Head-Lee Nursery a family affair

One of the members of the Greater Seneca Chamber of Commerce is Head-Lee Nursery on Hwy. 28 NW of Seneca. Owned by Bill (left) and Bob Head and their sister, Janet Head Lee Neville, the business has been a family affair since their parents took over what was Oconee Nursery in 1972.

Bill, Bob and Janet grew up in the gardens. When other kids went out to play baseball, these kids went out and gardened! It instilled in each of them a love of plants and a passion to improve the quality of plants and the nursery business.
There are actually two businesses located on the 33 acre site. Head-Lee Nursery is the plant retail and wholesale operation with Bill managing the retail side, Bob managing the wholesale portion and Janet managing the office.

The second company, Head Ornamentals, Inc. is a plant patent and marketing company owned by Bob and his wife Lisa, and Bill. Lisa handles the business side of this company.

Head-Lee Nursery provides an amazing variety of plants and customers come from all over to make their selections.

Bill Head explains," We are one of the largest independent retail garden centers in the state and sometimes it surprises people in our industry to see how big a retail operation we have in such a rural environment. People from other areas are amazed at the variety and quality of our plants.”


The reason becomes clear in Bill’s description of why they’re in the business: “I am more interested in providing top quality products to the end consumer than in anything else we do. That’s our whole purpose—to provide top quality products.”

Bill continues, “Our whole family has dedicated their entire lives to horticulture—we don’t do anything else or pretend to do anything else. It’s really about the absolute love of plants. To see a new plant that’s been developed and see someone admire and enjoy it is the best part. It’s what gives us pleasure."

A passion for plants coupled with strong values is the underlying strength of their business. Bill’s advice for anyone starting a business is; “If you have a love of something, you have to stick with it and you have to run an honest legitimate business. We offer high quality products and have a helpful attitude towards our customers."

"There is plenty of room for everyone in our economy, so a lot of the negative stuff, I just stay away from. It’s a good community, and there’s enough business for everyone.”

Head-Lee Nursery (wholesale) propagates and grows plants for other companies or finishers--companies like Monrovia Nursery who purchase small plants and grow them to selling size.

A big portion of this side of the business is the Magnolia. Bill Head explains: “They are notoriously hard to propagate from cuttings but years ago we developed a unique way to propogate and Bob has further improved upon it providing a real service to other growers."

Head Ornamentals breeds, develops and patents new plant material under its trademarked logo Garden Debut ® for use in North America, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Great Britain and parts of Europe.

The company develops a new plant, patents it and then licenses other nurseries in the US to produce it through cuttings. They can also put it into tissue culture so that it can be shipped all over the world where licensed producers can then grow the plants for sale.

These micro-plants are easier to export because they are created in a sterile environment. “It all goes through rigorous processes according to the import laws, but because it is grown in tissue culture form, it is the easiest way to ship.” Bill explains.

Bill continues, “We are always in the process of applying for new patents – about 15 this year. A new plant selection can take up to 20 years to get ready for the patent process. The process itself takes a year to 18 months.”

Head Ornamentals, Inc. is most proud of The Teddy Bear ® Magnolia patented in 2002. It is a beautiful example of a compact native Magnolia that sells well here in the US and abroad.

For a complete list of Head Ornamental patented plants, see www.gardendebut.com. The plants on the web site are sold only to wholesalers but most are available at Head-Lee Nursery.

Bill ponders the use of his time. “Sometimes I feel like I’ve traded in my pruners for a laptop. You have a tremendous love for what you do but you also need to keep up the business side of it. We serve the whole county and beyond so we are members of the Walhalla and Seneca Chambers of Commerce--it's a way to be more effective for the people of the county.“

Bill continues, "Our clientele get excellent products and we are happy with the size of our business. Bigger is not always better—we don’t want to ruin a good thing! We always strive to improve, but not necessarily get bigger.”