About Woerner TURF: History

For more than 80 years, the Woerner family has been farming North America's soils. Through the passing of generations and the changing of times, the backbone of the Woerner family has remained steadfast. Faith in Jesus Christ, adherence to traditional values and work ethics, perseverance of goals, and ability to adapt to changing times and economic conditions have allowed the family to prosper through good times and bad. Today, the vision of the Woerner family is dedicated to the production and sale of premium lawn grasses and landscaping products, committed to enhancement of its real estate and business acquisitions, and devoted to helping spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the ends of the Earth.

The Woerner family traces its history back to George Fred Woerner who was born in Carlstadt, New Jersey on May 26, 1885 to immigrant German parents. While still a baby, Fred and his family moved back to their German homeland. At age seventeen, Fred ventured back to America, settling in New York City with his parents Karl and Katherine. After seeing an advertisement of land for sale in South Alabama, Fred and his parents agreed that the terms were good and that the area's salt air and pine trees would be good for Katherine's asthma. The family put a down payment of $200 on 80 acres in Baldwin County, Alabama and, in 1906, moved to Elberta to begin their new life. To help support the family, Fred worked with the Baldwin County Colonization Company and then worked in the wheat fields of Iowa and Kansas. From there he went back to New York City and worked for Engleman Grocery. In New York he found love at first sight and on May 21, 1914, married Emma Brumm. Shortly after in 1915, Fred and Emma returned to join the rest of the Woerner family residing in Elberta, AL.

In the tradition of the time, Fred and Emma raised a large family of 17 children who shared both the work and the fruit of the family dairy farm. In spite of the hard times brought on with the Great Depression, the family grew and prospered. From oldest to youngest the children: (Emma, Albert, John, Karl, Gertrude, Gustave, Elizabeth, Fred, Jr., Paul, Edward, Oscar, Herbert, Martha, Agnes, Otto, Ralph, and Carolyn) learned to support each other, to share both feast and famine and to trust in the Lord.

As the children grew older and began their separate lives, Edward James Woerner, along with his brothers, Paul and Karl, Jr., branched off from the family and started a farm partnership. Edward J. Woerner married a lady named Lillie Louise Lipscomb and together had 6 sons (Edward E., Larry, Norman, George, Lester and Roger) and 2 daughters (Deborah and Kathy). After the tragic death of their brother Paul, Edward J. and Karl divided and established separate farming operations. When the oldest son, Eddie, reached his late teens, Edward J. began farming with his sons.

Originally a partnership, Edward J. Woerner and his six sons formed the corporation, Edward J. Woerner & Sons, Inc. In the beginning, the farming operation produced grain, sweet potatoes, sweet corn, field corn, watermelons, soybeans, wheat, oats, broccoli and Irish potatoes. By the mid-1970's, the farm had expanded its operations to almost 2000 acres of produce, grain and cattle and was continuing to grow. In December 1977, the Magnolia Farm was purchased to further increase production. Woerner Produce, Inc. was incorporated on August 02, 1984 to improve marketing opportunities for the farm's produce. This new approach to marketing, Edward E. (Eddie Boy)'s invention of a machine capable of chilling corn, and other farming and marketing innovations were key factors for Edward J. Woerner & Sons, Inc.'s survival in this time of high farm failures.

While the Companies made significant strides in improving production and marketing, some factors were beyond the control of management. The Companies felt the tragic effects of hurricanes, droughts, floods, freezes, and economic inflationary prices. Traditional grain and produce farming was just not profitable enough to sustain the operations as comprised. With such fluctuating weather and market conditions, the family decided to experiment with other products and business ventures.

In a fateful decision, E.J. Woerner & Sons, Inc. planted 5 acres of St. Augustine and 5 acres of Centipede grass on the Magnolia Farm in Clearsprings, Alabama. These 10 acres of grass were successful and the Company began a trend of increasing the turf acreage. As the turf grass market demand increased, the Company acquired more land for turf production and the Magnolia Farm changed from corn and cattle farming to sod production. Clearly the fortunes of E.J. Woerner & Sons, Inc. had improved and the future of the company was becoming clear.

While Woerner Produce was struggling through the economic ups and downs of the produce business, the Woerner Turf division of E.J. Woerner & Sons, Inc. was formed and began its first nursery outlet in Pensacola, Florida in 1979. The outlet proved to be an excellent means of distributing sod around the city in small orders. The outlet received grass by the truckloads at wholesale prices from the nearby Magnolia Farm, and re-sold it to landscapers and residential homeowners. This retail operation accommodated small customer pick-up orders and partial truckload delivery of grass. The Pensacola Outlet was just the beginning of many distribution centers later to come.

