What Microplant Nurseries does

Microplant Nurseries is a privately held, 100% tissue culture micropropagation laboratory founded in 1980 in Gervais, Oregon, by four research partners — Adams Rootstock Inc., Stark Brothers, TRECO, and A. McGill and Son — following discoveries from an Oregon Graduate Center research project on the micropropagation of tree crops. The company produces Stage 2 Microcuttings (approximately three inches tall) and Stage 3 Rooted Plantlets (two to three inches tall with well-formed in vitro roots) at commercial scale, with no greenhouses on site, focusing exclusively on the plant tissue culture process. It has propagated hundreds of species and cultivars across ornamental shrubs, blueberries, hazelnuts, raspberries, hops, grapes, perennials, timber products, and bulb crops, supported by hundreds of proprietary media formulations and a complete traceability system with records extending to the 1980s.

The business operates a B2B sales-led model targeting world-class commercial nurseries and growers, with direct enterprise field sales relationships and quote-based pricing. New variety projects require minimum orders of 10,000 units and carry 12-18 month lead times before plants are production-ready, while wholesale varieties are available to licensed growers without minimum quantity requirements. Long-term multi-season contracts anchor revenue, with the company describing "millions of plants shipped annually" and "hundreds of millions" produced over its 40+ year tenure. Named enterprise customers include Fall Creek Farm & Nursery (over 100 million blueberry Microplants delivered since 1984), J. Frank Schmidt & Sons Co. (40+ year partnership supporting 1.5 million trees shipped per year), and Bailey Nurseries, alongside mid-market accounts such as Intrinsic Perennial Gardens, North Creek Nurseries, and Gulley Greenhouse.

The company's competitive position rests on institutional knowledge (average employee tenure exceeding 8 years), proprietary media recipes developed over decades, pathogen screening by an R&D team, and an insect- and vector-proof facility operating under Oregon Department of Agriculture inspection protocols. Revenue, headcount, and ownership details are not publicly disclosed, and the company has not raised outside funding or undergone M&A activity in available records, indicating a self-funded, founder-aligned operating model.

Name

Microplant Nurseries

Legal name

Microplant Nurseries

Website

https://microplantnurseries.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1980

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Microplant Nurseries is a privately held Oregon-based tissue culture laboratory, founded in 1980, that produces Stage 2 Microcuttings and Stage 3 Rooted Plantlets at commercial scale for world-class commercial nurseries and growers on multi-season contracts.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Plant Tissue Culture Micropropagation

NAICS

Nursery and Floriculture Production (11142)

akta.pro primary industry

Tissue Culture & Micropropagation (Planting Material) (AFAGAIAN)

Keywords

• Plant tissue culture
• Micropropagation services
• Wholesale nursery supply
• Blueberry microplants
• Ornamental plant propagation

Headquarters

HQ city

Gervais

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Microplant Production & Sales: Production and sale of tissue-cultured microplants (Stage II and Stage III) to commercial nurseries and growers. Revenue derived from wholesale orders with minimum quantities for new varieties.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Microplant Nurseries is a 100% tissue culture laboratory that produces Stage II Microcuttings and Stage III Rooted Plantlets at commercial scale for nursery and grower partners. Founded in 1980, the company has produced hundreds of millions of microplants over its tenure using custom-made media formulations and a complete traceability system. The company serves as a turnkey micropropagation partner, allowing commercial nurseries to avoid the capital-intensive process of building and operating their own tissue culture labs.

Product overview

Microplant Nurseries is a specialized tissue culture laboratory that produces microplants at scale for nursery and grower partners. They offer two core microplant products: Stage 2 Microcuttings (cut plantlets approximately 3 inches tall) and Stage 3 Rooted Plantlets (2-3 inch tall plantlets with well-formed in vitro roots). The company has operated since 1980, producing millions of plants annually with custom media formulation, large-scale tissue culture production, and quality assurance with full traceability back to the 1980s.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Stage 2 Microcuttings Cut plantlets approximately three inches tall, produced via tissue culture and suitable for greenhouse acclimation. Sold wholesale to commercial nursery partners as part of multi-season or recurring order commitments.
• Stage 3 Rooted Plantlets Two to three inch tall plantlets with well-formed in vitro roots, ready for greenhouse acclimation. Produced at commercial scale for nursery and grower partners requiring reliable, on-time delivery of healthy microplants.
• Custom Micropropagation Services Turnkey micropropagation program development and production for new cultivars, including custom media formulation, pathogen screening, and full traceability. Supports minimum order quantities of 10,000 per newly initiated variety with a 12-18 month project initiation lead time before plants are production-run ready.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 100 million blueberry Microplants delivered to Fall Creek since 1984
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered founding and regulatory.

• Adams Rootstock Inc.foundingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1980One of the four original research partners who founded Microplant Nurseries in 1980, inspired by discoveries from a research project on micropropagation of tree crops at the Oregon Graduate Center.
• Stark BrothersfoundingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1980One of the four original research partners who founded Microplant Nurseries in 1980. Stark Brothers was one of the founding companies that came together under the Microplant name.
• TRECO®foundingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1980One of the four original research partners who founded Microplant Nurseries in 1980. TRECO® continues as a partner and the company is located on Treco Lane in Gervais, Oregon.
• A. McGill and SonfoundingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1980One of the four original research partners who founded Microplant Nurseries in 1980. One of the founding companies that launched commercial micropropagation services.
• Oregon Department of AgricultureregulatoryOthersMicroplant works closely with the Oregon Department of Agriculture for inspections, ensuring the facility is insect- and vector-proof with safeguards preventing contamination, sterile growing conditions, industry-leading sanitation practices, and compliance with traceability standards.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Agromillora: Spanish-based global leader in micropropagation of fruit trees, olives, and other woody crops. Comparable to Microplant in tissue culture technology, large-scale B2B nursery customer base, and focus on high-value specialty crops.
• Deroose Plants: One of the world's largest tissue culture companies, headquartered in Belgium with operations across multiple continents. Directly comparable to Microplant as a commercial-scale micropropagation lab producing young plants for the global horticulture industry.
• Oglesby Plants International: U.S.-based tissue culture company specializing in ornamental and landscape plant propagation. Directly comparable to Microplant as a B2B micropropagation lab with similar product offerings and customer segments.
• Agri-Starts: U.S.-based tissue culture laboratory specializing in starter plant production for ornamental and edible crops. Directly comparable to Microplant as a B2B tissue culture lab serving nursery and grower partners at scale.
• VitroFlora: Polish-based tissue culture laboratory producing ornamental and fruit plants via micropropagation. Comparable to Microplant in operating model, technology base, and B2B service to nursery customers.

Emerging players

• Fall Creek Farm & Nursery: Global leader in blueberry genetics and a major Microplant customer. Comparable as a commercial nursery customer in the same micropropagation value chain rather than a competing tissue culture lab.
• Bailey Nurseries: Fifth-generation wholesale nursery and breeding operation that is also a Microplant customer. Comparable as an enterprise nursery player in the same value chain but operating on the customer side rather than as a tissue culture peer.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/microplant-nurseries-inc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Microplant Nurseries