Hostas on the Bluff, a display garden and farm in Fairview Heights, Illinois, is growing. After 10 years in business, thanks to growing customer demand, they’ve expanded their space to include a former school building that’s nearly 100 years old, added a new greenhouse, and are drawing visitors from far outside the St. Louis area.
“It’s interesting to see how far it’s come,” says Brian Kniffin, who co-owns the business with his wife Erica Kniffin. “I feel like we’ve done it the right way.”
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The Kniffins established Hostas on the Bluff in 2016 as part of a home garden project focused on hostas. They now grow, and sell, more than 800 varieties.
Hostas are shade-loving perennials that yield lush, earthy tones with minimal effort. According to Brian, these winter-hardy plants re-emerge every spring, thrive on just about an inch of water per week, and their natural pests, like slugs and deer, can be easily mitigated with motion sprinklers. “This is a great plant to add color to a woodland area or a shady spot in your yard,” says Brian.
The display garden on the bluff shows what different types of hostas might look like once planted. “People can go right into the garden, take pictures, and kind of imagine it in their garden space,” he says.
Garden manager McKenzie Black says June is the most popular hosta variety; the plant has leaves with blue-green margins and greenish-yellow centers. Hostas on the Bluff also works with hybridizers from different parts of the U.S., including Wisconsin, Michigan, and North Carolina. Emma Rose, a hybridized hosta named after Brian’s daughter with blue and waxy leaves, is another favorite.
To meet growing customer demand, the Kniffins moved their initial sales space by the display garden to outside the former Bluff View Elementary School grounds. Brian purchased the former school from East St. Louis School District 189 more than 15 years ago to help clean up the neighborhood. At that point he had no plans to use the building in the hosta business. “We did not see this coming,” he says.
Over the past two years, staff have repaired the building’s brick work, installed a new roof, and worked on core structural issues.
“The building is ready to take on a new life,” says Brian. His goal is now to open a garden center or coffee shop next year in the former schoolhouse.
Hostas on the Bluff also added a production greenhouse nearby that’s nearly six times larger than the previous sales space and contains close to 20,000 plants, in addition to the sales tables outside the school and all of the plants available for purchase.
Late last year, the City Council granted the Kniffins’ request to rezone the school and other nearby properties acquired by the business from single-family residential to conservation—allowing for the operation of an agricultural business and maintenance of a natural landscape. The possibility of adding a wine garden was also included in the application, but Brian says no decisions have been made. (At this point, he and Erica have a lot on their plate; in addition to their garden business, he works in data and finance, and she’s a teacher.)
Hostas on the Bluff sees thousands of visitors each season and sells anywhere from 5,000 to 10,000 hostas per season, according to Brian. They ship nationwide, too.
The couple’s goal was always to create a destination where people from out of state could travel to shop for plants. Brian says they regularly see customers from Chicago, Louisville, Nashville, and other cities.
“The hope is that we’ll slowly, organically turn into that like ‘Oh, it’s a nice day. Let’s visit Hostas on the Bluff,” says Brian. “‘I can just go wander.’”
Hostas on the Bluff is generally open daily at 1601 Pleasantview Drive, the location of the main display garden that resides alongside the bluff. Just about half a mile away is the new greenhouse, sales area, and school building.
At this time, they have two full-time and six part-time employees. As the business grows, that may change. Brian says Hostas on the Bluff is currently looking for garden volunteers that would like to learn about the gardens and share the business’ origin story, which initially began with two plants from his grandmother’s farm.
“It will never be geared toward a traditional business, turning numbers into profits,” says Brian. “The biggest picture is more about the customer side and that reaction. We’re just here to see it happen.”
