Vicki's Garden & Gifts in Spokane
Our Story
Vicki's Garden & Gifts is part of Lima Greenhouses and is proud to be the newest addition to a 4th generation family owned and operated business. Lima Greenhouses were originally established in 1932 by Henry Gothmann as Gothmann Greenhouse. As the business continued to expand, it remained a wholesale operation. In 2012 the Lima family opened Vicki's Garden & Gifts to the public. Vicki's Garden & Gifts is proud to offer a wide range of annuals, perennials, herbs, plant care essentials, and decor.
Lima Greenhouses, formerly "Gothman Greenhouses", was established in 1930 by Henry Gothman. Gothman was a real entrepreneur in the truest sense of the word.
In his lifetime he started and operated no less than five businesses. The most successful of his endeavors began when be built his first greenhouse in 1930. This 700 ft greenhouse is the foundation for the current Vicki's Garden Center. In it Henry raised cabbage and celery starts to support his truck farming operation. Back then, buyers would bring their own trucks to a farm, load up the produce and take it straight to market. As the market expanded, Henry began to grow other vegetable starts and eventually moved into growing a small supply of bedding plants.
Henry Gothman retired in 1953 and passed on the business to his employee and "son he never had" Cecil Jared.
Cecil and his family owned and operated the business until 1970 when it was again passed on to their daughter and son-in-law, Marian and Ed Lima. During their ownership, the business expanded to approximately 25,000 square feet of greenhouse in order to meet the growing demand for bedding plants.
The Jared family mainly grew bedding plants and shrubs in the spring and hothouse tomatoes in the winter. During their careers they became well known for their quality plants and warm, friendly personalities. Recently, we asked Ed what was most memorable about his career and he joked "Long hours and low pay".
That hard work paid off. In the 25 years they were in the business, they expanded the operation to 4 greenhouses and a fifth in the works. When they retired in 2012 they passed on the business to their son Eddie and daughter-in-law, Vicki.
Current owners Eddie and Vicki Lima have spent most of their lives in the greenhouse business. Eddie Lima began working in the greenhouses when he started high school. The current Lima Greenhouse office was originally the house he grew up in. Vicki met Eddie in high school and began working with his family and learning how to propagate and maintain the plants.
Lima Greenhouses was originally only a wholesale provider but Vicki knew there was a need for affordable, quality product that was grown and tended by people who knew what they were doing. Vicki's Garden & Gifts opened in 2012 and carried only annuals and perennials. In just one year the center expanded to carry herbs, fruit and vegetable plants and a line of gardening supplies and beautiful yard decor.
Now their children have joined them in running the business.
Sons, Joe and Nick are the head growers and their younger daughter, Nichole, splits her time between being a shipping manager and working in the office. In all, the company employs about 50 people from Washington to Idaho with their two growing facilities and Vicki's Garden Center.