Business is blossoming at Madison Park’s Best Buds floral shop

I'm afraid Best Buds may soon become Madison Park's worst kept secret. But as a shopping sleuth I feel like it's my duty to tell you about the best shops and buys, and this is definitely one of them.

After decades of devoted service at Bert's Red Apple in Madison Park, John Gallen "retired" to open Best Buds in December with partners Brenda Lorentzen and Babits Faires. Gallen worked at Bert's for nearly 40 years and oversaw the flower department for 20 of those, developing a passion for beautiful blooms while his knowledge of blossoms grew. Much of my yard is landscaped with the well-priced plants I picked up at Bert's during Gallen's tenure.

Gallen's new endeavor is tucked away on a back street off the beaten path in a cottage-like storefront next to a bright red British phone booth. Big buckets of flowers and potted plants are displayed in front of the shop. Inside are more cut flowers and in back is a courtyard filled with small pony-packs and gallon containers of plants. It's an utterly charming spot to shop for annuals, perennials, herbs, ferns, orchids, roses, in-season flowers and bouquet "filler" such as Hypericum Berry, eucalyptus and wax flowers.

Not only is the selection excellent but the prices are hard to beat. On a recent trip there, tulips (five stems) were $1.50, Alstroemeria was $2 a bunch, gerbera daisies were $5.90, orchid bouquets were $3, quart-size sword ferns were $4, star-gazer lilies were $9.90 and pansies were just a buck. For Valentine's Day you'll find incredible deals on fresh roses: $15 for a dozen red and $10.50 a dozen for other colors such as pink, yellow, peach and white. Why are prices so low? Gallen simply says, "We want people to be able to buy flowers."

My suggestion is to go weekly. Stock moves quickly and Gallen has his loyal followers. Word of mouth has kept the little flower spot buzzing since opening. "The community support has been great," says Gallen. "I didn't know I had so many friends."

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