BETTER Plants.

We believe you deserve the best, and that’s exactly what we deliver.

Our story began in 1992 when Frank Mariani established Mariani Nursery in Kenosha, Wisconsin, with the vision of supplying premium B&B trees to high-end landscapes in the North Shore. As the nursery expanded year after year to meet demand from a growing customer base, we also began to see an increasing need for container production of historically field-grown shrubs like spirea and dogwoods. It became clear that container production had to be part of our future. So, ten years later, in 2002, Mariani Nursery became Mariani Nurseries when we opened our 120-acre container range and propagation facility in Garden Prairie, Illinois. We grew and propagated over 84,000 #3 and #5 shrubs in that first year, and that number has risen steadily ever since as we continue to increase production while expanding and refining our product line.

Our next major milestone occurred in 2008 when Mike Mennenoh, now our General Manager, joined Mariani Nurseries and launched the perennial program, growing 72,000 #1 containers in the first year. The decision to grow perennials in Garden Prairie proved to be integral to our future success, as it allowed us to be a complete source of plant material to our diverse customer base.

The next chapter of our history began in 2014 when we changed our name to Mariani Plants. We had survived the Great Recession and, while our ideals and values had remained consistent over the years, our company had evolved. We felt it was time for our name to reflect our commitment to our entire product line of B&B trees and shrubs and container shrubs and perennials.

We began trials with the Accelerator® container in 2015, and 2016 marked the introduction of the Accelerator® program at the Kenosha nursery.

In 2018, we expanded the container range in Garden Prairie by ten acres, allowing us to grow an additional 56,000 #3 and #5 shrubs. We also renovated our order processing and loading area in order to improve the order pickup and shipping processes.

Within five years of introducing the Accelerator® container program, we reached our limit on what we could produce at the Kenosha nursery. So, in 2021, we broke ground on our nine-acre Accelerator® range in Garden Prairie, more than doubling our production capacity. The expansion was completed in 2022 and we now grow 11,000 Accelerator® trees annually.

While we were breaking ground on the Garden Prairie Accelerator® pad, we were also laying down the gravel for our one-acre perennial expansion, giving us the capacity to grow an additional 168,000 #1 perennials in 2022.

Over 30 years since we first opened the doors of our Kenosha nursery, we’re still only in the beginning chapters of our story. We’re currently in the process of redesigning our propagation program, which will allow us to open up more space for container production. We couldn’t be more excited about the future of Mariani Plants, and our future wouldn’t be possible without the incredible partnerships we have formed with our customers throughout the past three decades.

THE History

Our quality plant material built us, our customer service and plant expertise keeps us strong.

Container Shrubs and Accelerator® Trees

We pride ourselves on producing the highest quality container trees and shrubs in the industry. We currently grow over 300,000 #3, #5, #7, and #10 shrubs and evergreens, and 11,000 #15 and #25 Accelerator® containers on the same 120-acre piece of land that we started on over 20 years ago. We continue to expand production by constantly reimagining the space of the Garden Prairie nursery in order to maximize our use of the land and increase efficiencies wherever possible.

Container trees and shrubs are grown and spaced on drip irrigation, promoting uniform growth and clean foliage. Soil nutrient and pH levels are closely monitored, and we implement a strict Integrated Pest Management program in order to responsibly manage pests and diseases while ensuring the highest quality plant material. In the early years of the nursery, we focused our container production mainly on meeting the needs of landscape contractors, but our product line has evolved greatly in the years since then to allow us to serve our broad customer base of retailers, re-wholesalers, and landscapers. We are constantly fine-tuning the varieties we grow so that we can adapt to the ever-changing needs of our customers.

Perennials

We’ve grown our perennial program considerably over the past 15 years, and perennials now account for one third of Mariani Plants sales. We produce over 650,000 #1 and #3 perennials, ferns, and grasses on just over two acres of the nursery. We plant successively throughout the season to ensure that we never run out of essentials like Allium, Calamagrostis, and Rudbeckia, while remaining committed to trialing all the newest introductions on the market.

