Nurseries brace for worst during COVID-19 pandemic

NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pennsylvania (WPVI) -- Bursting with life, shelves filled with those beautiful flowers and plants you've been looking for.

"We've got a perishable product that only has a limited lifespan," said Steve Mostardi, owner of Mostardi's Nursery.

It's a scary reality for local nurseries like Mostardi's, a Newton Square staple since the 60s.

You may be itching to spruce up your garden while social distancing, but these businesses have been closed for more than a month due to the pandemic.

This time of year is their bread and butter.

"May means close to 40% of our annual volume with Mother's Day weekend being huge," Mostardi said.

Garden centers have been forced to think outside the box.

Greenhorn Gardens in Arlington Cemetery based in Drexel Hill, offers curbside pick up. You place your order online, call when you're outside and then you don't even have to leave your car, they place the order in your trunk. They've seen more people ordering vegetable plants.

"Since this has happened, a lot of people have gotten more focused on growing their own food. Since this pandemic, more people are interested in where their food is coming from," manager Sean McNicholl said.

And if you've been searching online, you might notice a lot of big box stores are all sold out on a lot of gardening products, but there are other sites to turn to like Esty, Bloomscape and The Sill.

But your favorite local mom-and-pop says they need you more than ever.

"I think people really need and want to patronize their local independent garden centers," Steve Mostardi said.