OUR ROOTS

The Swartz Nurseries was started in the 1860's as Swartz & Sons Fruit by John Jacob Swartz and his son, John F. Swartz. In the beginning we primarily specialized in growing fruit trees and fruit crops. Later in 1888 John F. Swartz took over the management of the business and the firm went into the growing of ornamental nursery stock and landscape work. With his three sons, Harold, Roy, and Glenn; the firm expanded in the early 1900's. Lawn work, installation of rock gardens, growing of perennials and moving of large frozen ball shade trees increasingly became the main focus of the nursery.

Glenn Swartz took over the management of the firm during the 1940's and the nursery began to specialize in the growing and installation of trees, shrubs and evergreens. The nursery was also one of the largest growers of strawberries in the state in the late 1950's. Glenn's son, Dick Swartz, graduated from the UW Madison in 1963 with a degree in Landscape Architecture. He took over management of the firm in the late 1960's about the time the nursery was forced to move from its original location, where UW Parkside is, to its current Wood Road (30th Ave) location in Kenosha. Dick's sons Dan & Doug Swartz graduated from the UW Madison in 1990 with degrees in Horticulture, and became active in the nursery and landscape contracting business at that time.

The Swartz Nurseries is now primarily a retail nursery and landscape contractor. We do offer some wholesale for landscape contractors and maintenance firms. The nursery sells a quality selection of locally grown trees, shrubs, evergreens, perennials and groundcovers. We also offer a landscape design service that serves Kenosha, Racine, and Northern Illinois.

PHILOSOPHY

Our landscape design philosophy is to achieve a year round design with effective seasonal interests. We will produce a plan that will provide spring, summer, fall and winter color for your enjoyment throughout the year. We consider environmental conditions (shade, wet, etc.) so the plants can thrive, allowing the planting to last much longer before it requires renewal. We often see landscapes that may look nice when first installed but 5 years later are overgrown and in need of renovation. This is often because too few landscapers have the knowledge or desire to know the plant material and its eventual impact on the design. We can also design a plan suited to the particular needs of your home, property, and budget. Our landscape designs will grow in value with age. Our designers personally design and supervise all the aspects of a project, insuring responsibility by one person entirely, resulting in better client communication, follow through, and service. We can work with you to achieve a unique landscape with an emphasis on quality. We have the exceptional knowledge, education, and experience to create a dream landscape geared to your budget.

We believe we can give our clients the best value for their landscaping dollar.

 

Do your landscaping right the first time- call The Swartz Nurseries!

"The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of the lowest price is forgotten."