Buying Land in Pender County, North Carolina

Blueberry country: a genuine, distinctive agricultural identity

Pender County has a real, well-documented claim to being one of the birthplaces of commercial blueberry farming in North Carolina. Before the late 1920s, blueberries in this part of the Coastal Plain grew only wild; a grower named Huntington arrived in the county in 1928 and began commercial cultivation, and by 1939 his Pender County blueberry farm was reportedly the largest in the world. That is not just a historical curiosity -- the underlying reason it happened here still applies today: Pender County's soil, along with that of neighboring Bladen and Sampson Counties, is sandy and acidic in a way that makes it poor for many conventional row crops but genuinely excellent for blueberries, which actually thrive in exactly those conditions.

That soil-driven specialization has held up for nearly a century: Pender, Bladen, and Sampson Counties remain the center of commercial blueberry production in North Carolina today, and blueberry season (mid-May through July) is a genuine part of the county's economy and identity, supporting both commercial growers and agritourism activity like pick-your-own operations. For a land buyer evaluating agricultural acreage in Pender County, that means blueberries are a realistic, well-established crop option worth asking current owners or local agricultural extension staff about directly, rather than assuming a generic row-crop or livestock use is the default for the area's farmland.

Zoning and land use through county Planning and Community Development

Pender County's Planning and Community Development department administers planning, land use, zoning, code enforcement, and flood preparedness functions for the county's unincorporated areas. This research pass confirmed the department's role and general functions but did not confirm the precise current extent of zoning coverage -- whether it applies uniformly across every unincorporated parcel in the county or has specific carve-outs -- so confirm your target parcel's zoning status and district directly with the department rather than assuming either full or partial coverage from this page alone.

If your interest in a Pender County parcel involves converting existing farmland (blueberry or otherwise) to a different use -- residential development, an agritourism venture, or a different crop -- confirm both the zoning implications and any agricultural-preservation considerations directly with Planning and Community Development, since land actively identified with the county's signature agricultural product may carry community or policy interest in its continued agricultural use even where zoning itself doesn't formally restrict conversion.

Septic and well permitting through Pender County Environmental Health

Septic and well permitting for a Pender County parcel runs through the county's Environmental Health Division, which is responsible for all soil testing and permitting for septic systems countywide, following the state's standard site-evaluation and permitting sequence. If you're evaluating a portion of an existing blueberry farm or other agricultural tract for a new home site, ask Environmental Health specifically about soil suitability for a septic system, since agricultural soil amendments and drainage modifications made for blueberry cultivation (the plants favor moist, acidic, well-drained soil, often on raised beds) can differ meaningfully from natural, unmodified soil conditions elsewhere on the same tract.

Hog farming exists here too, alongside blueberries

Blueberries aren't Pender County's only significant agricultural use: USDA estimates put the county's hog population in the range of 240,000-250,000 head, and state environmental records show at least one documented waste-management violation at a Smithfield-contracted operation here (Trumpeter Creek Farms in Rocky Point exceeded maximum permitted waste levels in 2019). If you're evaluating farmland near an existing hog operation, ask about odor, waste-lagoon proximity, and any DEQ compliance history for that specific operation before assuming a purely rural, low-conflict neighbor.