Sunbelt Agricultural Expo Information

The firm sells to customers in about 12 states, most of them in the Southeast. Most of the trees are grown in the ground and are later dug for replanting, but the farm has recently added several acres of trees container production. Subsurface drip irrigation is an important tool. In addition to providing water, the drip lines also furnish fertilizer to the roots where the trees need it. Raising the trees also involves pest control, primarily for flat-headed apple borers and ambrosia beetles. "We use scouts for diseases and insects, so we don't waste chemicals," adds Phillip. Tree shipments also comply with quarantine regulations for pests such as fire ants and Japanese beetles. "We have to treat the roots of these trees before shipping out of here," he explains. The trees are planted in rows, with grass strips planted between the rows to help control soil erosion. Herbicides are used in the tree rows to keep weeds and competing vegetation under control. "We mow the grass strips and maintain the rows with herbicides," adds Phillip. "Once we began operating the farm full time, our sales grew rapidly," recalls Phillip. Their production and sales peaked during 2007. Drought hit in 2008, followed by a collapse of the overall economy. "Our business is largely dependent on the pace of housing, office and retail construction," says Phillip. "We bottomed out in 2009, and our business has been on the increase during the past four years." He believes his industry is now entering a time when tree supplies are going down while demand for the trees is going up. The farm has overcome other challenges. These include developing a suitable source of water for irrigation, obtaining financing and establishing a banking relationship, identifying and helping to develop suppliers of the young trees planted on the farm and developing a network of freight specialists for transporting trees to their customers. At any one time, there will be 125 varieties and some 65,000 landscape trees growing on the farm. Nuttall oak is the farm's ...