VAUGHN — While most Montana farms slow down during the winter months, one Vaughn family is doing the opposite, turning their garage into a full-scale tulip operation to keep locally grown flowers available year-round.
Third Day Family Farms, run by Jason and Virginia Daugherty, grows cut flowers outdoors during the summer months. But once the ground freezes, their focus shifts indoors, where tens of thousands of tulip bulbs are grown under lights inside their garage. Click here to learn more about their summer operation.
Madison Collier reports - watch the video here:
“We’ve been growing cut flowers for eight years now, and about four years ago we started our tulip growing in the wintertime,” Virginia explained. “Tulips start blooming about January, all the way through May.”
The winter tulip operation begins in the fall, when bulbs are planted in crates between October and November. Those crates are then stored in a cooler for several weeks before being brought into the garage, where lights and temperature control help trigger blooming on a carefully timed schedule.
“We grow them in crates, put them into a cooler for a certain amount of time, and then when they come out, they go under lights in our garage,” Daugherty explained. “Every week, we’re pulling out a certain amount to bloom.”
What started as a small experiment has quickly expanded. In their first year, the family grew just over 1,300 tulips. This winter, they’re producing more than 53,000, all within the same limited space.
“It’s wild how many tulips you can fit in a tiny spot,” Daugherty said. “We really can’t expand anymore with the space we have.”
Despite the tight quarters, the demand for locally grown flowers has continued to grow. The Daughertys sell their tulips through partner businesses in Great Falls and surrounding communities, as well as through subscription deliveries. Holidays like Valentine’s Day, Easter, and Mother’s Day are especially busy.
For the family, the work is demanding but rewarding, and not just because of sales.
“So many of our customers are just so overjoyed to receive their bouquet every week,” Daugherty said. “Some of them have become family to us. You can see how much these flowers brighten their lives.”
Beyond serving customers, the farm has become a family operation in the truest sense. The Daugherty children help with planting, harvesting, and bouquet making, both in the winter tulip season and during the outdoor growing months.
“For our children to see the work we’re putting into this and to be a part of it… they’re helping plant, helping harvest, making bouquets… they get to see the fruits of their labor,” Daugherty said. “That’s really important to us.”
While the kids admit they don’t love every task, especially planting or weeding, they enjoy watching the flowers grow and helping create bouquets. Some have even said they want to continue the business in the future.
The Daughertys say their long-term goal is to eventually move the winter operation out of the garage and into a dedicated shop and greenhouse. For now, they’re making the most of the space they have, proving that even in the middle of a Montana winter, local agriculture can still thrive.
For Valentine’s Day, Third Day Family Farms tulips will be available at:
- Their farm stand — The Porch: 103 Dracut Hill Rd, Vaughn
- 2J's Fresh Market: 105 Smelter Ave NE, Great Falls
- Montana Apothecary & Co Pharmacy: 1921 11th Ave S, Great Falls
- Public Drug Co: 324 Central Ave, Great Falls
- Dahl House Aesthetics: 1420 Market Pl Dr, Great Falls
- The Blue Rose: 419 Central Ave, Great Falls
- North 40: 1000 3rd St NW, Great Falls & 4400 10th Ave S, Great Falls
- Big Sky Deli: 190 US-89, Vaughn
- Coulee Cuts: 17 4th Ave SW, Conrad
