Nursery and Floriculture Sector in Orange County
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Introduction In these difficult economic times, the Economic Research Initiative examines Orange County’s economy in a comprehensive way by examining some of the industries that drive the local economic activity. This second article studies the impact of the Green House and Nursery Production sector (NAICS 1114), otherwise known as the nursery and floriculture industry. It starts with a background that covers the history and general characteristics of this industry, looks at areas of concentration within the County, and discusses some of the challenges faced by the industry. Establishments within the Green House and Nursery Production (NAICS 1114) sector grow a variety of plants under cover, including nursery stock, shrubbery, foliage plants, and flowers. The local industry is ranked eighth in the nation, and local nurseries reported more than $237,000,000 in sales (USDA, 2007). Despite these impressive numbers, the nursery and floriculture sector tends to be a minor component of local economic development efforts. The fact that Orange County is considered an urban county may play a role in this omission. This position ignores the history of the industry, its drive to innovate, and its future potential. History of the Industry The commercial nursery industry emerged in northwest Orange County in the early 1880s to supply seedlings to the local citrus growers. Soon after, several horticulturists started to experiment with other crops for commercial purposes, and fern nurseries started to emerge just before the First World War. The Boston fern was the major breed produced locally, but soon the industry expanded to include other types of indoor foliage. Innovations in scientific and mass marketing helped to boost production. Local growers organized the Zellwood Fern Growers Association in 1922 and started to sell their product under the Dewkist trademark. By 1927, local nurseries were shipping over one million ferns. The major buyers were large national chain department stores like Kress, Krege, McCrory, and Woolworth’s. The 1934 freeze highlighted the need for greenhouses to protect the plants. By 1949, Apopka had 49 green houses, with others rapidly being built. In the 1960s, the O.F. Nelson and Sons Nursery east of Apopka developed an assembly line method that produced container grown plants on a hardy root stock. In 1980, the third largest tissue culture facility in the United States opened in Plymouth. The tissue culture method of plant reproduction works very similar to cloning, as it involves placing a small piece of plant tissue in test tube with nutrients to grow a perfect plant. Nurseries have become an important fixture in Northwest Orange County. As can be seen on Exhibit 1, most of Orange County’s nursery production is concentrated near the City of Apopka and the unincorporated areas of Plymouth and Zellwood. Nurseries occupy over 4,000 acres. The ECONOMIC OUTLOOK AUGUST 2009 Nursery and Floriculture Production Sector in Orange County by Luis Nieves-Ruiz, AICP Issue 2
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Transcript of Nursery and Floriculture Sector in Orange County
Introduction
In these difficult economic times, the Economic Research Initiative examines Orange County’s economy in a comprehensive way by examining some of the industries that drive the local economic activity. This second article studies the impact of the Green House and Nursery Production sector (NAICS 1114), otherwise known as the nursery and floriculture industry. It starts with a background that covers the history and general characteristics of this industry, looks at areas of concentration within the County, and discusses some of the challenges faced by the industry.
Establishments within the Green House and Nursery Production (NAICS 1114) sector grow a variety of plants under cover, including nursery stock, shrubbery, foliage plants, and flowers. The local industry is ranked eighth in the nation, and local nurseries reported more than $237,000,000 in sales (USDA, 2007). Despite these impressive numbers, the nursery and floriculture sector tends to be a minor component of local economic development efforts. The fact that Orange County is considered an urban county may play a role in this omission. This position ignores the history of the industry, its drive to innovate, and its future potential.