With the increasing success of the sod business and the continuing struggle of the produce business, the focus of E.J. Woerner & Son shifted away from producing a variety of produce crops, to developing a premium quality sod-producing corporation. In 1987, Woerner Produce was dissolved to make way for the developing Woerner Turf Division of the Company, and this third generation of the Woerner family adapted to its new role as a leading sod producer in South Alabama.

With the demise of Woerner Produce, the resources previously employed in growing and marketing produce had to be sold or converted to turf production. The Magnolia Farm was completely transformed into grass fields and additional investment into land for sod production was planned to sustain the increasing sod orders and to supply the distribution centers. To provide for current growth and an anticipated increase in future market share, E.J. Woerner & Sons began to expand its territory with more farm locations. The Foley Farm located in Foley, Alabama was purchased, and other adjacent parcels leased, to add 3477 acres in Baldwin County. In 1988, the Anniston Farm in Calhoun County, Alabama was acquired and five years later, in December 1993 the Bon Secour Farm near Foley, Alabama was acquired. February 1994 saw the Company enter the South Florida market by opening a 1757 acre farm in Highlands County at Sebring, Florida. The Sebring Farm is unique in that it is located on a peat bog with soils up to 20 feet deep. The Montgomery Farm acquisition followed in March of 1995, adding 1389 acres to the Woerner's now ever-expanding turf corporation. Woerner Transportation, Inc. was added in 1990 to insure the farm's ability to make prompt deliveries.

In an effort to reach additional customers and to provide customers the ability to pick-up sod in smaller quantities, more distribution centers were established. Using the Pensacola Outlet as a successful pattern, the Mobile Outlet was started in 1981. In late 1986, the Fort Walton Beach Outlet opened its doors and the Tallahassee Outlet completed coverage of the Florida Panhandle by opening in July 1989. The state of Georgia was opened to outlet expansion with the Atlanta Outlet opening in July 1991, and the Duluth Outlet start-up followed in October 1993. The Baton Rouge Distribution Center was started in September 1995 to provide coverage into new emerging market possibilities in Louisiana. These Company-owned distribution centers along with an assortment of wholesale arrangements in other locations allow for individuals to purchase small to medium-size grass orders. In addition to sod, company distribution centers are now supplying other landscape materials such as natural cypress mulch, colored hardwood mulch, pine straw, centipede seed, landscape stone and an assortment of other landscape products.

Woerner Turf has been producing its "Gulf Kist" Centipede seed since 1985 and has become a major supplier of both wholesale and retail Centipede and Centipede blend seeds. In June 1999, the Gulf Kist Mulch Division was inaugurated in a commercial park at Frisco City, Alabama and now produces cypress mulch from by-products of the cypress lumber industry. The environmentally-friendly cypress mulch is sold and delivered in bulk, and is also bagged for retail customers. The division also provides colored hardwood mulch recycled from old hardwood pallets.

Woerner Turf has become a leading sod supplier in the Southeast by locating farms and distribution centers convenient to market and by providing outstanding service to its customers. This successful regional experience has lead to a national expansion strategy. Extensive market research has led to establishment of farms in Colorado and Hawaii in January 2000 with long-range plans for further expansion.

Woerner's competitive edge in the turf industry is a result of producing quality products using unique production techniques developed over many years, an experienced sales staff providing valuable information and service to customers, and outstanding delivery service via its own transportation company.

While investment in land is a necessity to provide the resources for the sod operations, it also is an investment in the growth of the area it serves. As the area matures, the highest and best use of the land may change from farming to development. Woerner Realty, Inc., a company formed to acquire property used in the farming operations, and Woerner Group Resources, Inc., a management company, have staff personnel researching, planning and implementing development plans to maximize the value of the investments. The company vision is to use its resources wisely for the benefit of the shareholders and for the benefit of the communities in which we live. It is our goal that we improve the value and utility of the assets with which we have been entrusted, and that we improve the quality of life of the people affected by our decisions.

The Woerner Companies shareholders: George A. Woerner and Roger L. Woerner stress the active participation of the companies' employees in important community events such as The American Cancer Society's Relay for Life and other civic and charitable activities. Woerner Turf awards annual scholarships to college-bound students and sponsors Marriage Encounter programs to help heal husband and wives' relationships with the help of Jesus Christ. Several of the Company's personnel serve on civic boards and in community organizations whose objectives are to provide service to the community. The company supports many school and youth activities financially and by active participation. The Company takes its role as a good corporate citizen very seriously.