Greenhouse and nursery growers usually finance three things separately: the structures, the equipment inside them, and the plants and supplies that carry them to the selling season. USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) lends up to $600,000 through farm ownership loans that can pay for new farm buildings, and up to $50,000 through microloans aimed at small and specialty operations. Farm Credit associations and banks finance larger projects and seasonal operating lines.
This page is part of our agriculture business loans hub. It covers the main sources for greenhouse and nursery financing, what they cost, USDA programs that suit specialty growers, and what lenders ask about a protected-growing operation. For seasonal input costs, see farm operating loans.
What you’re financing
- Structures: greenhouses, high tunnels, headhouses, shade houses and cold storage. These are long-lived and are usually financed with real estate or improvement loans.
- Equipment and systems: heating, cooling, irrigation, benches, lighting, potting lines and delivery trucks. These are usually financed with equipment loans of a few years.
- Crop inventory and working capital: seed, plugs, liners, soil, containers, fertilizer, energy and labor, spent months or years before the plants sell. These are usually covered by an operating line of credit.
Capital Farm Credit’s greenhouse and nursery lending covers all three: “Facility construction,” “Expansion and high-tunnel structures,” equipment, and “short-term financing and operating lines of credit to help cover seasonal costs like seeds, soil, fertilizers, labor and inventory” (Capital Farm Credit). Matching each need to the right loan length keeps a long-lived greenhouse off a one-year line.
Your main options compared
Figures checked on September 21, 2026. The interest rate is the yearly cost of borrowing. APR (annual percentage rate) also includes certain fees, so ask lenders for both.
| Option | Suits | Maximum | Rate | Term |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FSA direct farm ownership loan | Land and farm buildings, which may include a permanent greenhouse | $600,000 | 6.000% as of Sept. 1, 2026 | Up to 40 years |
| FSA direct operating loan | Equipment, minor improvements, operating costs | $400,000 | 5.250% as of Sept. 1, 2026 | 12 months for operating costs; up to 7 years for equipment |
| FSA operating microloan | Small, beginning and niche growers | $50,000 | 5.250% as of Sept. 1, 2026 | 1 to 7 years |
| FSA Farm Storage Facility Loan | Cold storage for flowers, fruits and vegetables | $500,000 | 4.250%–4.875% (September 2026, by term) | 3 to 12 years; 15% down |
| FSA guaranteed loan | Larger projects through a commercial lender | $2,343,000 | Negotiated, within FSA maximums | Set by lender |
| Farm Credit association or ag bank | Construction, equipment and operating lines | Set by lender | Fixed or variable | Short-term lines to long-term loans |
| SBA 7(a) or 504 | Garden centers and retail or landscape nurseries | $5 million (7(a)); $5.5 million (504) | 7(a): capped above a base rate; 504: tied to 10-year Treasury rates | 504: 10, 20 or 25 years |
Sources: FSA farm ownership loans, FSA direct operating loans, FSA operating microloan, FSA Farm Storage Facility Loans, FSA rates, FSA guaranteed loans, SBA 7(a), SBA 504.
USDA programs that suit specialty growers
Microloans. FSA says operating microloans serve “beginning farmers, small family farm operators, and those engaged in niche or non-traditional farming operations,” and can buy equipment, seed and farm supplies and cover minor improvements (FSA). USDA’s specialty crops page covers growers of “fruits, vegetables, tree nuts, dried fruits, horticulture, or nursery crops” and notes microloans “can help you make a down payment on land, purchase needed farm equipment, and more” (farmers.gov).
Farm ownership loans. FSA lists “the purchase of farmland, construction of farm buildings, and making improvements to existing structures and infrastructure” as eligible uses (FSA). A permanent greenhouse may fit under construction of farm buildings, but confirm your plans with your local FSA office before you apply.
Cold storage. FSA’s Farm Storage Facility Loan lists floriculture, and fruits and vegetables, among eligible commodities, and “facilities for cold storage” among eligible facilities. It requires “a 15 percent down payment” on standard loans, while FSFL microloans of up to $50,000 carry “a 5 percent down payment requirement.” September 2026 rates run from 4.250% for a 3-year term to 4.875% for a 12-year term (FSA).
High tunnels. USDA describes a high tunnel as “an unheated plastic-covered structure that protects crops from unfavorable growing conditions,” and its specialty crops page points growers to the Natural Resources Conservation Service’s Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) for them (farmers.gov). EQIP is a conservation program, not a loan, so check with your local USDA Service Center before you borrow for a tunnel.
What it costs
FSA publishes its rates and charges the lower of the rate in effect at loan approval or closing (FSA). The trade-off is the loan caps, the paperwork and FSA’s rule that direct operating borrowers be unable to get credit elsewhere on reasonable terms.