History of the Industry
The commercial nursery industry emerged in northwest Orange County in the early 1880s to supply seedlings to the local citrus growers. Soon after, several horticulturists started to experiment with other crops for commercial purposes, and fern nurseries started to emerge just before the First World War. The Boston fern was the major breed produced locally, but soon the industry expanded to include other types of indoor foliage. Innovations in scientific and mass marketing helped to boost production. Local growers organized the Zellwood Fern Growers Association in 1922 and started to sell their product under the Dewkist trademark. By 1927, local nurseries were shipping over one million ferns. The major buyers were large national chain department stores like Kress, Krege, McCrory, and Woolworth’s. The 1934 freeze highlighted the need for greenhouses to protect the plants. By 1949, Apopka had 49 green houses, with others rapidly being built. In the 1960s, the O.F. Nelson and Sons Nursery east of Apopka developed an assembly line method that produced container grown plants on a hardy root stock. In 1980, the third largest tissue culture facility in the United States opened in Plymouth. The tissue culture method of plant reproduction works very similar to cloning, as it involves placing a small piece of plant tissue in test tube with nutrients to grow a perfect plant. Nurseries have become an important fixture in Northwest Orange County. As can be seen on Exhibit 1, most of Orange County’s nursery production is concentrated near the City of Apopka and the unincorporated areas of Plymouth and Zellwood. Nurseries occupy over 4,000 acres. The
ECONOMIC OUTLOOK AUGUST 2009
Nursery and Floriculture Production Sector in Orange County by Luis Nieves-Ruiz, AICP
Issue 2
majority of these nurseries are dedicated to the production of ornamental plants (1,654 acres) and container nurseries (1,597.7 acres). This large concentration of nursery businesses has also led suppliers and other related industries that support the nursery industry to locate in the area, creating economic “clusters.” A cluster is defined by the relationships between nearby firms, which can include organizations from a variety of industries. For example, supporting industries may provide local nurseries with important production inputs, such as seedlings, fertilizer, and pesticides.
To verify if there is indeed a cluster in Northwest Orange County, staff used the infoUSA business database to identify nursery establishments and other associated industries. The establishments were separated into two different categories: producers and suppliers and related industries. The “producer” category includes nurseries that produce plants mainly to be sold at the wholesale level. It is comprised of firms within the following industries: Nursery and Tree Production (NAICS 1114), Nursery and Florist Merchant Wholesale (NAICS 4249), and Nursery Garden and Farm Supply Stores (NAICS 4442). There are 162 establishments within these three categories in the area.
ECONOMIC OUTLOOK AUGUST 2009
The “suppliers and related industries” category includes suppliers, retailers, and the direct users of the products. There were 117 firms from a variety of categories, including tissue culture producers, fertilizer manufacturers, farm equipment providers, and landscaping companies. Figure 2 above shows the number of firms within these categories. While the absence of actual sales data makes it hard to prove the linkage between these firms, their geographic proximity hints that there is a strong connection between these companies. An important component of clusters is the educational and research institutions that provide the technical expertise and allow innovation to happen within the industry. The University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Science (IFAS) Mid Florida Research and Education Center in South Apopka fits this role in northwest Orange County. This institution provides research on different aspects affecting the nursery and foliage industry, including plant development, plant production, and pest management. Figure 3, on the next page, shows the location of some of these suppliers and related industries in the nursery and floriculture industry cluster. Challenges and Conclusions
To facilitate the growth of an industry, it is important to honestly assess the challenges facing it. From a planning perspective, the biggest challenge faced by the nursery industry is recognition. In a time when cities and governments favor strategies to attract both high tech industries and a higher-value tax base, focusing on agriculture may not be part of the economic development strategy. Agriculture is still perceived as an industry that consumes enormous amount of land, employs few people, and creates low value added products (Fulton, 2008). Most likely, this is the reason why agriculture is seen by some as a “holding” land use until urban development arrives. This debate is more common on the fringes of big metropolitan regions, where urban growth is pulling agriculture out of business. While urban development increases the demand for ornamental plants, it can also put pressure on some nurseries to relocate or shut their doors. For example, Knox Nursery in unincorporated Orange County moved from their original location on the outskirts of Pine Hills, because it was encircled by residential growth. The company relocated to a new site in Avalon Road in 1997. Now, as urban growth migrated to southwest Orange County, the location is also encircled by new subdivisions and commercial outlets.
