What Dave Wilson Nursery does

Dave Wilson Nursery is a wholesale grower of deciduous fruit, nut, and shade trees, along with vine and bush fruits, operating from its headquarters in Hickman, California, and a regional office and commercial sales yard in Reedley, California. Founded in 1938 and family-owned across multiple generations, the company is self-described as the largest fruit, nut, and shade tree nursery in the United States, producing millions of trees annually for commercial orchard growers, retail nurseries, garden centers, wholesale container growers, and mail order companies. The company maintains a long-standing exclusive partnership with Zaiger Genetics for proprietary fruit variety development, including the Independence Almond and miniature fruit tree varieties, and holds plant patents and trademarks on its proprietary genetics.

The company's core technology centers on traditional horticultural propagation methods: hand-budding processes, bareroot and container growing systems, hybrid rootstock development, and dedicated variety test blocks for evaluating new selections before commercial release. Its product portfolio spans fruit trees (stone fruits, citrus, multi-bud combos), nut trees (almonds, walnuts, pistachios, pecans, chestnuts), shade trees, vine and bush fruits (blueberries, caneberries, grapes, kiwifruit), and flowering trees and shrubs. The company does not sell directly to consumers; instead, home gardeners are directed to retail nursery partners via a "Where to Buy" portal.

Revenue is generated through wholesale tree sales across two primary divisions: a Commercial Orchard Division serving large-scale growers and a retail nursery division serving resellers. The company employs regional field representatives with 100+ combined years of experience and maintains a marketing presence through its YouTube channel, website content, and trade show participation. Geographic reach extends across 14 US states, with primary emphasis on the Western United States and growing presence in Florida, Georgia, and Pennsylvania.

Name

Dave Wilson Nursery

Legal name

Dave Wilson Nursery Incorporated

Website

https://davewilson.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1938

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Dave Wilson Nursery is a wholesale grower of fruit, nut, and shade trees serving commercial orchard growers, retail nurseries, garden centers, and mail order companies across 14 US states. Founded in 1938 and family-owned, it is self-described as the largest such nursery in the nation, with exclusive access to Zaiger Genetics proprietary varieties.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Hickman

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Wholesale Tree Sales: The company grows and sells fruit trees, nut trees, shade trees, and vine/bush fruits to retail nurseries, garden centers, wholesale container growers, and mail order companies. Products are sold as bareroot or potted trees with varying availability by season.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Dave Wilson Nursery is a wholesale grower that propagates, cultivates, and sells deciduous fruit, nut, and shade trees along with vine and bush fruits. Products are sold exclusively as bareroot or container nursery stock to retail nurseries, garden centers, wholesale container growers, and mail order companies, not directly to consumers. The catalog features proprietary varieties from the company's exclusive Zaiger Genetics partnership and its own Independence Almond variety.

Product overview

Dave Wilson Nursery operates as a single-product nursery business offering a comprehensive catalog of deciduous fruit, nut, and shade trees along with vine and bush fruits. The company sells wholesale to commercial orchard growers, retail nurseries, garden centers, and container growers—not directly to consumers. Product portfolio spans Fruit Trees (including multi-bud combo trees), Nut Trees (almonds, chestnuts, pecans, pistachios, walnuts with varieties like Independence Almond, Chandler Walnut, Kerman Pistachio), Shade Trees (maple, oak, elm, ash, birch, willow varieties), Vine & Bush Fruits (blueberries, caneberries, grapes, kiwifruit, goji berries, hops), and Flowering Trees and Shrubs. The company is particularly known for its Zaiger Genetics partnership, which provides proprietary miniature fruit tree varieties and unique inter-specific fruit hybrids.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Zaiger Genetics: Fruit breeding partnership with Zaiger Genetics for developing new fruit varieties
• Independence Almond

Products and services

• Fruit Trees Deciduous fruit trees including multi-bud fruit trees, citrus, and various stone fruits propagated for commercial orchard production and resale through retail nurseries.
• Nut Trees Nut-bearing trees including almonds, chestnuts, pecans, pistachios, and walnuts propagated as bareroot or container stock for commercial orchards and residential resale.
• Shade Trees Deciduous shade trees including maple, oak, elm, ash, birch, and willow varieties produced for landscape resale by retail nurseries and garden centers.
• Vine & Bush Fruits Vine and bush fruits including blueberry, caneberry (blackberries and raspberries), grape, goji berry, gooseberry, hops, and kiwifruit offered to wholesale nursery buyers.
• Flowering Shrubs & Vines Flowering ornamental shrubs and vines produced for landscape resale through the wholesale nursery channel.
• Flowering Trees Ornamental flowering trees grown for landscape decoration and resale through the wholesale nursery channel.
• Independence Almond DWN's proprietary leading commercial almond variety, offered as part of the wholesale nut tree catalog and protected under plant patents and trademarks.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Zaiger GeneticscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing strategic partnership with Zaiger Genetics, a renowned fruit breeding program. DWN serves as the primary propagation and distribution partner for Zaiger's proprietary fruit varieties including miniature nectarines, white peaches, and interspecific fruits. The partnership includes a dedicated variety test block at the Reedley location to evaluate new Zaiger Genetics selections before commercial release.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Greenleaf Nursery Company: Wholesale container nursery producing a broad range of ornamental shrubs, trees, and perennials for independent garden centers. Operates a similar wholesale-to-retail distribution model at national scale.
• Loma Vista Nursery: Mid-sized wholesale nursery producing container-grown trees and shrubs for landscape contractors and garden centers. Comparable wholesale grower model focused on ornamental and landscape stock.
• Bailey Nurseries: Large wholesale nursery producing deciduous shrubs, trees, and fruit stock for garden centers and landscape contractors across North America. Comparable wholesale distribution model and broad tree/shrub catalog, though broader in scope than DWN's fruit/nut focus.
• Stark Bro's Nurseries & Orchards: Direct competitor in the fruit tree nursery space, selling deciduous fruit and nut trees to home gardeners and commercial growers since 1816. Highly comparable to DWN on product category and target customer, though Stark Bro's also operates a direct-to-consumer channel.
• J. Frank Schmidt & Son Co. Wholesale grower of shade, flowering, and ornamental trees sold to nurseries, garden centers, and landscape contractors across North America. Directly comparable on shade tree product line and B2B wholesale distribution model.
• Monrovia Nursery Company: Wholesale grower of premium ornamental and landscape plants, including edible varieties, sold through independent garden centers. Operates a comparable wholesale-to-retail nursery model with strong brand recognition and proprietary plant brands.
• Carlton Plants: Wholesale bare-root nursery producing shade, flowering, fruit, and nut trees for garden centers and growers. Comparable on propagation methods (bare-root) and wholesale distribution to retail nursery customers.

Regional players

• Youngs Nurseries / Pacific Plug & Liner: West Coast wholesale grower supplying annuals, perennials, and edibles to independent garden centers. Comparable wholesale grower-distributor model with regional U.S. focus.
• Armstrong Garden Centers: California-based retail garden center chain that is a DWN customer and competitor-adjacent operator in the same regional market. Comparable as a downstream retail buyer of wholesale nursery stock and as a California competitor in fruit tree retail.

Emerging players

• Burpee (W. Atlee Burpee & Company): Direct-to-consumer seed and plant retailer with overlapping home gardener customer base. Comparable on the home orchard/garden customer segment, though focused on seeds and annuals rather than fruit trees.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/DaveWilsonTrees
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dave-wilson-nursery

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Dave Wilson Nursery