GOING BACK TO ROOTS

Credit: Jeffrey B. Roth
Michelle Elston, founder and owner, has loved plants and flowers for as long as she can remember. After studying plant science at Cornell University, she and her husband, Mike, moved to Massachusetts. There, they bought a garden center and stayed for 9 years. But after the birth of their first child, they realized that the best place to raise their kids was close to family roots.
So, they sold the garden center and moved back to Michelle's hometown of Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Time and space soon opened up for her to pursue her dream of farming. What started as a small garden has evolved into a 10-acre farm that produces enough flowers for more than 25,000 supermarket bouquets and numerous events annually. Now, 15 years later, she realizes she never imagined her seed of an idea would turn into such a thriving small business.