My “Secret” Plant Haunt
May 11th, 2010
My haul from Lurgan’s…
Pssssst… do you know about Lurgan Greenhouse? People kept telling me about this old-fashioned family-run garden center in the boonies between Shippensburg and Chambersburg – almost like it was some kind of secret only to be shared with nutso fellow gardeners.
Last May I finally got there. I took my wife for her birthday-present date (hey, at least it’s more romantic than a trip to the township compost facility), and we both fell in love with the place.
For starters, they were serving the absolute best chicken barbecue ever, made on an open charcoal grill with oil, vinegar and powdered seasoning. They do barbecues several weekends every spring as well offer baked goodies like rhubarb pie, strawberry angel food cake, whoopie pies and sticky buns. That all scored big points right off the bat.
Once we started looking at plants, it was obvious these prices were way better than what I was used to seeing. Trees, shrubs and evergreens were $5 to $10 less per plant than most garden centers. Perennials were about $1 less, and most of the bedding annuals were $1.19 for four-packs.
It adds up if you’re buying a lot of stuff. Definitely worth the gas.
Lurgan’s container prices are even less than at box stores. And the selection is very good, too. Ditto especially for the woody plants. They’ve got a nice selection of new and cutting-edge varieties, not just the basic ‘Blue Rug’ junipers, burning bushes and barberries that are still so widespread at mass merchants.
They’ve also got water-garden plants and fish, garden supplies, houseplants, mulch, boulders, outdoor furniture – pretty much everything a full-service garden center sells. It was a lot more than I expected, which was pretty much a few small greenhouses selling annuals and perennials.
Lurgan is the name of the village the place is near, not the name of the owners (that’s Fisher). It’s about an hour’s drive and decades back in time from Harrisburg.
As an Amish-run business, Lurgan Greenhouses don’t do electricity, computers, credit cards, Sunday hours or modern busyness-fueled nastiness. You’ll find helpful, hard-working staff in straw hats and bonnets who are genuinely nice to everyone because that’s just the way people should be.
At our first visit, some lady knocked over a very nice pot with her shopping cart and broke it. Within seconds, one of the staff came over to assure the woman it was OK and that they’d clean it up. No problem. Accidents happen. Have a wonderful day and thanks for coming. That spoke volumes to me. The message I heard was that it’s people above profits at Lurgan. You’ll see no signs that say, “You break it, you bought it.”
The setting is also beautiful. The best way to get there is take the Pa. Turnpike to the Blue Mountain exit, then turn right on Rt. 997, right on Rt. 641, then left again 2 more miles on Rt. 997 until a sharp left on a small back road called Oakdale Road. You’ll wind back less than a half mile to the farm on the right. There you’ll see silos, mountains and greenhouses instead of housing developments and billboards. If you’ve got a GPS, type in 8126 Oakdale Road, Orrstown, Pa.
It’s so peaceful there and such a pleasant visit into unspoiled countryside that it’s no wonder people somehow hear about Lurgan in Maryland, New Jersey, Virginia and beyond. My wife and I liked the visit so much that we went back last week. We came away with a trunk load of annuals (under $100), a cherry pie, two barbecue dinners for $12 and reduced blood pressure.
We’ll probably make this an annual date.
If you go, take your checkbook or lots of cash. They don’t take credit cards.
Also, don’t bother trying to go on a Sunday. They’re closed. Go weekdays 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. (until 8 p.m. from mid-April to mid-June) or Saturday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Stay home with your family on Sunday.
Phone: none. Email: none. Web site: none.
You know, I like the sound of that…