Herb crop heats up international market

Hillcrest Nursery ships herb cell packs internationally -- including to a farmer in Vietnam , a chef in Rome and a potted plant grower in the Midwestern United States. But it was happenstance that introduced Hillcrest to the world of herbs.

Brothers Jim and Steve Hershfeld were growing bedding plants, perennials and some holiday crops for regional garden centers. Richard Simon, a respected perennial grower on the East Coast, was disappointed in the lack of herb sales, and asked Steve to buy the rest of his inventory in the mid-1980s. It was late fall when Simon delivered the potted herbs, and they didn’t look like much, Steve said.

But Steve cleaned up the pots and started propagating the herbs.

“The sales took off,” Steve said.

This was during the opulent era of the mid-’80s, after the organic movement of the ’70s and well before the Food Network and HGTV craze.

Now Hillcrest grows about 200 varieties of herbs every year from cell packs up to gallon containers.

“We don’t concentrate on growing the most varieties of herbs,” Steve said. “We have a core list of plants and we grow them well.”

Hillcrest grows primarily culinary herbs, although some are ornamental. From a marketing standpoint, Hillcrest does not distinguish between edible and ornamental.

And herbs are a valuable crop -- perennial herbs in gallon containers require the same crop time and bench space as annuals but command a much higher price.

“Perennial herbs make good turns per square foot for the grower or the retailer,” Steve said.

Hillcrest contract grows herbs for companies like Ball Seed and Fred C. Gloeckner.

One tough crop 

Herb production is no easy task. Herbs are often finicky about moisture, many have dormancy requirements and propagation is tricky, Steve said.

“We spend a lot of time discovering what works and what doesn’t when it comes to production,” he said.

There’s always something that needs to be tweaked, but Hillcrest has refined production techniques. It annually ships about 3 million herbs.

Plants are shipped through FedEx, UPS and by air freight. It’s more problematic to ship herbs during the heat of the summer, but they can go three days in a box without damage.

Flats of herbs are covered with perforated shrink wrap that’s commonly used in the bakery industry.

Organic endeavor

Hillcrest is in the early stages of becoming certified organic for its herbs and vegetables. In Maryland, growers are certified by the state agriculture department. A Maryland certification reciprocates into an USDA certification.

Production at Hillcrest during the last couple of years has been “reasonably organic” with the exception of the growing media and fertilizer, Steve said.

“We use a lot of soaps and oils and copper and peroxide-based products,” he said.

Hillcrest is trialing organic media. With fertilizer, the biggest challenge for organic production is getting enough nitrogen into the plants, he said.

“Most organic fertilizers are 8 percent nitrogen while the others are 15-20 percent,” Steve said.

Taking the steps to become certified organic was important because customers were asking for it and the greenhouse is located in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

“It’s socially responsible, and we want to be good stewards of the community,” Steve said.

Hillcrest hired a consultant to help with the certification process.

Potted vegetables will likely be the first crop to become certified organic.

“But I’m sill looking for organic seeds for some popular tomato varieties,” Steve said.

The organic certification will be promoted through Hillcrest’s catalog, at trade shows and on the company’s e-mail broadcasts.

Herbs under cover

Venlo-style glass houses are reserved for herb production. The houses are equipped with floor heat, Hydro Farm high-pressure sodium lights for year-round cutting production from herb stock, Q-Com environmental control system and soil probes in pots. Some of the glass houses were purchased used from Holland, which saved Hillcrest about 25 percent of the cost of a new house. Hillcrest also uses Harnois quonset-type houses for perennial production.

For more: Hillcrest Nursery, (800) 452-4032; www.herbcell.com.

Founded: 1977 by Jim Hershfeld in the backyard of the Hershfeld home in Parkton , Md.

Locations: Home office is in Millers, Md. , and satellite locations are in Sparks , Md. , and York , Pa.

Production space: 6 acres.

Crops: Herbs, perennials, bedding plants and poinsettias.

Market: Regional garden centers for all crops, but worldwide distribution for herb cell packs.

Employees: 38.

Hillcrest history

Jim Hillcrest founded Hillcrest Nursery in 1972 as a backyard nursery selling terrariums and foliage. By 1977, the business outgrew the Parkton, Md., backyard and the brothers bought a farm in Millers.

“We built a 13,000-square-foot X.S. Smith house and thought we’d be set for life,” said Steve Hershfeld, vice president of Hillcrest Nursery. Two years after moving to the farm, Hillcrest began growing bedding plants for regional garden centers. Soon, there weren’t enough margins for terrariums and foliage, and Hillcrest dropped the original crops and focused on perennials, bedding plants and holiday crops.

Jim and Steve’s dad owned Bob Graham Florist in Baltimore, the city’s oldest florist. It has since been sold and undergone a name change. Their father used to make the flower blanket for the winning horse at the Preakness Stakes at the Pimlico race track in Baltimore.

The brothers grew up around flowers, and Steve got a degree in landscape architecture from West Virginia University .

Mix up herbs in a combination bowl

Hillcrest Nursery suggests combining some of its herbs into a themed bowl.

Italian

* Basil, chives, parsley.

* Oregano, rosemary.

* Marjoram, sage, thyme.

Mexican

* Cilantro, basil, garlic chives.

* Oregano, epazote, cumin.

* Marjoram, chili pepper, nasturtium.

Seafood

* Lemon thyme, chives, basil.

* Dill, savory, parsley, French tarragon.

* Lemon balm, marjoram, viola.

Edible flowers

* Borage, nasturtium, viola.

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* Chives, calendula.

- Kelli Rodda