Across 14 acres, Christmas poinsettias blossom at Orban's Nursery

When the flaming red colors of poinsettias arrive at stores, it usually is a sign of the holiday season.

It’s very possible that those poinsettias were grown locally, right inside Orban’s Nursery in Bradenton. The nursery grows 14 acres of the colorful plants, which is nearly 200,000 poinsettias. 

The nursery only opens to the public once a year on Small Business Saturday. That’s when they allow people to stop by, take photos and buy a plant or two. Orban’s Nursery is a wholesaler and provides poinsettias to businesses, like Publix, which purchases a semi-load -- or four -- filled with poinsettias. They grow 30 different varieties and colors of poinsettias. 

The Orban family has been growing the poinsettias for nearly 50 years. They grow different plants but the poinsettia is the major seller. Tyler Orban, the vice president, said his grandfather began growing them in Cleveland, Ohio, but then started growing poinsettias in Florida to bring them up north and beat competitors to the market. Eventually, demand for his plants grew in the Bay Area, so he decided to stay and opened the nursery. 

“We consider ourselves a small business, especially compared to some of the other bigger nurseries that there are in Florida and in the country,” Tyler explained. “It’s great having everyone… support us.”