Who We Are

Otto & Sons Nursery was established in 1976 by Otto and Jeanne Klittich and their four sons, Bob, Bill, Scott, and Karl. Prior to starting the nursery, Otto landscaped in the Southern California area as "Landscape by Otto" for 22 years. From a 2 ½ acre property in Chatsworth, the nursery was relocated and has expanded to 22 acres in Fillmore. Valencia oranges grow on an additional 15 acres. The nursery is currently managed by Scott Klittich who joined the business in January 1985 after receiving a degree in Ornamental Horticulture from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.

Scott is frequently assisted in his nursery work by his family members:
wife Cindy and three sons Danny, Andy, and Timmy.

What We Grow

We primarily grow outdoor landscape materials in 1 gallon containers through 24 inch boxes. Our main customers are retail garden centers where superior quality is demanded. Our service area extends from San Luis Obispo County in the north to San Diego County in the south. We started growing roses in 1989 and they now constitute about one-half of our sales. In 2008, we have over 120,000 plants and 700 varieties of roses. We buy our roses bareroot from several companies: Weeks Roses, Jackson & Perkins Roses, Star Roses and David Austin Roses. All of the bareroot roses are put into 5 and 15 gallon containers. We stock a large selection of David Austin's English roses with over 60 varieties this year. Our rose selections include Hybrid Teas, Grandifloras, Floribundas, landscape and ground cover roses; climbing roses, and miniature roses. Rose trees are available with 24 inch, 36 inch, and 48 inch trunk heights. The miniature bush roses are sold in decorative 11 inch terra cotta pots. Climbing roses; 36 inch, 48 inch, and 60 inch tree roses are also available in 15 gallon and 20" boxes.

How We Grow

Scott personally mixes each batch of soil using his special recipe of 3 parts redwood shavings, one part native soil, dolomite, sulfur, and a slow release 20-9-9 fertilizer. This mix is used for most of our plants and gets them off to a great start in life. Our well water has a high calcium content which we adjust by injecting acid into it to lower the pH and keep the minerals in solution. We also inject nitrogen and potassium fertilizer into the water so the plants are fertilized every time we water. We also have an active pest management program at the nursery. Beneficial insects are released weekly to keep pest populations under control. With the use of beneficials, we have greatly reduced our insecticide use over the past few years. The roses are, however, sprayed biweekly to control fungal diseases.

    Our Hours

Spring/Summer hours

    Public Welcome    

    Thursday - Saturday 8-5

    Contractor hours

     Monday - Friday 8-5

Fall/Winter hours

    Public Welcome

    Thursday & Friday 8-5, Saturday 8-12

    Contractor hours

     Monday - Friday 8-5

Check out out new Rose and Fruit Tree Guides now available for purchase.