Economy

Ecke Family Sells Poinsettia Ranch in North County

By Alison St John / Reporter

Published August 17, 2012 at 11:03 AM PDT

This story was published more than 11 years ago.

The Ecke family, known for developing the poinsettia as a Christmas favorite, is selling their ranch in Encinitas.

The sale of the Poinsettia Ranch marks the end of the Eckes' long legacy in North County.

Albert Ecke arrived in Los Angeles in 1906 and applied his love of growing flowers to develop the iconic red poinsettia as the flower no Christmas show can do without. He moved the operation to Encinitas in the 1920s when Hollywood got too crowded, and his son, grandson and then great grandson, Paul Ecke, carried on the poinsettia-growing tradition in North County for the next 90 years.

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But the none of the next generation of Eckes is interested in pursuing the business, which has become more competitive due to industry consolidation.

The Eckes have announced they are selling to Agribio, a Dutch based company, which will "strengthen their supply chain" and "focus their marketing."

Most of the flower-growing operation moved to Guatemala years ago, and much of the flower fields have been developed. But the city of Encinitas has resisted efforts to build houses and commercial developments over all the land.

A separate sale to the Leichtag Foundation of almost 70 acres of Ecke land next to the ranch remains in effect. It remains to be seen what will happen to that undeveloped land in a city where open space is under increasing pressure.

The team at the ranch says it is remains committed to breeding quality poinsettia.

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Alison St John currently serves as a general assignment reporter and occasionally co-hosts KPBS Midday Edition. She fell in love with KPBS Radio when she arrived in San Diego in 1985 and first heard NPR. She has been a voice on KPBS Radio since 1989, and has served as a news reporter for radio, TV and the web, as well as anchoring, hosting, producing and editing. Alison has reported on stories about North County and was based in the KPBS' North County Bureau. Alison covered the metro beat during the critical period of the San Diego City pension crisis, and the education beat while Alan Bersin was the controversial Superintendent of San Diego City School District. She covered health when the industry was converting to managed care and told welfare reform stories in the late 1990s when Clinton was “ending welfare as we know it.” She has covered land use issues extensively, looking at the challenges of meeting a growing population while preserving community character, and developing a better transportation system to meet environmental concerns. She has done many stories on the military in San Diego, and the series she edited on the challenges veterans face returning from active duty to civilian life won “Best of Show” from the San Diego Society of Professional Journalists. She occasionally hosts the KPBS Roundtable and KPBS Midday Edition. Alison has won awards from the San Diego Press Club, the Society of Professional Journalists, the Associated Press TV and Radio Association, and the California Golden Mike Awards. Alison was born in Tanzania, brought up in Scotland, and earned her degree in psychology and sociology from Durham University in England. Her postgraduate diploma is in student counseling. She worked in England, Nigeria, Switzerland, Belgium, India, and Japan before moving to the United States in 1981. She now lives in Oceanside and enjoys how her community is growing and changing.