Our staff

Fort Collins Nursery is a complete, year-round garden center that prides itself on customer service and horticultural experience.

Our friendly staff includes people who are experts on everything from apples to zinnias and everything in between, and includes many Colorado Certified Nursery Professionals. We are dedicated, knowledgeable and enjoy what we do. Our goal is to help you enjoy your visits with us and to offer expert gardening advice and outstanding support throughout the year.


Jesse Eastman – President

Colorado Certified Nursery Professional (CCNP)

Jesse was born into the nursery and spent a great deal of time there until he moved to Oregon to attend college in 2002. He returned to Fort Collins Nursery in 2008 and purchased it from his father in 2010. He has enjoyed growing into the role carved out by his father and embraces the challenge of keeping the business as relevant to the community today as it was when it was first established in the 1930s.

 

 


Brendan Anderson – Production & Facilities Manager, Safety Officer

  • Colorado Certified Nursery Professional
  • CDA Private Pesticide Applicator

Brendan’s responsibilities include growing around 60,000 perennials, 100’s of trees, and 1000’s of shrubs each year, plus nursery and irrigation maintenance, unloading plant shipments and coordinating various building projects.  He also manages our wonderful, and talented production staff.  Brendan started working at the nursery around the year 2000, is a certified nursery professional and has a private applicators license.  He enjoys the hard work it takes to do this job and is always amazed how much can be accomplished with a focused and hardworking team.  He takes great pleasure when he thinks of all the beauty that is created around us by the plants that we sell.


Connie Barber – Office Manager

  • Colorado Certified Nursery Professional
  • CDA Private Pesticide Applicator
  • BS Landscape Horticulture from Colorado State University

Connie manages the day-to-day operations of the business office. Her main duties include accounts payable and inventory control.  She also provides logistical support for retail operations. Connie originally started in 1990 as a retail salesperson.  After a 9-year hiatus, she returned in 2009 as the assistant office manager.  Aside from her passion for educating customers about native plants she is active in Larimer County 4-H, spending many summer evenings coaching Archery.


Dan Booth – Marketing Director

Dan develops and implements the nursery’s marketing strategy including advertising, community relations, sponsorships, and special events. He joined the staff in 2014 after working over a decade in sales and marketing focused positions in the music industry. He enjoys learning about plants and connecting with our passionate, plant loving community and all the wonderful organizations that Fort Collins Nursery partners with.

 

 


Troy Cobb – Greenhouse & Garden Shop Manager, Greenhouse & Hard Goods Buyer

  • Colorado Certified Nursery Professional
  • Certified Greenhouse Grower

Troy plans and buys annuals, vegetables, and houseplants for the Greenhouse as well as pottery and gifty items for the Garden Shop.  He joined Fort Collins Nursery in 2001 in the Greenhouse and took over that department’s management in 2005.  He has a passion for Orchids and rare succulents, and is focused on attracting as many hummingbirds to his yard as possible!


Shannon Moreau – Nursery Manager & Nursery Stock Buyer

  • Colorado Certified Nursery Professional
  • CNGA Horizon Award Recipient

Shannon (She/ Her) is part of the outdoor management team and handles the hiring, scheduling and personnel things for the outdoor crew. She joined the nursery in 2015 while studying horticulture at CSU. After growing up around plants and a passion for the outdoors, working at Fort Collins Nursery with fellow plant people and the amazing community in northern Colorado has been a perfect fit.


Dom Lopez – HR Manager

  • MS, SHRM-CP 

Dom is responsible for the Human Resources functions of the Fort Collins Nursery. He isn’t very good at growing plants, so he likes to think of himself as a gardener of people- watering them with a dash of policies, feeding them with some forms and watching them blossom and on-board into beautiful Nursery employees! Dom’s past experience includes working HR in the medical field and he graduated in 2020 with his Master’s degree in HR Management. Dom’s favorite thing about working at Fort Collins Nursery is the amazing people of course! When not working Dom enjoys spending time with his family, brewing beer, smoking food, fishing and the outdoors. 


Paul Battafarano – Greenhouse Quality Control Supervisor

  • CDA Private Pesticide Applicator

Paul has been part of the greenhouse team since 2022 and handles the IPM, fertilization, and propagation operations in the greenhouse. Paul graduated from Colorado State University in 2018 with a bachelor’s degree in horticulture and a minor in organic agriculture. Paul loves edible flowers and his favorites are nasturtium and borage.

 

 


Bonnie Francis – Beds Maintenance Manager

  • Colorado Certified Nursery Professional

Bonnie is the Bed Maintenance Manager. She designs and maintains the appearance and upkeep in the display beds. Bonnie has a B.S of Landscape Horticulture from 2007 and since 2009 is also a Colorado Certified Nursery Professional.  She started at Fort Collins Nursery in 2005.  As child, Bonnie used to help her dad plant flower and vegetable gardens.  

