What are the opening hours?

Monday 10am - 6pm Tuesday 10am - 6pm Wednesday 10am - 6pm Thursday 10am - 6pm Friday 10am - 6pm Saturday 10am - 6pm Sunday 10am - 6pm

https://www.facebook.com/415590009201399/

Waitsburg Garden Center, 124 Warren Street, Waitsburg, WA (2026)

08/04/2026

Produce season is in full swing!!

Available now:
Walchli’s Melons
Castoldi’s Walla Walla Sweet Onions
Lambert Sweet Corn

Get it while you can!!

08/04/2026

To our loyal following… here is a lot of information about our farm!
We are a large family of melon growers. The "Blue Shed" is our parents' original farm, Walchli Farms, which is still owned by our mother. As a family, we all continue to help operate that farm because it is a large wholesale operation that ships melons throughout the Pacific Northwest.

Traditionally, watermelons in our region were not ready for harvest until late July or early August. During the 1984 growing season, Bob had just graduated from college and was eager to apply what he had learned. He began experimenting with drip irrigation, black plastic mulch to warm the soil and suppress weeds, and other innovative growing techniques. Through years of research, hard work, and trial and error, those practices evolved into methods that are now widely used throughout the industry.

While these production methods are significantly more expensive than traditional farming, they use less water, maintain warmer soil temperatures, promote healthier plant growth, and allow us to produce high-quality melons earlier in the season. Unfortunately, the cost of farming continues to rise. Small family farms face increasing expenses for seed, fertilizer, fuel, labor, equipment, and countless other necessities. In the 1970s and 1980s, watermelon seed cost approximately $100 per pound. Today, specialty watermelon seed costs more than $5,000 per pound, with a single pound planting only a little more than two acres.

Walchli’s Hermiston Melon Co. is owned by Bob Walchli where he has spent more than 40 years building a reputation for producing premium melons and other fresh produce. We have proudly served customers at farmers markets throughout the Tri-Cities and Portland areas, focusing on quality rather than large-scale production.

Our commitment is to deliver exceptional produce earlier than the traditional harvest season. We accomplish this by using row covering to protect young plants from frost, wind, and other environmental challenges, while nourishing them with a carefully developed natural fertilizer program and filtered irrigation water. This process is extremely labor-intensive and considerably more expensive than conventional production methods. To remain sustainable as a family farm, we depend on selling directly to consumers through farmers markets and seasonal pop-up locations, allowing us to share the highest quality produce with the communities we serve.

One of our signature products is the Black Mamba Red Seedless™ watermelon, a variety we developed and named. It has earned a loyal following because of its exceptional sweetness and consistently high sugar (Brix) levels. Its dark rind makes it distinctive, but it is also an exceptionally delicate melon that requires careful handling. Improper handling or conveying it across packing lines can damage the interior while leaving the exterior looking untouched. That attention to detail, from the field to our customers, is one of the many reasons our melons have earned the trust and loyalty of so many families over the years