Wellspring Gardens Founder: Donovan K. Baltich ‘85: Cultivating Horticultural Roots at Florida Southern College

Wellspring Gardens founder Donovan K. Baltich, was recently featured in an article from his alma mater, Florida Southern College, in recognition of his business success and effect in the community.

Baltich graduated with a degree in German from Florida Southern in 1985, and was allowed to take upper-level horticulture classes as an undergraduate. In 2004, he opened Wellspring Gardens, an e-commerce plant store, in his backyard.

His time at Florida Southern College heavily influenced his business decisions, most notably observed in Wellspring Gardens' product mix, which skews toward edible plants. 

“Subtropical Fruits 101 is one of my most cherished memories of FSC,” Baltich said. “Dr. Malcom Manners would travel to south Florida and bring back different varieties of mango. One day he brought in twenty different types of mangoes to try in class.”

Twenty years later his business is thriving with over half a million online orders to date.

Read the full story.