Discover Nikkei

https://www.discovernikkei.org/en/interviews/clips/1345/

Gardening to nursery

I start working for 3 day gardening. How to start gardening is I went to 3 gardener friend take me one day each showed how they do it. So I get, the what you call, instant gardener, 3-day education. Then I went to Garden Grove nursery to help me out to get company, customer for me. So they gave me customer, so I went start working for the gardening for 3 days a week. But naturally first one, gradually increased the number of house, but first time I start working I was so scared because I didn't have any experience before, you know, but just 3 day I watching the friend do this.

Then, continue to doing it 3 day a week, then I just made money enough to make the payment and grocery bill and stuff. Then rest of the 4 day, I worked the yard to clean up and get ready for the growing the pansies to grow. That's what I start doing. Three day gardening, four day yard work. Then gradually start pansy growing. Then December come, pansy start blooming, so I packed packages to make nice color. Packages to basket to take the market. That way getting busy, so I quit gardening. That's my last gardening. No more after that. But you know I quit that and concentrate pansy growing. Then meantime I grow, start some other stuff growing, tried to quick money but not do too well. But pansy was only one make me money. So any extra money I made it, I buy other material to increase the nursery material to gradually look like a nursery.



agriculture business economics gardening generations horticulture immigrants immigration Issei Japan management migration nurseries (horticulture) postwar Shin-Issei United States World War II

Date: February 2, 2012

Location: California, US

Interviewer: Chris Komai, John Esaki

Contributed by: Watase Media Arts Center, Japanese American National Museum

Interviewee Bio

Harunori Oda was born and raised in Hokkaido, the northernmost island of Japan, but moved to the U.S. after meeting and marrying a Nisei woman who was visiting Japan in the post WWII period. Though he hated the U.S., his wife, Mitsy, convinced him that he would have greater opportunities for success in the U.S., so he decided to take the chance. Though his English skills were limited, he worked his way up through the nursery business—an enterprise he determined would offer the most opportunity for a person with his abilities. Eventually, he started his own nursery, expanded, and later achieved great success as a developer of real estate in Orange County. He passed away on December 14, 2016, at age 91. (December 2016)

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