Five Minutes with Mitchell’s Nursery & Greenhouse

Mitchell’s Nursery & Greenhouse

King, NC

President

Judy Mitchell

In business

41 years

NCNLA member

27 years

Number of employees

9 full time and others seasonally in spring

Services

Wholesale and retail plant nursery, local delivery, landscaping consultations, instructional workshops

Favorite NCNLA benefits

Green & Growin’

How did you get into the business?

As a child, my husband, Jim, turned his sandpile into a rooting bed. He started rooting and growing azaleas. His father built him a small greenhouse and he started rooting houseplants and African violets. After getting married, Jim and I would take plants to sell at the N.C. State Fairgrounds flea market on the weekends. After both of us graduated North Carolina State University (NC State), we moved to King, N.C., with Jim’s job with the North Carolina Department of Agriculture (NCDA). We started rooting and growing azaleas in the backyard as a sideline. We would sell them to anyone stopping by and peddle them to hardware stores, feed and seed stores and produce markets. It grew from there. We moved to our present location in 1993. We built our first greenhouse in 1996. We bought additional land just down the road and moved our growing area for trees and shrubs there, leaving our present location for retail and wholesale of plants that are ready for sale.

What’s a typical day like for you and your staff?

There is no typical day. That is what I like about this business. Every day is different. Jobs change with the season. Everyone does what needs to be done, whether it is potting plants or selling. We grow trees,

(Top) The new greenhouse was erected in early 2019. Pictured here is the spring 2020 crop of bedding plants and hanging baskets. (Above) The agritourism sign was erected in 2003 after a two-year process with the N.C. Department of Transportation.

In 2020, we are growing 103 varieties of poinsettias. This greenhouse was erected in segments as we expanded over a period of time from 2003-2017.

shrubs, perennials, vegetable plants, fall pansies and mums, annuals and poinsettias. There is something to do year-round and something to sell year-round.

What has been the most rewarding part of your career?

Watching the business grow and flourish. It is rewarding to watch customers buy their perfect plant and see their excitement, and to just watch plants grow. We pioneered the agritourism signs for the nursery and greenhouse industry. Jim went to the NCDA and met with their lawyer and the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) several times. After two years of back and forth, Mitchell’s was the first nursery in N.C. to have a DOT tour sign erected. Mitchell’s, along with Homewood Nursery and NC State, host poinsettia trials. We have been in business 41 years, with our son joining us 18 years ago. Now his daughters enjoy coming and helping some. They are 9, 6, 4 and 3 years old. We are growing our future.

What is your company best known for?

We are best known for the quality and variety of our plants—especially the poinsettias. We are growing 103 different varieties this year.

What issues are you concerned about as a company in the green industry?

Our biggest concern, like many in the industry, is weather. It is not something we can control, and we must be ready to deal with whatever comes our way by being prepared.

What have you gained from your involvement in NCNLA?

We enjoy the camaraderie and mentoring from other growers in the industry. NCNLA also gives us sources for plants that we have sold out of or do not grow.

It is rewarding to watch customers buy their perfect plant and see their excitement, and to just watch plants grow.

What advice do you have for someone interested in or just starting out in the industry?

Be willing to work. It is not a 9-5 job. Be flexible. Be willing to change. Be sure to save for rainy days for they will come, and for the off-season.