Posted 05/07/2024By Susan Thompson
Lake Panorama TimesFor many years, the tagline for Panorama Gardens has been “family owned since 1956.” George and Harriett Olson started the business that year, when their son, Dave, was a 1-year-old. George and Harriett operated the business as a husband-and-wife team for many years. In 1978, Dave began the process of buying the business from his parents. Soon, he and his new bride, Ilene, decided they wanted to do the same thing.
Now, a third husband-and-wife team has taken ownership of Panorama Gardens, and the “family owned since 1956” tagline continues.
New owners Landon and Lindsey Loftsgard took the helm Jan. 1, 2024. Their son, Brooks, is 2 years old, and daughter Annie is 8 months. The couple are high school sweethearts from Waukee. They both graduated from the University of Iowa in 2015, she with a degree in health promotion, he with a business degree. They married in 2018.
Lindsey has had jobs related to wellness and senior living. She currently works for a wellness tech company in West Des Moines. Landon’s focus has been on accounting and finance plus four years as a police officer in Clive and Dallas County.
Those don’t seem like jobs that would lead to owning a floral and garden center. Lindsey picks up the story.
“I have always had a side hobby of gardening and flowers, and Landon has always wanted to own his own business,” she says. “Landon’s parents, Rick and Dawn Loftsgard, moved to a home in Jones Cove three years ago. We’d driven by Panorama Gardens many times on our way to visit them and talked about how cool it would be to own it.”
In May 2023, a Panorama Gardens feature story appeared in the Lake Panorama Times. In it, Dave Olson said the business had been for sale for a while, and the couple hoped to retire. But he said they would keep the business open until it sold.
The Loftsgards read that story, reached out to the Olsons, and the rest is history.
“We took over in January and thought we’d have plenty of time to get our feet wet,” Landon says. “But, instead, we’ve been busy from the beginning. I like to be busy, and the days here fly by. Sometimes, I’ll look at my watch, it’s 3 p.m., and I can’t believe it. We’ve had great support from the community from that first day.”
Landon is at the business daily. Lindsey continues with her full-time job in the health care industry. For now, she’s there as much as possible.
“I love the opportunity to be creative and get my hands in the dirt. It’s good for a person’s mental health,” she says.
The couple did some early renovations before the busy spring season.
“In the flower shop, we painted, replaced the flooring and rearranged the customer counter and work area,” Lindsey says. “We had our customers and staff in mind and wanted to make things easier for both, while freshening up that area.”
The garden center building was rearranged, pulling the counter closer to the entrance, and organizing product displays into separate sections. Products featured in the garden center include racks of seeds, various types of potting soil and other materials, mulch, watering supplies, garden decorations and lots of pots.
Large bags of mulch, top soil and potting soil are stacked on the south side of the garden center, with some also inside.
“In this business, ordering for spring must be done each fall, so much of the product we have is what Dave ordered last fall,” Landon says. “We want to hear from our customers if what we have is what they want, or if there are different items we should be thinking about when we order for 2025.”
The Olsons were known for the annual vegetable and flower seedlings and plants they had growing in their greenhouses by the time spring customers arrived, all started from seed.
“We brought in more plants this spring than Dave and Ilene did,” Lindsey says. “Since we were busy with learning the business and renovations, we weren’t able to spend as much time planting. We hope to do more in the future.”
By late April, the retail greenhouse and two older greenhouses were filled with vegetable plants, annual and perennial flowers, green plants, and hanging baskets of flowers and giant ferns.
One new offering takes Panorama Gardens to customers. An annual Porch Pot Subscription costs $250 for three planted pot deliveries.
“Pots are handpicked to complement each home’s outdoor space,” Landon says. “The first delivery will come in May and feature blooming flowers and lush greens for the summer months. The second pot will come with fall flowers, and the last one will be a winter arrangement.”
While Panorama Gardens already had an active floral department, the Loftsgards are putting an emphasis on their fresh flower operation. For Valentine’s Day, they partnered with several area businesses to offer fresh flower bouquets onsite to be picked up with other gift items.
“We had a really good response to our bouquets and look forward to similar promotions and partnerships in the future,” Lindsey says.
The business website recently was revamped and includes lots of details on fresh flower options. Flowers can be ordered online, by phone or in person, with same-day delivery to surrounding area addresses. Panorama Gardens is an FTD member and can take orders for flowers to be delivered in other locations.
New to Panorama Gardens is the option to provide fresh flowers for weddings, whether it be for the ceremony, the reception, or all aspects of the event. Racheé Lombard began working part-time for the couple in January and was promoted to full-time floral manager in May. Those interested in talking about floral plans for a wedding can schedule a consultation with Lombard.
The Loftsgards also connect with customers through a Facebook page. They post a weekly featured plant and include a photo and simple details about how to care for the plant. All plants featured are available for purchase at Panorama Gardens.
In April, they hosted a Kid’s Fairy Garden Workshop that was so popular a second session was added. Earlier in the year, they conducted an ISU Extension workshop on flower arrangements.
The couple plans additional renovations later. Eventually one old greenhouse will be removed and replaced.
“We love the other two old greenhouses that are really old, with the glass walls and roof,” Lindsey says. “Those are really unique, and we want to renovate and keep those, if we can.”
An open area north of the building will be cleared with one old collapsed greenhouse removed along with downed trees and debris. The couple hopes to find ways to put this area to better use, perhaps moving large bulk items and some parking there.
They also plan to add areas where customers can enjoy time testing the made-in-Iowa outdoor furniture they now offer.
“I see us turning Panorama Gardens into a sort of botanical center for Guthrie County,” Landon says. “We want to set up seating throughout the grounds and buildings to showcase the outdoor furniture plus the plants and garden products we offer.”
The couple also is thinking of ways to use the retail greenhouse that is empty in late fall and through the winter months.
“We might rent the greenhouse out for special events,” Lindsey says. “We’ve also talked about a popup bar during the Christmas season and hosting other special events.”
The couple currently has three full-time employees and eight part-time employees. Gus, their golden retriever, is the operation’s full-time greeter. In March, they adopted a cat from Panora Pets and asked customers to suggest names for him. Sprout now spends most of his time sleeping in a box under the floral table.
The Loftsgards are thankful to Dave and Ilene Olson for their support.
“They stayed on full-time with us for about the first month,” Landon says. “They taught us so much. We still call them with questions, and they stop in sometimes. They’ve been very helpful.”
“We’re truly grateful to the entire community for the support we’ve received in our first few months,” Lindsey says. “We continue to learn, and we’re excited for the future.”
The couple lives in Adel, but the Loftsgards hope the future brings a move to Panora.
“Moving closer is definitely a goal,” Landon says. “We love the small-town atmosphere for raising our kids.”
With the busiest time of year at hand, Panorama Gardens now is open seven days a weekHours are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m.-6 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m.-4 p.m., and Sunday 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Once things slow down, the business will once again be closed on Sunday.
Panorama Gardens is located on U.S. Highway 44 on the east edge of Panora. The phone number is 641-755-2225, and email is
panoramagardensia@gmail.com. Search Facebook for Panorama Gardens to find their page. The business website is panoramagardensia.com.