Greene County flower farm recovering from greenhouse fire
Family, friends and former employees have joined in on the cleanup crew after a fire Sunday night at a long-running flower farm in Greene County.
The fire at Shields Herb & Flower Farm damaged the central building of the longest greenhouse, which was housing wine barrels and seedlings for the coming growing season.
The cause of the fire has not officially been determined, but owner Leigh Shields thinks one of the greenhouse heaters may have blown up.
Shields first learned of the fire while checking a camera on his computer while his wife was watching the Oscars.
鈥淚t was about 9 o鈥檆lock at night, and I look and I go, 鈥榃hy is the parking lot all lit up like it鈥檚 daylight?'鈥� he said.
As he walked out to his porch, he heard a repeated 鈥渂oom鈥� that sounded like gunfire. Instead, it was 150 cases of empty bottles, each exploding in the fire.
鈥淚 come around the corner of the porch, and I see this thing is 20 feet high with flames,鈥� he said.
Shields searched the greenhouses for hoses while contending with black smoke and crawled up a steep embankment to turn off the gas, he said.
鈥淚 kept on falling down,鈥� he said Tuesday, standing on a path below the remnants of the greenhouse. 鈥淚 burned my hair, so I wet my head down, and I crawled up there, and the third time, I got the thing and turned it off. Then I came around here, climbed up on the deck and started with the hose.鈥�
Six local departments wound up being called out to fight the blaze, which was extinguished around 1 a.m., Shields said.
The plants inside were 鈥渃ooked,鈥� he said, including early tomatoes in a gallon pot, hanging baskets and a citrus plant he鈥檇 had for 40 years.
鈥淭here鈥檚 one orange left 鈥� black,鈥� he said.
The total damage could be around $50,000 鈥� or more than $100,000 in the worst-case scenario where none of the wine can be used, Shields said.
About 150 barrels of wine were in the greenhouse. About 30 were singed; hopefully, only half a dozen wind up being too damaged, Shields said. He plans to powerwash the barrels and inspect them for leaks.
Sunday night, Shields told the firemen, 鈥淐ome back in two weeks. We鈥檒l have barbecue wine,鈥� he said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 unusual wine,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 made with honey, so it鈥檚 pretty much indestructible by cold or heat. It鈥檒l be the first wine drunk on the moon.鈥�
A big delivery of seedlings arriving this week had been intended for that greenhouse, but will have to be moved to another one. The flats 鈥� 200 trays with soil 鈥� had all melted in the fire, Shields said.
Adjacent greenhouses took on some smoke damage and soot, but should be OK, Shields said.
鈥淲e won鈥檛 know for a couple of weeks,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 sell them until April, so we have enough time. And the tomatoes, we鈥檙e just going to do them over. We鈥檙e seeding right now.鈥�
The greenhouse wasn鈥檛 insured. Shields had sworn it off after the company he鈥檇 used refused to pay him after the farm was robbed, he said.
鈥淯p until this point, we鈥檝e been in business for 44 years, we eat it,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e had floods, we ate that. We just fix it and roll. But this is one of the worst things we鈥檝e ever had. I didn鈥檛 think something like that would ever happen. It makes me worry, because I鈥檝e got 13 more heaters.鈥�
An online fundraiser has been set up to help the farm cover the costs of rebuilding. The page, at gofund.me/4f0fc47d, had raised nearly $8,300 as of Tuesday afternoon.
People have already been helping however they can.
Some have been contributing their expertise in electrical hook-ups. Two employees who had been with the farm when it first opened came back to volunteer. The Veterans of Foreign Wars dropped off a $300 check. Other people have dropped off complimentary hot dogs and pizza.
Shields has taken loads of debris from the wooden structure up the hill for a controlled burn, and buried the damaged glass.
And the new heaters are on their way.
鈥淲e鈥檙e going to try to recover this whole section,鈥� he said. 鈥淚鈥檝e got to clean it, but hopefully by Sunday. I don鈥檛 expect it, but that鈥檚 what I鈥檓 aiming for.鈥