NEWS

Cleveland County greenhouse business a mainstay for 30 years

Special to The Star
Justin Lane of S & K Greenhouses shows off some of the items available at the family business.

Big Beef, Better Boy, Fantastic, Cherokee Purple — what’s Cleveland County’s favorite tomato?

If anyone would know, it’s Justin Lane. His family owns S & K Greenhouses, and each year they sell thousands of vegetables plants at their retail operation on U.S. 74. When it comes to selling tomato plants, Justin has learned to be diplomatic.

“Being a rural county, people here love their gardens and are diehard about their varieties,” said Lane. “Everybody thinks their favorite tomato is the best tomato, so I don’t even try to convince them otherwise, but Better Boy and Big Beef are probably the best sellers.”

It’s only fitting that S & K Greenhouses supplies so many local gardeners. Justin’s parents, Sharon and Keith Lane, have a lifelong passion for gardening. In 1992, they started peddling extra plants on the roadside in Boiling Springs. From there, they slowly built a thriving nursery business.

S & K Greenhouses grows and sells a variety of tomatoes.

“My parents love growing plants. It kinda started as a hobby for them, then it turned into a side gig, and now it’s a full-time business that supports four members of our family, plus a couple of seasonal workers each year,” he said.

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For over a decade, the family grew and sold plants at their greenhouses on Cliffside Road below Boiling Springs. Then, in 2013, they decided to expand. They bought a piece of property on U.S. 74 near Beaverdam and constructed two new greenhouses to serve as their retail location. They still grow and produce plants at their old greenhouses, but utilize this new location, with its increased visibility and traffic, to sell plants.

Hard work pays off

Running a nursery involves hard work and long hours, especially during the spring and fall. It also involves a lot of planning.

Each type of plant has different germination timelines, so making sure everything is ready to sell for peak season requires a lot of coordination. Justin says that 70% of their business comes during spring and fall. This spring he only took one day off, Easter.

“Somebody has to water every day. We really pride ourselves on quality and taking care of our plants. We want to sell everything we grow,” he said.

S & K Greenhouses has been in business for 30 years.

S & K Greenhouses grows their own vegetable plants and doesn’t buy from a wholesaler. 

The Lane family has also learned to play to their individual strengths.

Justin’s dad, Keith, likes growing plants and staying behind the scenes, so he takes care of the production greenhouses on Cliffside Road.

His mom, Sharon, is the creative one. With an eye for design, she puts together the combinations for all the hanging baskets.

Justin, meanwhile, has really grown into his role as retail and marketing manager, using his tech-savvy skills to promote the business.

The S & K Greenhouses’ YouTube channel, where Justin posts videos of gardening tips, has more than 20,000 followers.

Looking to the Future

Going forward, the Lane family would like to continue to expand and build two more greenhouses at their retail location.

Justin says that their business last year greatly exceeded their numbers for the previous year. He says that the nursery business often reflects the greater economy. When the economy is strong, people have more disposable income to landscape and garden.

One thing Justin is concerned about is the potential decrease in traffic once the bypass opens, but he feels confident that their local customers will continue to still support them.

“We’ve got some pretty diehard and loyal customers. They know quality when they see it," he said.