 


Shan Hausmann – Garden Shop Support & Merchandise Supervisor

Shan has been with Fort Collins Nursery since 2023 and is responsible for overseeing inventory/new product and merchandising in the Garden Shop. When not working you can find her listening to her vinyl records! Shan has a pekingese named Nala and a bearded dragon named Arlo! 

 

 


Alec Julian – Nursery Plant Receiving & Horticulture Facilities Maintenance Supervisor

Alec is a part of the production team and supervises the receiving of incoming outdoor plant shipments. He also assists with general upkeep of the nursery, including irrigation and facility maintenance. He started at Fort Collins Nursery in 2021. Alec attended Colorado State University and received a bachelors in forestry. He has a passion for plants and feels privileged that so much of our nursery stock passes through his hands.

 

 


Danny Laucher – Delivery Dispatcher & Hard Goods Receiving Supervisor

Danny coordinates the nursery’s deliveries and plantings and supervises hard goods receiving.  He joined the team in 2016 as a member of the Production crew.  Danny has a bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology with a focus in Sports Management from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.  At home, he loves gardening, cooking and playing music for his partner Jenn and toddler Ezra.

 

 


Eri Matsumura – Outdoor Manager

Eri joined the Fort Collins Nursery staff in 2017 and was originally a part of the Greenhouse management team. She is now part of the Outdoor management team and handles the hiring, scheduling, and other personnel related tasks. Eri is a pollinator plant enthusiast, her favorite ones are Blue Balloon Caryopteris and Sugar Baby Forsythia. 

 

 


James Pitot – Propagation & Maintenance Specialist

  • CDA Private Pesticide Applicator

James started at nursery as a seasonal employee on the production team in 2016 and 2017 and returned to the nursery in 2023. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from The Evergreen State College, with a focus on Agriculture and 3D Art. He is responsible for managing the nursery’s in house propagation of perennials and looks forward to the day the nursery expands to produce their own annuals and houseplants. James is also responsible for maintenance tasks around both of our facilities. When he’s not at work you can find James in his woodshop or playing the piano.

 


Brittany Ramirez – Garden Shop Personnel Supervisor

Brittany has been with Fort Collins Nursey since 2023. She handles hiring, scheduling, training, personnel, and day-to-day operations in the Garden Shop. Having grown up in the lush Santa Cruz Mountains surrounded by towering Redwood trees as well as in Grand Lake engulfed by the great Rocky Mountains she strives to be surrounded by as much nature as possible. Outside of work you can find Brittany making art, tending to her home jungle, traveling to new places, and spending time with her family and friends.

 


Geneva Thomas – Greenhouse Retail Supervisor

Geneva has been with Fort Collins Nursery since 2023 and is responsible for managing personnel and supporting the general retail operations in the greenhouse department. She is a hobby potter who loves making custom planters for her houseplants and enjoys collecting and caring for unique caudiciforms. Geneva graduated from West Virginia State University in 2019 with a bachelor’s degree in Political Science.

 

 


Alex Tisthammer – Outdoor Manager

  • Colorado Certified Nursery Professional
  • CNGA Horizon Award Recipient

Alex is one third of the Outdoor management team and handles the day-to-day operations in the outside department, concentrating mostly in the perennial area. She has worked at the nursery since 2013, and has worked in just about every department at one time or another. In 2019 she received her Colorado Certified Nursery Professional certification, as well as the Horizon Award from the CNGA. Growing up in Roosevelt National Forest and having a crazy plant lady as a mom, she has always been surrounded by nature and plants, so naturally this is the perfect place for her to work!


Bobby Townsend – Outdoor Manager

  • Colorado Certified Nursery Professional

Bobby is part of the Outside management team and part of the Fort Collins Nursery family since 2012. He handles the day-to-day operations in the woodies department. A former WSU horticulturalist who has been in love with horticulture ever since he grew his first habanero, (and burned his face after forgetting to wash his hands post-harvest.) Bobby loves being around fellow plant people hiking among the plants in the mountains, and raising his kids to love plants just as much as him! 


Jacob Wolf – Production Supervisor/ Assistant Grower

  • CDA Private Pesticide Applicator

Jacob has worked in the field since 2006 and joined the Fort Collins Nursery team in 2021. He handles the processing and planting of all of our colorful perennials, as well as constructing all the new Greenhouses at the Ault production facility. Jacob graduated from CSU with an associate in Applied Science and Greenhouse Management and Sciences and has his CDA certified private applicator license. His love for plants started when he was young, visiting his Great Grandparent’s cherry and apple orchard on the western slope.

 


 

Originally published on May 3rd, 2010. Updated on January 18th, 2024.