Living Colour Nursery was first established in 1988 and is still owned and run today by second generation nurseryman Geoff Prettejohn.
Geoff got his first taste of the nursery industry at the young age of sixteen when he worked for the family business, a well known and highly reputable seedling nursery called Prettejohn's Nursery that was first established in the 1930's by his father. This was back in 1967 when seedlings used to be bundles up and wrapped in 'Pix' and 'Post' magazines and not sold in the plastic punnet you see today.
Geoff clearly remembers the first punnet. It was a thin wooden strawberry punnet mainly used for tomato and capsicum plants. Using these punnets had its downside though and Geoff remembers the time consuming task of plugging up the gaps in these punnets with betting tickets to prevent the soil from leaking out. A change was definitely needed and in the early to mid 70’s, the industry saw the birth of the plastic punnet.
In 1972, when Geoff hit his early twenties, he became part-owner with his older brother Lee of Prettejohn’s Nursery. This partnership would last over a decade and would see the growth and success of both the wholesale side of Prettejohn’s and their retail outlet at the Central Market. However, in the late 80’s, Geoff decided to cast off the responsibilities that came with running a family business and venture out on his own. Living Colour Nursery was born.
Specialising in potted annuals and perennials, Living Colour was the first nursery in the state to do so. As the years went on, Geoff extended that range to include seedlings, landscaping plants and packs.
Geoff is a seedling grower at heart and his expertise within the industry is invaluable. He strongly believes in surrounding himself with key loyal staff and because of this, Living Colour Nursery is one of the leading bedding plant nurseries in South Australia, widely known for its high standards in growing, superior product range and excellent customer service.