Our Story
Greenhouse in the Snow, LLC - USA & Antioch Machine, LLC
Russ Finch is the designer, owner, and creator of the Greenhouse in the Snow. He was born in 1932 and lived at home with his wife, Darlene, until her passing in November of 2023. Over a period of 35 years, Russ designed and perfected his beloved greenhouse using low grade geothermal in order to produce citrus, fruits, vegetables, and many flowers all year round. His greenhouse was home to hundreds of plants.
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In April of 2010, Russ approached Allen Bright at Antioch Machine, LLC, in Alliance, Nebraska, about manufacturing parts for his greenhouses. Allen happily agreed, and the first order was placed on April 30, 2010. The response from people was amazing, and the greenhouses started getting more and more attention. Allen was brought in on the deal and has been aiding Russ in manufacturing, selling, and delivering greenhouses ever since.
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Since 2013, we have sold 700+ greenhouses. Sadly, in December of 2022, we lost the original greenhouse to some insanely tall snow drifts. Although it was a devastating loss, we learned a lot from it over the 35 years as it allowed the business to grow, flourish, and develop into what it is now.
Today, we show the two greenhouses at Allen's house several times a week. Our Greenhouse in the Snow business is blooming and flourishing :)
In January of 2020, we licensed our product in Europe with Sasch Happe, located in Brittany, France. We are thrilled to welcome him aboard!
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"Hi, I am Sascha and I have started a new adventure!
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I am born in the Netherlands and have been working with dedication as a Service Manager for a high-end packaging machinery company for twelve years and needed a break. We (my wife and two daughters) decided to relocate to a beautiful countryside of Brittany in France and live a completely different life now, having transitioned towards a more organic lifestyle and minimizing our carbon footprint.
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To reach our goals we have created an orchard and large vegetable garden based on permaculture principles. We were also looking for a well designed and efficient greenhouse to extend our growing season without having to heat it with fossil fuels in the winter. That is how I found out about Russ and his great 'greenhouse in the snow' concept. When I learned that they were looking for someone to bring the concept to Europe, to be able to answer to the growing demand here, I straight away felt it was meant to be my next step.
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Creating my own company has been a long lasting dream. Realizing this with a proven concept that contributes to the energy transition using free available geo-thermal heat is in my opinion the way to go. Growing your own fruits and vegetables throughout the seasons in a very efficient way absolutely makes sense.
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Therefore I am proud to announce that Greenhouse in the Snow Europe has been established to support and supply European customers to build their own greenhouses in the snow. We will be able to use all learnings nad experiences that Russ and Allen have gathered over the past 25 years.
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What else can you expect from me? Dedication and extended support to guide you towards realizing your project.
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For more information click on the link below: https://greenhouseinthesnow-europe.com/ or email to: info@greenhouseinthesnow-europe.com. You can also give me a call at +33 7 6727 4104 or send me a WhatsApp.
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See you!
Sascha Happe"
In May of 2020, we licensed our product in Canada with Dale Klages, located in British Columbia. We are thrilled to welcome him aboard!
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"Hello, I'm Dale and am excited to bring the Greenhouse in the Snow to Canada!
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For the past 20+ years I have worked and studied in the horticulture industry in many areas. From my start in mowing lawns to landscape installation, caring for high end gardens at a private golf course, climbing trees as a professional arborist, working with two municipalities caring for their parks and greenspaces, and tree sales for one of North Americas industry leading tree nurseries, I have gained much experience in the world of horticulture. During my time at the golf course, municipalities and tree nursery as well as my formal education, I spent time in traditional greenhouses. I completed my Journeyman Landscape Gardener training in 2004 and became an ISA Certified Arborist in 2002. Through the years I have gained a deep knowledge and appreciation for plants and the positive effect that they have on people.
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Spring of 2020 I found myself without work, as did many others. For years I have been looking for something to bring to market that could change the horticulture field for Canadians. During the epidemic I began searching harder for ways to improve food supply, keep things local, and reduce our carbon footprint. I would weigh each new option I came across with another, then I came across Russ Finch's invention of Greenhouse in the Snow and thought, Wow! This fellow has this figured out!
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I reached out and both Russ and Allen quickly responded and our conversations evolved. Soon a tour of the fabrication shop and the greenhouse as in the works. The minute I walked into the greenhouse on a late spring day and saw a large variety of tropicals and smelled the amazing scent of flowers I was blown away! All this with no additional heat other than the sun and the geo-thermal. This is at 4000 ft on the high plains of Nebraska, plants are not supposed to be growing like this for another few months! This was exactly the low impact, sustainable, efficient product that I had been looking for.
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Thanks for taking the time to read this and I look forward to working with each of you, to help bring your dream of fresh veggies and tropical fruits to your table year-round in Canada!
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Dale"