Every year, Missouri’s George O. White State Forest nursery sends out 2 million tree seedlings to customers across the state and beyond.
The nursery was founded by the U.S. Forest Service in the 1930s to assist landowners in reforesting the state. The Ozarks had been heavily logged during the construction of railroads heading west.
The original site was just 40 acres. It’s now owned and operated by the Missouri Department of Conservation. KBIA’s Jana Rose Schleis interviewed the staff growing and cultivating the trees on the now 100 acre site in Licking, Missouri.
Angie Burgess, Office Supervisor:
“I am from Licking … I never thought I would work here. I didn't know about it, which is crazy. I did go to school for plants and horticulture, and I didn't learn about [the nursery] until I moved back home.”
“I've always loved plants and learning everything I can. It started at a young age with my grandmother.”
During the spring, Burgess and the office staff are answering numerous calls and assisting regular visitors.
“It is our busy season. Most customers are calling to find out when their packages are being shipped. Other(s) … they just want to know how to plant a tree. So we have to give that information.”
Joan Walton, Forest Nursery Technician:
After the seedlings are “lifted” from the planting plots, they are inspected by nursery staff, bundled, tagged according to species and sent along to the shipping department.
“I am working as a grader, which means that we are grading these trees, making sure that the roots are good, the top is good, there's no crooked parts to it and it's going to be a very successful tree.”
Throughout an 8-hour shift, Walton and her fellow graders will inspect approximately 30,000 seedlings.
“I've learned what's a good tree and what's a bad tree. As a customer, I've purchased trees here before but I didn't really even know what I was looking for. I just was thankful to get them and plant them.”
Walton is a transplant to south central Missouri and found herself in need of trees after moving here.
“I live in Raymondville. We purchased it in 2020. We wanted to make our own little place. It was cow and horse land, so we were turning it into an orchard and sheep land. So we had to learn a lot of things.”
“I got elderberries and I got pawpaws and persimmons and … hundreds of trees.”
Brandi Mace, Forest Nursery Technician:
“I've worked over this grading season, grading trees … helping where I can. I've been here for four years.”
“I grade the trees, put them on the tables, make tags if we need to and make sure they're put in the cooler … make sure they're watered.”
Mace, along with other graders, wears head to toe protective gear.
“Safety first. So you got your glasses and your gloves … and arm sleeves. They help with clothes, so they don't get ruined. The apron is also for self protection … you know, mud, grime.”
Heather Parks, Forest Nursery Technician:
“I transferred down from a migratory waterfowl area to this area because I like floating the north fork of the White River and I like this region.”
“I love working in nature. I grew up being a tomboy.”
Parks performs many tasks that the nursery requires, including on this day, loading a shipping container with long rectangular boxes of seedlings — what she compares to a game of Jenga.
“You never know what you're going to do from day to day. Sometimes you could be in shipping or in the cooler or grading or weeding out in the rows and stuff during the summer … picking berries for re-seeding the next year or loading a trailer.”
Mike Fiaoni, Forest Nursery Supervisor:
“I've been here at the nursery for 9 years … I've actually been with the department for a little over 34 years. I started out as a field forester.”
“We take care of approximately 13,000 customers a year. That's 13,000 orders, so each of those orders is for a customer.”
Fiaoni said the seedling that grows to eventually produce Missouri’s state fruit is a popular order.
“Pawpaw is a huge species. I mean, we sell that every year within a matter of days because it's one that the wildlife love, but we can also eat it ourselves. It's called the Ozark banana.”
Fiaoni handles the majority of the logistics, which change with the seasons, for the state nursery.
“We plant the seed either in the fall of the year or the spring, and then they grow for one season, and then we harvest them when they go dormant.”
Missouri has one of the few state nurseries that can sell outside the boundaries of the state.
“We have a reputation of producing high quality seedlings.”
The nursery has 22 planting blocks. After a year of growing tree seedlings, the block will be planted with wheat or soybeans to give the soil a rest from producing trees. The crop residue is not cultivated, instead it's left in the growing plots.
“We want the organic matter in the soil because that helps feed the trees. Some people may think that's a waste but it's feeding the trees from below.”
As nursery supervisor, Fiaoni and his family live in a house located on the state property.
“When I interviewed for (the job) my supervisor said, ‘Now you don't get away from it. Are you gonna be okay with that?’ But I mean, it's so peaceful and great out here.”
As for keeping wildlife from eating on the plots of snacks the nursery unintentionally makes available for them, the forest technicians use diluted Frank’s Hot Sauce sprayed over the fields.
“We buy it in cases and Jeff City has never said a word about why we buy so much hot sauce.”
Due to this year’s harsh winter, the ground was frozen longer and set the nursery schedule back.
“So far this year we've been able to keep our nose above water — just barely — and all the orders have been going out, and the guys and the ladies have been doing an awesome job getting that done, making it happen.”
