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Elsa, the Plant Lady, starting from the ground up

Published:Saturday | December 11, 2021 | 12:07 AMStephanie Lyew/Gleaner Writer
Elsa Jarrett hails from the parish of Trelawny but many of her customers are based in Kingston.
Elsa Jarrett hails from the parish of Trelawny but many of her customers are based in Kingston.
Trelawny’s soil has been proven one of the most fertile for ground provisions like yam and Elsa Jarrett says she is creating her own formula in her backyard.
Trelawny’s soil has been proven one of the most fertile for ground provisions like yam and Elsa Jarrett says she is creating her own formula in her backyard.
There are several plants ‘The Plant Lady’ will recommend for indoor, including the Peace Lily because it not only brightens up a living space – best for home or office – but are also excellent at cleaning the air of the room they are placed.
There are several plants ‘The Plant Lady’ will recommend for indoor, including the Peace Lily because it not only brightens up a living space – best for home or office – but are also excellent at cleaning the air of the room they are placed.
For Elsa Jarrett, owner of Elsa’s Plant Supplies and More based in Trelawny, it is not just about delivering the products but making sure they have a healthy and safe home.
For Elsa Jarrett, owner of Elsa’s Plant Supplies and More based in Trelawny, it is not just about delivering the products but making sure they have a healthy and safe home.
A car trunk full of plants potted in specially made soil to be delivered to Kingston where Elsa Jarrett will add her magic touch and personal care.
A car trunk full of plants potted in specially made soil to be delivered to Kingston where Elsa Jarrett will add her magic touch and personal care.
Dracaena trifasciata or snake plant as it is commonly called is another living gem that Elsa Jarrett swears by and believes everyone should have in their home as it also cleans the air of any room it is placed.
Dracaena trifasciata or snake plant as it is commonly called is another living gem that Elsa Jarrett swears by and believes everyone should have in their home as it also cleans the air of any room it is placed.
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Elsa Jarrett is an adventurous nature lover and has always had her sights on soaring as an entrepreneur. With more time on her hands, instead of purchasing house plants, she did some research and started to grow them.

“Firstly, I fell in love with the beauty of plants, not just the blooms. After sharing a few plants I had on social media, I received one order in Kingston, delivered it, and the business Elsa’s Plant Supplies and More grew from there,” Jarrett told Saturday Living.

Called ‘The Plant Lady’ by family, friends and followers on social media, through research, watching educational videos about backyard gardening, she transformed her Trelawny home into a small nursery space. There, Jarrett experimented with various propagation methods.

She said, “All that I have done is built on research. Once you try and fail, as long as you know a plant can catch from a cutting if it dies a million times, you will try a million and one times until you get it to thrive. And when you get it, you perfect it.”

Part of Jarrett’s propagation process involves using her own potting soil, which is made using the rich fertile land within her space and natural materials and composting techniques. She is still putting it to the test by applying it to her own plants.

According to Jarrett, the materials she uses to make the potting soil are topsoil and leaves that fall off the trees, cut into smaller portions.

EXPERIMENTING

“A lack of proper soil was a challenge for propagation for me, and then I discovered rooting powder, but wanted to still keep it natural. When I took a step back, I said, ‘but wait, I live in the country where there is good topsoil’, and all I needed to find was the right mixture, and it was as simple as leaves [fall] from the trees in the backyard. They make good compost. I haven’t done videos yet, I am experimenting to see what works best,” she said. “Another thing is, most plants need a cool location and indirect sunlight or light. Most of the plants I grow don’t really like the sun, and there are those that prefer rainwater rather than tap water which has additives like chlorine.”

Jarrett is a former employee of the Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, which had offered her a return package following temporary layoff because of the pandemic, but she said, “I couldn’t turn my back on the customers of Elsa’s Plant Supplies and More’. These are people I have met because of plants and they have become friends and part of my family. It is because of the airport that I gained customer service skills, but I have gained so much more with my own business.”

“Many more persons can gain from this business that I am building from the ground up and from this soil that I want to make more of. I have been getting orders and sold to a few customers, and have it in stores. [It] is also on the table for me to have a physical nursery at a hardware store, so look out for ‘The Plant Lady’ near you,” Jarrett said.

stephanie.lyew@gleanerjm.com