Farm Credit and bank pricing depends on your financials. Capital Farm Credit lets growers “choose between fixed or variable rates” (Capital Farm Credit), and its patronage program returns part of the interest paid, which it says “ultimately lowers the effective rate” (Capital Farm Credit). Variable rates are often tied to the prime rate, which was 7.00% on September 17, 2026 (Federal Reserve H.15). Ask every lender for the rate, fees and APR in writing.
Garden centers and retail nurseries
If most of your sales are retail, or you grow for your own landscaping business, lenders may treat you as a retail or service business rather than a farm. SBA 7(a) loans, up to $5 million, can be used for real estate, equipment and “short- and long-term working capital” (SBA). SBA 504 loans, up to $5.5 million, finance buildings, land and long-life equipment but not “working capital or inventory” (SBA). See retail store business loans and retail inventory financing for the spring stocking cycle, or landscaping equipment financing if you also install.
What lenders look for
- A production and sales plan: what you grow, how long each crop takes to reach saleable size, and who buys it (wholesale accounts, retailers, landscapers or your own retail).
- Inventory detail: for nurseries, stock by size and age, since plants held for several seasons tie up cash.
- Energy and labor costs: heating and staffing are large fixed costs for protected growing.
- Construction bids and plans: for new structures, including who builds them and whether they’re permanent.
- Risk coverage: crop insurance, or USDA’s Non-insured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP), which USDA suggests if you “have a crop that isn’t covered by Federal Crop Insurance” (farmers.gov).
Lenders will also look at the sector. USDA’s Economic Research Service forecasts 2026 average net cash farm income of $286,700 for farm businesses specializing in specialty crops, which it defines as “fruit and tree nuts, vegetables, and nursery/greenhouse,” down 3% from 2025. ERS says all crop specializations are forecast to see higher income “except those specializing in specialty crops” (USDA ERS). Expect questions about your margins and customer mix.
If disaster hits nursery stock
FSA’s Tree Assistance Program (TAP) “helps cover the cost of replanting or rehabilitating eligible trees, bushes, and vines that produce annual crops and have been damaged or destroyed.” Eligible applicants include “nursery tree growers who produce annual crops for commercial purposes.” Most producers can receive up to 65% cost-share, and applications are due within 90 calendar days of the disaster or when the loss is apparent (FSA). TAP is a payment program, not a loan, but it can shrink how much you need to borrow to rebuild.
Common mistakes
- Building on the operating line. A greenhouse paid for with a one-year line leaves no room for spring inventory.
- Underestimating energy. Build heating and cooling costs into the cash flow plan before you size the loan.
- Short terms on slow crops. Nursery stock that takes several seasons to sell needs financing that runs at least that long.
- Daily-payment financing for seasonal sales. Most sales come in a short spring window. Products with daily or weekly payments don’t fit that pattern; see lines of credit for seasonal cash flow gaps instead.
Frequently asked questions
Can FSA finance a greenhouse?
FSA farm ownership loans can pay for the “construction of farm buildings” and improvements, up to $600,000 for direct loans. Operating loans and microloans can cover equipment and minor improvements. Talk to your local FSA office about your specific structure.
Can a new nursery get a loan?
FSA operating microloans of up to $50,000 are built for beginning and niche growers. Applicants need a satisfactory credit history and “farm management experience or education” (FSA).
Can I finance a walk-in cooler for cut flowers?
Possibly, through FSA’s Farm Storage Facility Loan, which lists floriculture as an eligible commodity and cold storage as an eligible facility. Standard loans need 15% down; microloans need 5%.
Next step
If you run a garden center, a landscape nursery or another greenhouse business and want to compare equipment or working capital offers, our business loans page explains the options available through the lenders we work with. SMB Compass is a broker, so we help you compare offers; FSA loans are applied for directly through your local FSA office.
Sources
- FSA: Farm Ownership Loans
- FSA: Direct Farm Operating Loans
- FSA: Operating Microloan
- FSA: Farm Storage Facility Loan Program
- FSA: Guaranteed Farm Loans
- FSA: Current FSA loan interest rates
- FSA: Tree Assistance Program
- USDA farmers.gov: Specialty Crops
- USDA ERS: Farm Business Income
- SBA: 7(a) loans
- SBA: 504 loans
- Federal Reserve: H.15 Selected Interest Rates
- Capital Farm Credit: Greenhouse and Nursery
- Capital Farm Credit: Patronage
About this page. Written by Ezra Cabrera, Content Team Lead at SMB Compass. Figures were checked against the primary sources listed above on September 21, 2026; lenders change their terms, so confirm current terms before you apply, and let us know if you spot a figure that has changed. SMB Compass is a business financing broker: we don’t lend our own money, and we are paid by the lenders we place loans with. This page is general information, not financial, legal or tax advice.