Local Nursery Adds Home-Grown Tree Business

Beginning a tree-growing operation just made sense for Whispering Hills and its customers.

For the past 30 years, Whispering Hills has been McHenry County’s go-to source for quality plant and tree material. Now those decades of knowledge will be applied to become the newest tree grower in the county, located on more than 10 acres of land in Cary.

The benefits of Whispering Hills growing its own trees is multi-fold, as explained by Garden Center Manager and Horticulturist, Sean Ducey.

First, it gives both the company and its customers more quality control. “Given the fact that the tree growing industry is short on labor, we will be able to ensure that these trees are growing under ideal conditions by growing them at our facility,” Ducey said. “Because of labor shortages, there are fewer people at growing facilities to prune trees as they grow, fewer people to control weeds, and a lessened ability to fertilize. By having our trees directly under our nose, we can support them as needed, specific to our climate.”

Second, it ensures transparency. “Customers will not only be able to walk our tree growing facility to select the exact tree that they want, but also be able to see the exact location where it was grown,” Ducey explained. “Think of the farm to table movement, with our customers being able to trace our trees from sapling to yard.”

Growing also offers a great cost savings to all parties. “Almost every day, shipping costs keep increasing. In the last two years since the pandemic, shipping costs have gone up a staggering amount,” he explained. ”Having our trees move from the back of our property to the front of our property is much cheaper than shipping a tree across the country. This means that we can manage our costs, keeping them predictable, controlling for spikes in the cost of freight.”

It’s also better for the short- and long-term health of the plants. “The trees that we will be growing are going to be selected specifically for our climate, growing zone 5b. This means that the trees won’t have to acclimate to our climate once shipped, and will not undergo the stress of shipping across state lines,” Ducey said. “Our trees will go through winter in northern Illinois, grow in northern Illinois soil, matching the soil conditions of our customers. Growing our trees in the same soil conditions as our customers’ yards will give the trees we grow a boost during the transplanting process, helping them grow healthy and strong.”

The land is currently being tilled, making it usable for growing. Beginning in 2022, Whispering Hills will be planting a new crop of trees.

For more information, visit whisperinghillsnursery.com for more information, or follow @whisperinghillsgardencenter on Instagram.