SAUK RAPIDS HERALD | SATURDAY, APRIL 20, 2019 | Page 1B
Serving rural Benton County, Morrison, Mille Lacs & Kanabec Counties
BENTON AG Plus
Sauk Rapids Herald
SATURDAY, APRIL 20, 2019
A green thumb from day one
PHOTO BY JAKE DOETKOTT
Nick Kaeter (left) and his mother Barb hold flower baskets in their greenhouse April 18 in Rice. Kaeter owns and operates Nick’s Plants and Produce on the family farm.
Kaeter operates Nick’s Plants and Produce BY JAKE DOETKOTT STAFF WRITER
Rubes Sponsored by Fluegge’s Ag
RICE – Nick Kaeter, owner of Nick’s Plants and Produce, made his move into the commercial greenhouse business in
2011 when he was 13 years old. But, Kaeter’s fixation with vegetation has been a lifelong interest. “I was always messing around in the dirt as a kid,” Kaeter said. “Since I can remember, I’ve had an interest in the world of plants and how they grow.” Nick’s Plants and Produce is located at the Kaeter family farm northeast of Rice.
At the age of 5, Kaeter’s parents, Rod and Barb Kaeter, purchased a plastic-frame greenhouse from a hardware store for Kaeter’s birthday. “The first greenhouse wasn’t anything special, but I took to it,” Kaeter said. “Not too long after that, my family and I built another greenhouse using some old house windows and a clear roof, among
other materials. We grew veggies exclusively: tomatoes, cabbages, peppers, watermelons and pumpkins. … That greenhouse we built lasted us around four years before we had to build a new one.” Early into Kaeter’s greenhouse days, his grandfather, Vern Kaeter, visited the farm to drop off his own vegetable plants. Kaeter cared for the plants for a month or more before his grandfather would return to take them back. “I suppose it was my grandpa that made me realize early on that there was money in this business,” Kaeter said. “We already had family and friends who would visit our farm, and then, as interest from locals grew, we built up a good network of people by word of mouth and through the network of people my parents knew.” By 2011, Kaeter was selling his vegetables to Buckman Hardware in Buckman. Shortly after, Kaeter threw flowers into the mix, and his business expanded over time. “We started off small …, but now Mothers’ Day is huge for us. Our busiest week most years,” Kaeter said. “I went from about 25 hanging baskets to approximately 400 baskets. I couldn’t have
Kaeter page 3B
PHOTO BY ELIZABETH HOAG
Sally Lentner sits at her kitchen table April 17 at her home north of Foley. Lentner has been raising hens since 1952.
A basket filled with breakfast Lentner raises hens, collects eggs BY ELIZABETH HOAG | STAFF WRITER
FOLEY – The Easter bunny is not the only one hard at work collecting eggs this time of year. Sally Lentner has cared for her laying hens and collected eggs since 1952. While she continues her hobby, Lentner maintains a routine and forms relationships with not only her customers but her chickens as well. When Lentner, 88, and her late husband, George Lentner, purchased their 80-acre farmstead in 1947, they agreed to raise chickens. “George fixed up the chicken coop, and we have had chickens ever since,” she said. The couple raised 10 children on their farm, where they had chickens, pigs and Holstein cattle. Now, the Lentners’ son, Kevin, and his wife, Katie, and their children, Noah and Cole, own and operate the farm. “They … take care of everything I cannot,” Lentner
Lentner page 2B
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FLUEGGE’S AG
ROD FLUEGGE “the boss” Farm Material Handling Specialist i lH dli S i li 2040 Mahogany St., Mora, MN WWW.FLUEGGESAG.COM 320-679-2981 BA-APRIL 20-1B-JW