Summerlin nursery keeps community green

More than 40,000 plants and 2,000 trees are planted on an annual basis within Summerlin's parks, alongside trails and streetscapes and in other public areas, according to John Spadora Jr., nursery manager and horticulturist for Regency Design & Landscape, the firm contracted by The Howard Hughes Corp., the master-planned community's developer.

To keep up with the demand for quality plant material, Summerlin maintains its own private plant nursery in the undeveloped western hillside of the community, located west of Interstate 215, the Las Vegas Beltway.

The facility is located on 15.5 acres and ranks as the state's largest with a current inventory of 3,200 trees and 60,000 plants. It recently received a superior rating by the Nevada Department of Agriculture, receiving no demerits in its semi-annual inspection.

According to Donna Rise, director of the Nevada Department of Agriculture, who recently visited the nursery to tour the operation firsthand, the Summerlin Nursery is an example of an agriculture operation where quality care is the focus.

"Plants are not unlike children," Rise said. "They require constant care and monitoring to maintain optimal health. The Summerlin Nursery is a top-notch operation where commitment to quality is evident. Twenty-four-hour care and a number of operational procedures ensure that every plant has the opportunity to thrive."

According to Tom Warden, vice president of community and government relations for The Howard Hughes Corp., landscaping has been a Summerlin signature since the community's inception.

"People know when they're in Summerlin by the way the community looks," he said. "Landscaping has always played a major role in shaping Summerlin's signature look, thanks in part to very strict design guidelines that have been in place from the beginning."

For several years, The Howard Hughes Corp. procured Summerlin plant material from a nursery in Phoenix, but in 2005 decided to establish its own nursery onsite.

"Having the nursery right here in Summerlin means that plants and trees are better adjusted and climatized," Warden said. "They don't have to be transported and are already fully climatized to the arid Southern Nevada desert. This has not only cut down on plant loss, but has also improved overall plant health."

The nursery is well sited, Spadora said. "Hughes took great care to find the right spot for the nursery. The remote location means that we can operate it round-the-clock without disturbing neighbors and nearby development."

Located in a large natural retention basin and 500-year-flood channel, the nursery is protected from wind, while benefiting from natural water runoff.

As a self-contained facility, all water is trucked into the nursery on a daily basis and most watering occurs during the overnight hours when evaporation is minimized. The nursery also has its own power and satellite to operate the computer system that keeps track of every plant and tree via bar coding.

"Every plant is bar coded when it arrives here," Spadora said. "We know exactly where each and every plant is at all times. We can create a map of the entire nursery that identifies each plant."

Spadora said this level of organization is necessary to manage the number of landscaping jobs the nursery is involved with at any given time.

"Typically, we've got about 12 to 15 active projects for which we are providing plants. It's essential that we keep it all straight and being fully computerized makes all the difference."

The 22,500-acre master-planned community began to take shape in 1990. Located along the western rim of the Las Vegas Valley, Summerlin is home to more than 95,000 residents, more than 100 neighborhood and village parks and as many as 150 completed miles of the Summerlin trail system.

With 7,500 acres still to develop, including its urban core, Summerlin Centre, the community encompasses a variety of houses of worship, shopping centers, medical and cultural facilities, business parks and more than 100 actively selling floor plans.

Homes are available in a variety of styles -- from single-family homes to townhomes, condominiums and lofts -- priced from the low $200,000s to more than $2 million.

For more information on Summerlin, visit summerlin.com or call 791-4500.