Hot House Manager Lou Reuter giddily showed off the growing herbs, flowers and vines.

“Look at these little parsleys. Cute little fellas. Dill. And jeepers creepers! Morning glories. And then, straight down,” he said, gesturing to a long line of green leaves stretching the length of the greenhouse, “all geraniums.”

Though it is slow in terms of customers right now at the garden center, Reuter said it is “chaos” as the staff there are busy preparing for Mother’s Day on May 11.

There’s still snow on the ground, but he said people are growing veggies in windowsills inside so they get them before they sell out.

Lori Dinsmore transports trays of sprouting plants around the greenhouses of the SL Hot House Garden Center on Wednesday. (Enterprise photo — Aaron Marbone)

Katie Sullivan potted plugs of vinca vines and took in the fresh smell of the greenhouse. She works as a massage therapist and takes up work at the Hot House temporarily in the spring.

Sullivan said there’s a bit of overlap between the two professions. She needs a gentle touch when pressing plugs into the soil. Both jobs have a quiet, therapeutic environment. And both massage parlors and garden centers have happy customers.