Photos from the Field: Metrolina Greenhouses

by | May 17, 2010

Flats of plants sit beneath hanging baskets at Metrolina Greenhouses Inc. in Huntersville
Flats of plants sit beneath hanging baskets at Metrolina Greenhouses Inc. in Huntersville

Charlotte is known more for banking than agriculture, but the area is home to the largest single-site, heated greenhouse in the United States — Metrolina Greenhouses Inc. Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler recently visited the Huntersville nursery while touring farms in the region. He got an up-close look at the company, which has been in business since 1972 and boasts 5 million square feet of heated greenhouses.

And speaking of greenhouses, greenhouse/nursery stock is the top crop in North Carolina, generating more than $777 million in cash receipts for producers in 2008, the most recent year for which figures are available.