Growing Green? Local Business Offering Organic Plants:

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Spring has sprung and with the warmer temperatures people are headed out to local home improvement stores and nursery's to spruce up their gardens.

But a lot of people don't know about a little gem of a nursery on a back road in Crane. Blackberry Lane Gardens, which offers organic options to area residents, is a labor of love for Paula Sherwood and her family.

In 1980, Sherwood and her husband, Mike, bought the land adjacent to the Crane cemetery and built a house.  Over the years discussions about what to do with the large property evolved into several greenhouses being built and a family business was born.

"We knew we wanted to do something organic," said Sherwood.  "There is a huge market for blueberries and we looked at that option for a while, but what we would have had to do to amend the soil and make the conditions right for blueberries would have taken us out of the organic realm."

Instead, they opted for blackberries which are native to this area and available from late June through the end of July.  Sherwood says if there is an abundance of fruit they will let people come pick their own berries or they will pick them for you.

"This year the season is a bit late, but it looks really good."

Customers will also find organic tomato, cucumber, squash, okra and other vegetable plants at Blackberry Lane Gardens.

Perennial and annual flowers are also available until they sell out, which is usually by the end of June, according to Sherwood.

"The only difference between the flowers and blackberries are their soil, and we fertilize them...we don't use pesticide on any of our stuff."