At Corso’s Horticulture, the team’s dedication is seen in the quality of the final product. Every employee cares about the plants. Chad Corso, President of Corso’s Horticulture, says the team values hard work. This attitude helped Corso’s build an excellent reputation with its customers throughout its 81-year history.
Greenhouse Grower named Corso’s Horticulture its 2022 Operation of the Year at the Medal of Excellence reception, held at Cultivate’22 in Columbus, OH earlier this year.
Another factor that contributes to Corso’s success is its trial garden. Corso’s trials its plants to weed out crops that will not perform well in its production cycle. All perennials at Corso’s use the same soil, Head Grower Megan Mahoney says, so the trials will show if a plant thrives in that soil. Trialing also allows the growers to see the shape and size of the plants and whether they show disease resistance. The trial manager looks for the longevity of the flowers, flower count, and hardiness. Results of the trials show if the crop is truly a perennial in Corso’s Zone 6 location. Corso’s trialed 150 varieties this year.
There are row trials and trial gardens, Mahoney says, noting one greenhouse is dedicated to trials. The trial gardens, one in the sun and one in the shade, also show how the perennials complement each other. The trial gardens are a source of landscape design concepts.
The team at Corso’s is close-knit, and many employees have worked at the company for decades. This culture is created by treating the employees well, Chad Corso says. Corso’s Horticulture is building new housing for 205 H-2A employees, according to CFO Fritz Mueller. The property to house H-2A employees will be shared with Green Circle Growers. Corso’s works with Manzana, a farm labor contractor, to hire migrant workers. The housing will be completed by Dec. 1.
“We’re trying to build good housing for those workers. It’s the right thing to do,” Mueller says. “We have a core group of people here every year, growers and managers.”
At Corso’s the people are their key to success. Experienced, efficient, and respected growers and managers bring customers back year after year.
Check out the slideshow above for a more in-depth at Corso’s.