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Cluster Group
NAICS Code Industry Description
Number of Establishments
Producers
1114 Nursery & Tree Production 13
4249 Nursery & Florist Merchant Wholesale 85
4442 Nursery Garden & Farm Supply Stores 64
Suppliers and Related Industries
1114 Nursery and Tree Production 3
3253 Fertilizer Manufacturing 3
4238 Farm & Garden Equip Merchant Wholesale 2
4246 Other Chemical Merchant Wholesale 2
4249 Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesale 4
4442 Nursery Garden & Farm Supply Stores 12
4531 Florists 2
5417 Research & Development In Biotechnology 1
5617 Landscaping Services 87
5619 All Other Support Services 1
Source: infoUSA Business Database, 2009
Exhibit 2: Number of firms by NAICS Group in Northwest Orange County
The perception of agriculture as a losing land use proposition was recently questioned by the Orange County Farm Bureau. In a study partially funded by the Orange County Board of County Commissioners, the Bureau compared the community revenues and expenditures created by the different land uses. The study found that for every dollar generated by the local agriculture industry, the County and schools spend only 22 cents in direct services. On the other hand, residential land use consumes 34 cents more in services than the revenues it produces. The challenges faced by the floriculture and nursery industry are mainly local in nature, since local jurisdictions still control both economic development strategies and urban growth. Therefore, local economic development organizations must recognize the importance of the nursery industry has in northwest Orange County’s economy. Moreover, several of the plant technologies developed for the nursery industry, like tissue culture production, could be used to develop plants for biomedical studies. At the same time, the nursery industry will also need to learn to adapt to urban development. For example, as communities continue to consume rural land for urban purposes, nursery gardens could be built on rooftops of urban structures. Hydroponic nurseries can grow food with just 15 percent of the water used by a typical farm (Mackay, 2009). Similar initiatives would help the nursery industry to continue to thrive and preserve its important role in the County’s economy.
ECONOMIC OUTLOOK AUGUST 2009
References Rahmani, M, Hodges, A.W, and Mulkey, W.D. Profile and Economic Impacts of Agriculture and Natural Resource I Industries in the Central Region of Florida. University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Food and Resource Economics Department (2002) Gainesville: FL Chamberlain, Alex S., Durak Michael L., Gerken, John L., Vigh, Charles A. Agricultural Development in East Central Florida (1967) East Central Florida Regional Council 1965 Research Series. Titusville, FL Shofner, Jerrell H., History of Apopka and northwest Orange County, Florida (1982), Rose Printing Co. Tallahassee: FL Evans, Craig (2007).The Contributions of Agribusiness to Orange County, Florida. Orange County Farm Bureau. Orlando: FL Corthright, J. Making Sense of Clusters: Regional Competitiveness and Economic Development (2006). Brookings Institution Metropolitan Policy Program. Jackson, J.W. Industry is back in bloom: Nursery sales top $3 billion, UF Survey says. Originally posted September 29, 2006 Fulton, W. Down on the Farm. Governing. October 2008. p.58 Jackson, J. Nursery meets the challenge. Orlando Sentinel: Central Florida Business, May 9-11, 2008 Mackay. R. Up on the roof-future of gardening? Orlando Sentinel. April 14, 2009. Mills. K.G, Reynolds, E.B., and Reamer, A. Clusters and Competitiveness: A New Federal Role for Stimulating Regional Economies. Brookings Institution. Originally Published on April 2008. Retrieved May 30, 2009 from www. brookings.com
Introduction May
Nursery and Floriculture Production August
High Technology Sectors October
Leisure and Hospitality November
Health Care and Biotechnology December
Issues Month of Publication Orange County Growth Management Department
Planning Division Research & Intergovernmental Coordination Section
Post Office Box 1393 Orlando, FL 32802-1393
Telephone: 407.836.5600
Fax: 407.836.5862 E-Mail: [email protected]
www.ocfl.net/planning
ECONOMIC OUTLOOK AUGUST 2009
