Eastern Shore Nursery of Virginia expands into the rose market

Nursery will grow more than 100 varieties, including Drift and Knock Out selections


Keller, Va.—Seizing an opportunity to fill a void in the garden rose market resulting from the departure of major national growers, Eastern Shore Nursery of Virginia is expanding its production of roses. The move comes as Conard-Pyle, parent of Star Roses, is withdrawing from finished plant container rose production and Jackson & Perkins has filed chapter 11.

Eastern Shore Nursery of Virginia has expanded into the production of more than 100 varieties of garden roses, including hybrid tea, grandiflora, climbers, Drift roses, rugosa, floribunda and tree roses, as well as the Knock Out family of roses. The company has grown shrub roses for years and will quadruple the size of their current rose production with the expansion. The firm plans to have garden roses available to meet demand for spring 2011.

“CP’s [Conard-Pyle’s] departure opens a tremendous opportunity for us to serve garden centers, re-wholesalers and the general rose-buying public,” said Nick Covatta, co-owner of Eastern Shore Nursery of Virginia. “We are working closely with CP and others to ensure the best variety selection and growing techniques to facilitate our move. Going forward we will become a major customer for CP’s bare-root liners. This expansion is moving rapidly and is an exciting new chapter in the growth and development of our company.”

CP has been growing high quality roses on Maryland’s Eastern Shore for decades and has a very similar climate to that of Eastern Shore Nursery’s in Keller, Va.

“We are also in an ideal location with the temperatures and sunshine that allow our roses to bud and bloom in the period just prior to Mother’s Day,” Covatta said. “This expansion is in line with our strategic plan to increase our presence as a key supplier to our garden center customers. We also hope to become an important grower of roses on the East Coast and are providing this very broad line right out of the gate to help achieve that goal.”

Covatta says that roses could be in general short-supply next spring and he’s working diligently to meet demand. The nursery will begin planting in January 2011, with product available for delivery to garden centers and other customers in April and May. They are taking orders now and ask that customers contact them before September 1, 2010.