Appalachian Nurseries to close

WAYNESBORO, Pa. – An era in the wholesale nursery industry is coming to an end as Tom McCloud, president and owner of Appalachian Nurseries Inc. in Franklin County, Pa., has sold the property to a new owner.

McCloud has reached an agreement with a local farmer to sell the nursery property located on Clay Hill Road between Greencastle and Waynesboro. New ownership will take place on Dec. 8, and Appalachian Nurseries will remain open through the end of May 2016 to sell off current inventory. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. According to McCloud, “Even though the property and greenhouses will not continue to be used for nursery stock, we are pleased that it will remain in agriculture, since the new owner will be producing vegetable plants to supply local growers.”

“We’ve had a long, successful run supplying wholesale growers, garden centers and landscapers all over the East Coast and parts of the Midwest with top-quality ornamental plants,” McCloud said. “My wife, Fern, and I have reached retirement age, and it’s time to enjoy the fruits of our labor and spend time with our family, especially our five grandsons, and visit friends far and near.”

Appalachian Nurseries has been a mainstay in the wholesale nursery industry since 1939, when William Billerbeck opened it on a 10-acre tract in Waynesboro off Fairview Avenue. That property has subsequently been sold to other interests for residential development.  Billerbeck built numerous greenhouses, with a total of 1 acre under glass, and operated the nursery until selling it to Ohio-based Lake County Nursery in January 1974.

A native of Lititz, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, McCloud was hired as the manager of Appalachian Nurseries in March 1974 , after working for Jackson and Perkins in Newark, NY and Wasco, CA for eight years. He managed the business for 10 years and then purchased the business from Lake County Nursery in 1984. In 2002, McCloud moved the nursery to 10 acres on Clay Hill Road, building more efficient greenhouses and also with ease of access.. For the past 13 years, the business has continued to supply wholesale potted liners to wholesalers and retailers throughout the United States and has even shipped plants to international markets, including Poland.

“We’ve had great, loyal customers for many years, and we will continue to fill their orders and sell the inventory that we have until the end of May,” McCloud said.

 For more information about the closing, visit www.appnursery.com.