Smithers-Oasis history

Smithers-Oasis is best known worldwide for its OASIS® brand Floral Foam, the world's first water-absorbing foam invented by V.L. Smithers in 1954.

Smithers then purchased a nearby Quonset hut and by 1957, the company had constructed a building to connect the two.

Launched in 1958, the O'Dapter, created as a design accessory for candle sticks and small-neck containers, was then packaged and sold for $1.00 to the consumer, including the floral foam insert.

The Smithers-Oasis Division of The V.L. Smithers Manufacturing Company was thus organized to go after this market late in 1960.

These cylinders were packaged in a hexagonal package, which won a first-place award in 1961 from the Folding Paper Box Association of America.

In 1963, V.L. Smithers Denmark A/S was established and local European production of OASIS® Floral Foam became a reality.

With the initial introduction of the OASIS® ROOTCUBES® growing medium in the early 1970's, Smithers-Oasis revolutionized the vegetative plant propagation industry to where it is today.

Sometime after Vernon's passing in 1973, Smither's employee Charlie Walton (who later purchased the Smithers Oasis company) along with his friend Paul Ecke Jr. (a famous California poinsettia grower) developed a new Oasis product called Rootcubes and Rootcube wedges.

In the 1990's, with the acceptance of the worldwide web, Floralife, Inc. launched www.floralife.com, an internet tool that would aid in the marketing and education of Floralife® products.

A privately held company until 2006, the company was sold to Rohm & Hass, the worldwide chemical conglomerate.

Shortly after in January 2007, the Smithers-Oasis Company acquired the organization, as the two product lines are highly complementary.