We strive to be a complete source of perennials for landscapers, retailers, and re-wholesalers, and quality is our top priority for every customer. To ensure the highest quality perennials, our growers follow a strict preventative fungicide program and continuously scout our perennial crops. We’re also mindful of the pollinator populations that our nursery supports, and we do our best to responsibly follow best management practices when it comes to implementing IPM strategies for pest control. Our successive planting schedule and the quick-turning nature of perennial production allow us to have fresh inventory available all season long while giving us the flexibility to adjust our production quickly and reactively to meet changes in demand.

WHAT MAKES US DIFFERENT?

Gold Key Growers

As a licensed Gold Key Grower and Supplier, we’re part of a distinguished group of growers that has partnered with the Proven Winners® brand to better support the PW® line of products. This partnership allows us to propagate our own PW® liners, obtain access to genetics before new plants are introduced into the market, provide input on the release of future introductions, and gain insight into the marketing efforts of the PW® brand. It also allows us to better control our production cycles and gives us the opportunity to share honest feedback with our customers based on our own unbiased trials of new introductions.

Propagation

One thing that’s remained consistent over all these years is our commitment to producing high-quality liners, and we proudly propagate the liners for over 75% of all our container shrubs, as well as a growing number of our B&B and Accelerator® trees and shrubs, at our propagation facility in Garden Prairie. We believe that superior plants start with superior liners, and we’re committed to propagating as much of our container material as possible, from Annabelles and Magic Carpet Spirea to Hydrangea Quick Fire Fab® and the Spiraea Double Play® series.

We currently have three climate-controlled propagation greenhouses, two of which have sand beds that we use to stick softwood cuttings, and one with a heated concrete floor that is used for direct stick plugs. Our field propagation beds are composed of a light, sandy loam soil that is ideal for digging bare root liners. And much of our propagation is done by shifting bare root liners into large plug trays and one-gallon containers for shift-ups into #3 and #5 pots.

Our propagation practices are constantly evolving. While some tried and true methods have been handed down over the years by our experienced propagation team, we frequently reevaluate our techniques in order to increase the success rates of difficult-to-propagate varieties and improve the quality of our liners.

Accelerator®

Container Tree Program

We have led the industry with our use of the Accelerator® container, and we were the first nursery in our region to develop a large-scale tree program using a root pruning container. Our trials with the Accelerator® container began in 2015 and its efficacy was clear to us early on. The design of the Accelerator® pot prohibits the growth of thick, girdling roots and increases the development of a fibrous root system. We found in our trials that trees grown in the Accelerator® container grow faster and establish more quickly into their environment after planting than B&B material due to their well-developed root systems. Another benefit to the Accelerator® program is that it allows us to have high- quality shade trees, multi-stem and single-stem ornamentals, and large shrubs available all season long without being restricted to dig windows.

We were so confident in our Accelerator® container program that, in 2021, we began construction on our new nine-acre Accelerator® range in Garden Prairie, more than doubling our capacity for Accelerator® container material, and this is only the beginning. We believe that the Accelerator® program is not only a major part of the future of Mariani Plants, but of the nursery industry as a whole.

When it comes to shipping and response times, we’re among the fastest in the industry. Our excellent customer service and flexible shipping schedules allow us to accommodate our customers’ long-term and last-minute needs, and everything in between. Our experienced Sales team is in constant communication with our Inventory and Shipping Managers, and we do everything we can to ensure that, not only do you get your order when you need it, but that you always receive consistently high-quality plant material that Mariani Plants is known for.

We allow for same day pickups, and for orders to be changed until noon the day before a delivery. We offer a rack drop program for customers who commit to a regular delivery schedule, and if you opt into our pre-pricing program, we’ll price your container plants prior to shipping so they’re ready to sell right off the racks. Our four curtain side box trucks and semi give us the flexibility to ship your plants as efficiently as possible, whether you order one rack or a full truck.

While we’ve seen many changes over the years, one thing that remains consistent is our commitment to our customers. Whether you’ve worked with us for one year or thirty, we believe that your success is our success, and we will do all we can to earn your continued partnership.