By Andy Sevilla

Nathan and Jennifer Cross used to joke that if they ever won the lottery, they would open a plant and produce shop.

Things didn’t go exactly as planned, at least not with the lottery. But they opened the shop anyway.

“We didn’t win the lotto, but we took out a business loan, and cashed in a lot of our life savings,” they said.

The couple opened Cross Plant & Produce, a full-scale plant nursery that also offers local produce and brings farmers market goods to downtown. It’s located on US 81 in Kyle.

It opened about eight weeks ago.

Jennifer said there was a need in Kyle for a local plant nursery. Plant purchasing options in Kyle began and ended with national stores that offer plants mostly from out-of-state, she said. Her store, in contrast, specializes in plants that are native to the area or adapted to the hot Texas weather, among them shrubs and trees with edible fruits like pears, peaches and pomegranates.

“We want to show you that there are still options for you with color, and movement, and texture, to make your yard look beautiful even in August and September when no one can water,” she said, as she stood surrounded by hydrangeas, petunias and Texas primroses.

The other part of the business is the produce and meat. On any given weekend customers can find pure honey, strawberries, cucumber, squash, and other veggies that are commonly found in farmers markets. 

“You will no longer have to wait for a weekend to go to a farmers market, or go out of town to get good organic produce. You’ll have it right here in Kyle,” Jennifer said, adding that in about a month Cross Plants & Produce will have the produce available daily. 

“We want to focus on healthier eating and how that impacts our lives,” she said.

A nutrition intern open to answering questions on anything from produce and cooking to fitness and health is on hand on certain days at the shop, Jennifer said. In the coming months, Cross Plants & Produce also plans on having seminars on fertilizing, watering, rainwater harvesting and healthy eating.

“A lot of folks aren’t familiar with food that doesn’t come from a box or a crinkly bag, and we want to provide education to the people that are interested in eating a little bit more healthy,” Nathan said.

As grilling season heats up, Cross Plants & Produce also offers grass-fed beef, including longhorn meat that comes from Buda. They also have free-range chicken, eggs and pastured pork. 

Inside the red barn-like shop that houses the produce, customers can also find organic soaps and non-synthetic, chemical-free skin care products from local vendors. 

“We just really saw a need for something like this in the area,” Jennifer said. “We decided, let’s put our store here.’”

“This is not just a place to shop, we’re meaning for this to be a destination,” Nathan said. “A place where you come in and get what you need and run out, or you can come in and have a picnic on our tables and just hang out half-a-day and enjoy the family-friendly environment.”

The Crosses said some of their best sellers include honey, coffee and herbs. Jennifer said start-up plants like lavender, rosemary, little tomato plants, squash plants, definitely herbs and one-gallon plants are what customers seek most.

She said that though they’ve only been open about two months, they’ve already had many repeat customers, particularly patrons that go every weekend looking for eggs, honey and meat. 

Jennifer said the honey is from the Austin Honey Company, a firm with many hives around Austin and the area. She said their product is absolutely pure, ‘they just pour it from the hive,’ so it can help with allergies.

The couple first considered owning their own plant and produce business after working for a similar business while they lived in Washington D.C. 

Nathan said he and Jennifer grew tired of watching TV after work, so they found a parttime job working at a family-owned plant nursery. “We just kind of fell in love with the idea of working outdoors, we weren’t behind a desk and computer monitor all day.”

Cross Plants & Produce is located on the west side of Old US 81, at 711 North State Highway 81, tucked in a lonely stretch between CVS and the Los Vega Mexican restaurant. 

“We’re local, we’re unique,” Jennifer said.