Photo courtesy of Greenleaf Nursery Co.
John T. Nickel, 89, chair of the board of Greenleaf Nursery Co., passed away peacefully in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on April 19, 2025.
He was a lifelong nurseryman, conservationist and philanthropist.
Born Aug. 10, 1935, in Muskogee, Oklahoma, Nickel grew up working in the Muskogee retail landscape nursery of his parents, Harold R. Nickel and Rebecca Ann Todd. At age 22, Nickel established Greenleaf Nursery Company on Lake Tenkiller in Park Hill, Oklahoma.
As a young entrepreneur, Nickel had the vision of growing plants in containers and creating a wholesale nursery that ships everywhere in the U.S. and Canada east of the Rockies. Today, Greenleaf Nursery Co. is one of the nation’s largest wholesale producers of shrubs, trees and container plants, with locations in Oklahoma, Texas and North Carolina.
In 1979, Nickel partnered with his brother Gil to restore the nearly 100-year-old Far Niente Winery in Oakville, California. In 1997, the brand Nickel & Nickel began producing 100% varietal, single-vineyard wines. Their efforts resulted in placement on the National Register of Historic Places.
Nickel's love for nature began at age 10, when his dad took him and his brother on an Illinois River camping trip. He was passionate about many things: fly-fishing, horses, building and restoration projects, wildlife conservation, protection of natural lands and water, architecture, landscape architecture, horticulture, ranching, farming, wine, travel with his family, exercise, and skiing.
Because of his passion for nature, Nickel donated 14,000 acres to The Nature Conservancy to ensure the land would remain pristine and undeveloped. Nestled in the rolling foothills of the Ozarks and overlooking the Illinois River, the J. T. Nickel Family Nature and Wildlife Preserve is the largest privately protected conservation area in the Ozarks and was officially dedicated in 2000. His business interests include Greenleaf Nursery Co., Greenland Investments and the Caney Creek Ranch.
Nickel was named Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst & Young in 1998. He was awarded The Nature Conservancy’s first Oak Leaf Award and a Wildlife Stewardship Award from Nature Works in 2004. In 2005, a herd of native elk was reintroduced to the Nickel Preserve after being hunted out more than 150 years ago.
Nickel was inducted into the Tulsa Hall of Fame in 2007 and into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, Oklahoma’s highest honor, in 2019.
"We mourn the loss of John T. Nickel, but we also celebrate his life and accomplishments," Greenleaf Nursery Co. said in a statement. "John leaves an enduring legacy of excellence, determination and integrity that will continue to be the guiding mantra to our company into the future."
He is survived by his wife Julie, his five children and his grandson, as well as many extended family members and more than 1,000 employees he considered extended family.