Lee's Garden Center rooted in faith, family

Matthew 17:20-21 reads, "...if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you."

It’s a lesson of faith and perseverance, and it’s one that can be seen in action at Lee’s Garden Center.

Jonathan Lee started selling produce in 1993 at 12 years old on the corner of Main and Robertson streets in Clayton with a little help from his father, Raymond Lee, who had been in the produce business his entire life.

“His daddy gave him $300 and three produce bins,” Erin Lee, his wife, said.

After graduating from Clayton High School in 1998, Jonathan started the produce and garden center full time. Six years later, he and Erin started dating and she started working at the garden center part time.

Today, Jonathan and Erin have grown the business and their family, placing even deeper roots into the Clayton soil.

“We are definitely a family business,” Erin said. “Haley is our oldest child (17), and, of course, our kids have been (at the business) since birth. Haley is a huge part of the business. She is a born leader and can do anything, from carrying and cutting trees to driving the forklift.

“Our son, Caleb, is 13 and is very helpful with our social media and technology. Our youngest, Michael, is 9, and he ‘helps’ wherever he wants. He loves to help ring up customers inside.”

If you’re walking around the garden center, you might also see Branch, the family cat, and Goose, one of the family dogs, browsing through the plants as well.

One of the things they’re on the lookout for are the fresh cut Christmas trees, which are scheduled to arrive on Nov. 17.

“Our trees are grown in Ashe County by a friend and his brother,” Erin said. “We have been selling their trees for more than 15 years. Our trees are hand selected just for our garden center.

They are cut as they are ordered, rather than sitting around waiting to be sold. Most box stores’ tree growers start cutting them in the last week of October to be able to keep up with the demand.

“We enjoy the Christmas season, since this is a ‘tradition’ season. Jonathan has seen children at the store and now they are grown up and bringing their kids. We always enjoy seeing the families each year as the children grow up. It’s such a huge reward to watch the kids pick out their tree.”

The Lees get their family tree each year from the first batch, and the plan is to put it up the weekend before Thanksgiving and take it down right after Christmas.

“They always look great until the end,” she said.

This kind of tradition doesn’t happen without quality products and good customer service, which are both hallmarks of Lee’s Garden Center.

“We not only offer great quality but we offer service,” Erin said. “Our plants are grown by local nurseries, with most of them being like Jonathan and myself, husband and wives or second-generation nurseries. We take great pride in selling the best plants for our customers so that they can have the best results for their garden — so they come back again!”

Of course, there’s more than just plants and Christmas trees available. There’s an assortment of candies, jams, sauces and other unique items to help wrap up that shopping list.

On the wall behind the register is Raymond’s photo, a reminder as to where the first seeds were planted.

“We have to thank God first, for blessing us with a supportive family and community,” Erin said of the business’ success. “We just love our customers! We truly appreciate them all and love to watch their families grow throughout the years. We have grown because of their faithfulness to shop with us.”

Lee's Garden Center is located at 401 W. Main St., Clayton. They can be found at www.leesgardencenterclayton.com or reached at 919-550-8425.