of little more than 100 homes. But as the area grew, so did the demand for landscaping materials.

“There was an explosion of people moving into the area,” he said.

In 1965, Green Thumb began to expand to other areas. Bergquist’s brothers, Max and Bob, joined the business and together they opened five additional nurseries under the Green Thumb name, including one in Van Nuys.

Although Dale Bergquist would like to start all over again, he said the outcome would likely be much different, given today’s competitive market.

“Small nurseries can’t afford to have land without the customers, and the customers are going to the big chains,” he said. “I’m not saying it can’t be done, but I don’t know if I would do it.”