BRAZOS COUNTY, Texas (KRHD) — Shipping disruptions thousands of miles away in the Strait of Hormuz are impacting everyday life in Brazos County, where local plant nurseries are grappling with skyrocketing costs for gas, fertilizer, soil, and plants.
25 News visited Succs N Such to see how these global tensions are affecting our neighborhood. Fallon Crocker and her family own the nursery, which is just one of many feeling the impact of the conflict in the Middle East.
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“But how do you do it when your prices are up 30% in such a short time? What does a month from now look like? What does the fall look like? We're incredibly worried and concerned,” Fallon Crocker said.
Fertilizer is getting more expensive, which presents a significant challenge for the nursery.
"Fertilizer is huge because it gives the plants the boost they need to produce blooms and just to be happy generally. All plants require different levels of fertilization, that makes them happy," Crocker said.
At Succs N Such, they custom-mix their soil for different types of plants.
"We custom mix our soil here on site, but we amend it all to fit whatever needs of whichever plants we're planting it. So our succulent and cactus soil, we need a really quick-draining soil," Crocker said.
With rising costs, tough choices are ahead for the business.
"What we're struggling with now seeing such a great increase in price is either A, we're gonna have to increase all of our plant prices, all of our decorative pot prices, or we're not gonna be able to offer complimentary planting. For me, that's not an option because that's where I got my start, that's where I'm passionate," Crocker said.
Even new planters are turning to alternatives to cope with the fertilizer crunch.
“Everything is going up, but you can definitely notice it in the plant community,” Taylor Duhon said.
"We do have chickens, so they've been our main source of fertilizer right now since we can't buy, but it's so, you know, high in pH and high in acidity that it's hard to use functionally," Duhon said.
Whether you are shopping for plants or putting together your own soil mix, the ripple effects from global tensions are already being felt right here at home in the Brazos Valley.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
