Lineage, widespread history cultivated off Squirrel Cove
Green Thumbs
Bear Creek – Jean Taylor can be described as an experienced gardener, an entrepreneur and someone who preserves history.
“I’ve experienced gardening since before I started school,” Taylor said. “My mama used to give me a little plot, and I thoroughly enjoyed planting, watering, harvesting and sharing with my family and friends.”
As she settled into adulthood, marriage and raising a family, she continued gardening, planting tomatoes, peppers and cabbage for her family. Her love for digging in the dirt never wavered. She planted – and it went on from there.
Taylor began growing trellis tomatoes after former Graham County Extension agent Ken Perry suggested she sell them at market. They were easy to grow and brought in the most money.
What started as a hobby, fresh bounty for the family and a little extra money became a business.
In 1965, she and her husband, Kenneth, opened Taylor’s Greenhouse on Squirrel Cove in the Bear Creek community. In the beginning, they had a 20-foot-by-40-foot greenhouse, built by Kenneth. She can remember starting with one greenhouse, seeds and a lot of sweat.
As the business grew, the Taylor’s added greenhouses and raised more plants. The more plants they raised, the more visitors they had. People traveled from near and far to purchase plants from them. Neighboring counties – and folks as far away as Ohio –made regular visits and took loads of plants back home, to plant and share with others.
By 1991, the business had outgrown the property and they began to look for a place closer to town to relocate. After the death of Jean’s grandmother, her property became available. Taylor’s Greenhouse was moved to the Sweetgum community.
Within eight years of purchasing the property, they had paid off the loan. They added greenhouses as the business grew and they saw the need to expand. In 2013, Jean sold the greenhouse to her daughter Karen, who continued to run the business until it closed in 2022.
Through the years, Jean has been a part of Graham County’s agricultural history. She has taken seed from friends and introduced others to the delicious variety of produce that carries on legacies.
For example, the Ruby Orr tomato – known for its meaty, fruitful taste, and its pink and yellow color – gained popularity when friend and neighbor Raymond Norton brought a tomato to the greenhouse for Jean to taste. After Jean had tasted it, she asked for Norton to ask Ruby Orr for a couple of tomatoes to get seed from. Taylor received half a bushel of tomatoes, saved the seed and has been selling Ruby Orr plants ever since.
There is also the Morphew Pink. This heirloom tomato came to Graham County when Bill Morphew and his wife were enjoying a picnic on the Blue Ridge Parkway and met a family sitting at the table next to them. When the couple left, they offered extra tomatoes to the Morphews, and they couldn’t wait to let Jean have a taste of the luscious fruit. She saved the seed and she is still raising Morphew Pink.
Today, Taylor can be found at her home on Squirrel Cove working in her garden. If someone stops by for a visit, she will show them her Rattlesnake Beans. She will also point out her vine okra, as well as her corn, greasy beans, onions and peppers. Her nephew, Gary Jones, and his wife, Claudine, have helped her raise a beautiful garden this year, with lots of beautiful vegetables ripening.
“I have been blessed,” said Taylor. “I appreciate everyone who has supported me to make by business what it was.”
Even though she has long retired from the business, she has not given up her love for the garden – or sharing her crops with family and friends.