GROWER SPOTLIGHT
The nursery often lets their products mature in pots or containers, or plants them in the ground, before selling to customers. Terry said this allows the nursery to be sure the plants are viable and high-quality before customers take them home. “We expect these crops to be with people a long time, to be in the environment a long time,” Terry says. “I like to go with things that I’m confident will do well.” Terry and his wife Cheryl purchased the property for Wiggin’s Landscape Nursery in the mid-1980s. Previously, the Wiggin’s farmed on the San Juan Islands, but they decided to head to the mainland for better soil, fewer deer and easier business access. The couple said it was a big learning curve at the time to figure out the best way to grow on the land, as well as how to choose products the customers would want. “When we start, how do we know what you’re going to want in your place five years from now?” Terry says of choosing what to grow at the nursery. “That’s been some of the challenge—and the fun of the challenge.” The nursery is situated on about 80 acres off Pulver Road in Mount Vernon and has about 20 employees. Wiggin’s sells products across the country, from North Carolina to Maine, throughout the Midwest, from Utah north to British Columbia, and across the Pacific Northwest. The climate in Western Washington allows the nursery to grow a large variety of products, and the long growing season and short winter allow plants to grow quicker than they do elsewhere. “A lot of people come here for the first time, and they’re overwhelmed by the selection,” says Bill DeMott, who is in charge of sales for the nursery. “It’s at least a two-visit place.”
Terry says the nursery’s sustainability practices set the business apart from other landscape nurseries. They mix crops to help control disease, use integrated pest management along with insect traps to monitor what pests are in the area, and utilize free-range chickens to eat bugs for pest control. Additionally, Wiggin’s recycles by grinding and composting all woody material and uses the compost in their fields and containers. The team at Wiggin’s is also selective about the plants they grow. They choose plants that are proven to grow best in the Pacific Northwest climate and don’t need a lot of maintenance, such as annual spraying to kill disease.
Wiggin’s Landscape: NURSING PLANTS LONGER IMPROVES HEALTH
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— Brianna Hackler, Graphic & Multimedia Specialist
Terry and Cheryl Wiggin have owned and operated Wiggin’s Landscape Nursery in Mount Vernon since the mid-1980s.
During nearly four decades they have been in business, the owners of Wiggin’s Landscape Nursery in Mount Vernon have taken their time learning the industry, understanding what their customers want, and developing sustainable practices that consistently produce quality products. “It takes time to put a system like this together,” says Terry Wiggin. “We’re always learning, always adapting.” Wiggin’s Landscape Nursery specializes in a large variety of ornamental plants, including an extensive collection of large container specimens. Wiggin’s focuses in propagating and growing many plants including cultivated conifer varieties, garden ornamental flowering trees and shrubs, broadleaf evergreens, and a mix of specialty perennials.
“It takes time to put a system like this together, we’re always learning, always adapting.”
The nursery has about 20 full time employees, but the current owners are actively searching for a younger person who may want to take over ownership of the business.
Wiggin’s uses free-range chickens to eat bugs as a sustainable method for pest control.
10 | SPRING 2024
CO-OP CONNECTION | 11
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