Gardeners and people with small-scale produce operations will soon have a new way to markets for the fruits and vegetables they produce.

MSU-Bottineau is in the process of setting up an Entrepreneur Center for Horticulture, abbreviated ECH, which aims to help producers become more efficient and find new places to sell what they grow.

The ECH was funded by a 270-thousand dollar grant over three years and is being run by Holly Mawby - a Churchs Ferry woman we've introduced you to before.

She runs a business that grows flowers, herbs, and vegetables.

She says the idea of ECH is to show people with large gardens or small vegetable farms how to get into the growing organic foods market.

And Mawby says greenhouses can help growers harvest more.

(Holly Mawby, MSU-Bottineau) "If you think about it, our season is so short, if you could extend your season even by a couple weeks on either end, you could almost double your production. Then what you want to do is plan your planting so maybe you're not growing all year round, but you're harvesting all year round. There are certain things like spinach and kale and carrots that can take a pretty darn good freeze, come back from that, and be just fine for sale."


Mawby says MSU-Bottineau's horticulture center will help the state to catch up with neighbors. She says a recent conference she attended showed her where the state stands.

(Holly Mawby) "People from all over the midwest were there and I saw how North Dakota is a bit behind compared to Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa in the buy fresh, buy local and organic production of home grown vegetables and so we need to catch up."


MSU-Bottineau President Dr. Ken Grosz says the Entrepreneur Center for Horticulture puts the college on the leading edge of a growing industry.

He says the ECH is a natural tie-in for the college because its mission is to provide education in natural resources.

The first courses and seminars connected to the ECH could happen this summer or fall. watch the video | save this article / add to your favorites list