BRADENTON, Fla. — Orban's Nursery is blooming with nearly 200,000 poinsettias in Bradenton.
The nursery will host its annual poinsettia open house on November 28 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Tyler Orban said he will carry on the family tradition.
"It's an honor for me to carry the tradition of the open house forward for both the community and my family," said Orban.
Orban's grandfather passed away about five years ago. His father, Marty Orban, died in November of 2019 after battling prostate and lung cancer.
"He loved people, loved the nursery, loved the sale and Christmas time. It’s a little bit interesting with him gone this time of year," said Orban.
Orban's Nursery is a fourth-generation family-run business that has operated since 1914. It has been located in Bradenton for more than 60 years.
The open house allows the public to purchase poinsettias. The wholesale nursery only sells to the public once a year.
"Our biggest customer is Publix with almost half of our poinsettias going to them and then we do garden centers, fundraisers, school fundraisers and churches," said Orban.
During the open house, Orban said people may drive-thru the nursery and purchase poinsettias if they are not comfortable getting out.
"This is one day for people to really come through and check everything out before it's all gone because we start shipping heavily after that week," he said.
Orban said the nursery has seen its share of hardships including tornadoes and hurricanes. The pandemic has also caused business to fluctuate.
"A lot of snowbirds didn't come back for their usual season so a lot of landscapers weren't picking up the annuals and stuff like they normally do."
He said Tropical Storm Eta also damaged some of the poinsettias.
"They get weaker as they get more into bloom. The plants kind of weaken up so it's better to have a hurricane early in the season for us."
"Overall, we were lucky," he added.
The Orban's Nursery Poinsettia Open House will be held on Saturday, November 28 at 9607 9th Avenue NW in Bradenton. It is free and open to the public.
For more information, visit www.orbans.com.
