The Stranded Journey

Hi! My name is Zachary Dionne, thank you for visiting my online store, I hope you can come visit my actual nursery sometime too! I am 24 years old and live on Big Tancook Island, where I have also started to build the business that I have dreamt of for years; Stranded Nursery & Gardens! Starting a nursery on an island that has an insane population of deer might sound like a crazy idea, but that just makes the whole process more interesting! 

So… how did this whole idea begin?

Well, when I graduated from high school, I had absolutely no idea what I wanted to do next. I felt completely lost. I took a year off to think and to try new things, and to come up with some sort of a plan... during this time, I started “Stranded - Arts & Gifts”, a small shop where I sold art and other creations that I made. This was fun, but it was not exactly what I wanted to pursue. While working on my art shop, I had also become interested in houseplants. I think I collected several dozen plants over the span of a few weeks, and I realized that working with plants might be the thing I want to pursue professionally.

When I turned 19, I started to work at my favourite garden centre. The same place where all of my houseplants came from! This was when my passion for horticulture really blossomed (groan). I immediately fell in love the work, and after a few seasons of working there, the idea that I wanted to do this type of work as a career became more and more clear. I decided it was time to further my knowledge and skills that I had gained from my job to a professional level, so I applied to NSCC Kingstec for their Horticulture & Landscaping Technology program. I was accepted, and started attending courses in the fall of 2021!

During my time at the college, I learned so many valuable things, met so many wonderful people, and got to challenge and refine my existing skills and knowledge. My time at college was absolutely invaluable, and I am beyond grateful that I was accepted and got to attend college when I did. The courses were all amazing, well structured, informative, and they had the absolute perfect instructors. 

In 2023, I graduated from college with honours, with a focus on greenhouse management and operation. I am still very proud of myself, and this was one of my biggest achievements to date. Just a few years before, I had no idea what direction my life was going, but I never thought I would accomplish this.

When college was done, I moved back home to try and figure out what came next… AGAIN… all I knew at this point was that I had a dream, and a ton of new knowledge and skills at my disposal to do something with. I started researching and putting together a plan over the next year and a half, and really started to refine my vision. During this time I was offering landscaping to my island community, which was a pretty great gig!

The time eventually came when I was ready to start making big steps towards my vision. I began researching greenhouse kits, and I found the perfect option for our island climate. I ordered it in the fall of 2024, but when it arrived the ground was frozen, so I couldn’t build it yet… it sat in boxes in my shed for a few months while I eagerly awaited the ground to thaw… I knew I was going to have to wait to build it when I ordered it, but I had no idea it was going to be so hard waiting to build it!

Finally, in March of 2025, the ground had thawed enough and the weather had settled down a bit. It was finally time for the hands-on work to begin!

I began to start the base preparation for the greenhouse with my Dad. We built the base for the greenhouse with some very high quality 6x6 hemlock timbers that came from L.E. Elliott Lumber in New Ross. I excavated the area with a tractor, then we levelled it with gravel, made the timber foundation, and anchored it into the earth with rebar. It is solid and won't be going anywhere!

Once the base was completed, my Mom and I started to assemble the greenhouse frame. This was when I started to get really excited because it was starting to take shape, and a functional greenhouse didn’t seem that far out of reach. The frame went together pretty quickly.

With the frame of the greenhouse done, the polycarbonate panels could now go up. My Mom put some of them up with me, and then my Sister helped me finish the rest. Building the greenhouse was a true family effort, and it was so much fun to build it with everyone!

Once the greenhouse was built, it could finally be filled with plants… I had already started a ton of vegetable seeds at home while the greenhouse was still being built since I didn’t want to wait until the greenhouse was done to start them. I didn't want to lose any growing time! I transported all of my seedlings to the greenhouse, potted them up, and grew out them for a little while.

By June 8th, 2025, the weather was still chilly but not enough to kill any plants. Everything in the greenhouse was thriving, so I officially opened for business! The amount of people who showed up and the support they brought with them was truly overwhelming, in the best way possible. I was, and still am, so, so, SO grateful to my community! Tancook is something very special, and this endeavour would not have been possible without my island community’s support!

Since my opening day, I continue to grow and expand at a comfortable rate, and I am very excited to see what the future holds. I have a million different ideas for what I want to do, and I will make every one of them a reality, just watch!

 

Stranded Nursery & Gardens is my passion project, and I am very proud of what I have accomplished so far.

 

To Hillary, David, Rhiannon, and Martha, my immediate family, you have all helped me immensely with so many different things on this journey; THANK YOU!

To my Incredible first boss, Susan, who has helped me as well in countless ways and who continues to be a huge support; THANK YOU!

To my college instructors Michelle, Jamie, Terena, and Bonnie, I wouldn’t trade the time I spent with you for anything in the world. The knowledge and skills you’ve given me are not going to waste! THANK YOU!

And to my island community; without your support and love I would be nothing. You have all shown me that this dream of mine doesn't have to just be a dream. It is within reach. I can’t wait to keep growing, and to be able to offer you all more and more products!

To the Blandford community; I am excited to integrate with your community, and I hope to see you once we are connected via ferry!!!

THANK YOU ALL!

❤️