A family affair

As a young boy, Richard Hartley had a love of horticulture. While most children had their lemonade stands, Richard, along with childhood friend, Peter Miles, opened a little plant stand and sold cacti for two cents each. They called their new venture Sun & Shade.

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From 1962 to 1965 Richard worked for Nickerson’s Nursery in Brentwood and Beverly Hills. He continued to study horticulture through high school and college. In 1966, Richard started landscaping professionally. In 1971, he recruited his wife, Kate, to make some cuttings of Eugenia mertifolia. There had been some shortage of the plants the previous season, and he wanted to ensure an ample supply for his landscape customers. Their project, Hartley Farms, outgrew the backyard and spread to the rented acre next door. By 1980 the nursery had expanded and moved onto ten acres in Zuma Canyon. By now it was called Hartley Wholesale Nursery, selling only to nurseries and landscapers.

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In 1986, Richard, Kate, and their five children relocated to Somis, Ca and established Hartley Wholesale Nursery as a nursery offering wholesale prices to the public. During their time in Somis, Richard and Kate built a garden for their daughter's wedding, which evolved into one of Ventura County's most well known wedding venues. 

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Kate and Richard are now looking north to Bradley, Ca where they can build another garden closer to their grandkids. They have also branched out into essential oils. With the ingenuity of their youngest, Dick Hartley, they are making essential oils from the plants they grow, with an emphasis on Lavender. Their daughter, Mary-Kate, is creating soaps, lotions, and other products with their oil.

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So, it truly is a family affair.