{"id":41378,"date":"2024-04-26T06:34:33","date_gmt":"2024-04-26T10:34:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/?p=41378"},"modified":"2024-04-26T10:37:07","modified_gmt":"2024-04-26T14:37:07","slug":"at-marylands-state-nursery-staff-grow-trees-by-the-millions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/2024\/04\/26\/at-marylands-state-nursery-staff-grow-trees-by-the-millions\/","title":{"rendered":"At Maryland\u2019s State Nursery, Staff Grow Trees by the Millions"},"content":{"rendered":"

The trees planted at the Ayton State Tree Nursery go to reclaimed forests, restoration projects, and anyone who orders a bundle of 25 or more<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

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The state tree nursery in Caroline County. Photo by Steve Badger\/DNR<\/p><\/div>\n

At the John S. Ayton State Tree Nursery, little green saplings progressed down rows of conveyor belts.<\/span><\/p>\n

On both sides of the line, workers sifted through bread trays stacked with young trees, bundling them and placing them on the belt. At the end of the row, a worker lifted the clump from the creaking machinery and whacked it with a machete to prune off excess roots. Then they bagged the bundle and marked it off: \u201c1,000 loblolly.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

This is just a small step in the production process at the state nursery, part of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources\u2019 Forest Service, which oversees trees from seed to sapling, planting them, growing them, and then shipping them out. Every year, the nursery produces millions of trees. The team there is filling orders for 2.75 million trees this year.<\/span><\/p>\n

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\u201cThis is a mad dash,\u201d Richard Garrett, the nursery manager, said at the site during a busy time in late February. \u201cWe\u2019re getting trees into customers\u2019 hands. Then on top of that, it\u2019s the start of the growing season again.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The nursery, in Preston on the Eastern Shore, provides trees for everyone from commercial contractors to individual homeowners. Customers place orders starting in the fall, with a minimum purchase of 25 trees.<\/span><\/p>\n

Loblolly pines usually take the top spot in the orders, but Garrett said the nursery has seen more diversity in recent years. In the past, the nursery produced between 20 and 30 species, but now the team grows more than 50 species, with more shrubs and pollinators.<\/span><\/p>\n

This increased diversity accompanies a shift from reforestation to restoration. While a number of trees are still planted for strip mine reclamation, others are sought for establishing a productive variety for projects including watershed protection, wildlife habitat, and stream buffer stabilization.<\/span><\/p>\n

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