Shades of Green Nursery in San Antonio will become a public garden to preserve its trees starting in 2025.
SAN ANTONIO — After 44 years in business, Shades of Green Nursery in San Antonio will close at the end of 2025 and transform into the Shades of Green Legacy Garden — a public space permanently protected from development. Owners Roberta Churchin and Bob Webster are donating the two-acre property on West Sunset Road to a nonprofit foundation, with construction expected to begin in late 2026.
Churchin says the goal is to preserve the towering cypress trees they planted decades ago and create a sanctuary for the community.
We just didn’t want our beautiful trees that we planted ourselves 44 years ago… to be bulldozed and turned into an apartment or a building. So we decided to protect it,” she said.
The Legacy Garden will be secured under a conservation easement, ensuring it can never be developed. Plans include pollinator gardens, accessible walking paths, a labyrinth, children’s vegetable garden, and quiet areas for reflection. Webster says it will be a refuge in a rapidly changing part of the city. “We’ve been offered lots of money for the property, but we said this is too special. We could not stand to see the bulldozer.”
The Shades of Green Legacy Foundation has launched a $10 million capital campaign to fund construction, which will also include a tropical plant room, a reflexology walk, and demonstration areas for organic gardening. “When you walk through the gates… you’re going to feel immediate peace…surrounded by nature in its healing properties,” Churchin said.
The nursery will remain open for business until December 31, 2025, giving customers one final growing season before the property transitions into a public garden.
Webster says the vision is simple: “We plan the Shades of Green Legacy Garden will be here in perpetuity… a refuge for people… a place to commune with nature.”
