San Diego County provides garden plants year-round

Known for beautiful year-round weather, San Diego is also known for being a premiere spot for growing plants and flowers. For the last 20 years, Janet Kister has been managing Sunlet Nursery in Fallbrook, just outside of San Diego. The nursery is a wholesale supplier of greenery to customers all across America, including the Bellagio resort in Las Vegas.

Janet and her husband care for several million plants. There are several keys to maintaining this quality, including a lot of hands-on attention to make sure the plants are healthy and strong. Also, they add just the right amount of water, which is a costly resource in the Southland. The end result is a rainbow of options for your backyard. Some are very familiar to gardeners, while more than a dozen new varieties are grown each year, just to keep up with demand.

"I think there's a new trend coming on right now. People are so busy in their personal lives that simplicity rules. They need to be able to get plants that basically can take care of themselves. They don't have time for high maintenance plants, so their interest has changed to more simple plants," Janet said.

And if anyone knows about balancing a hectic schedule, it's Janet. In addition to her work at the 22-acre nursery, this busy mother is also president of the San Diego County Farm Bureau. Despite all of her responsibilities, she says she has the best job in the world because she brings smiles to people's faces every day.

"We create a beautiful plant and when we give it to someone, this incredible smile comes across their face, I'm very fortunate in what I do!" Janet said.