Head Grower

About the position

J Berry Nursery South is seeking a hands-on Head Grower to lead finished plant and young plant production. Our Los Fresnos facility produces approximately 1 million finished plants annually, including landscape tropicals such as Hollywood Hibiscus and bougainvillea. Our small young plant division produces liners for sale to other nurseries.

The Head Grower is responsible for producing healthy, uniform plants on schedule while managing the growing team and production costs. We will consider an experienced Assistant Grower with landscape tropical production experience.

Crop production and quality

• Lead finished plant and young plant production across outdoor and protected growing areas.
• Manage propagation, planting, potting, spacing, pruning and finishing schedules to meet seasonal demand.
• Walk crops regularly, identify problems early and follow corrective actions through to completion.
• Maintain standards for plant health, uniformity, size, branching, flowering and saleable quality.
• Forecast crop readiness and communicate changes that could affect availability or shipping.

Irrigation and nutrition

• Manage irrigation and fertility programs by crop, growth stage and conditions.
• Use plant observations and water and growing-media testing to guide decisions.
• Verify irrigation coverage, fertilizer delivery and equipment performance with the team.
• Document growing practices for consistent execution.

Pest and disease management

• Lead scouting and integrated pest management, including control of whiteflies and other tropical crop pests.
• Diagnose plant-health problems, obtain specialist support when needed and evaluate treatment results.
• Manage resistance, application quality, plant safety and cost.
• Follow pesticide labels, worker-protection requirements, recordkeeping rules and nursery safety procedures.

Team leadership

• Set daily and weekly priorities for growers and production employees.
• Train and coach the team, check work quality and hold employees accountable for established standards.
• Coordinate staffing and labor priorities with nursery management, especially during peak periods.
• Address performance issues promptly and work with management on corrective action.
• Develop team members and document key practices to retain growing knowledge.

Planning and cost management

• Coordinate with nursery management and sales to align crop readiness and quality with customer needs.
• Maintain growing records and support accurate inventory information.
• Monitor crop losses, labor, fertilizer, chemicals and other growing costs. Recommend improvements without sacrificing quality or readiness.
• Communicate crop risks, staffing needs and equipment problems early.
• Help prepare for weather, irrigation interruptions and other threats to crops.

Required qualifications

• Commercial nursery experience as a Head Grower, or substantial Assistant Grower experience with landscape tropical crops.
• Strong knowledge of irrigation, fertility, plant nutrition, pest and disease management, and crop scheduling.
• Experience managing production in outdoor and/or protected growing environments.
• Demonstrated ability to lead a team and improve crop quality, readiness, yield, productivity or input efficiency.
• Ability to maintain production records and use spreadsheets or nursery systems to support decisions.
• A pesticide applicator license.

Preferred qualifications

• Experience growing tropical ornamentals, particularly hibiscus and bougainvillea.
• Experience managing seasonal production and spring shipping demand.
• Experience growing in South Texas or a comparable warm climate.
• A horticulture degree; substantial relevant experience may substitute.
• Bilingual English and Spanish skills. Bilingual ability is preferred, not required.

What success looks like

Healthy, uniform crops are ready when needed; forecasts are dependable; the growing team has clear priorities; and crop losses, labor use and input efficiency improve over time. Specific performance measures will be established with nursery management using the production plan and operating baseline.

Work location

On site at J Berry Nursery South in Los Fresnos, Texas, with regular work in outdoor and protected growing areas.