East Mississippi Holding Company, Inc., an organization dedicated to the principals and teachings of Jesus Christ, was founded in 1992 to provide a corporate and financial base for the development of landscape industry companies in the southern United States. Currently, EMHC affiliated companies offer service in afar 30 local markets in North Mississippi and North Alabama. EMHC was founded in 1992 with the purchase of Phillips Garden Center in Starkville, MS, from Dot and Travis Phillips, its operators since 1971. The garden center operated under that name until 1999 at which time the name was changes to Zone 7 to reflect the geographical plant hardiness zone in which it operated. Concurrent with the garden center operation, Phillips Design Group was established in 1994 to offer landscape, architectural, design, build services to the local market. In 1995, the Land Resource Group was established as a landscape architecture practice offering site planning and development services to local design disciplines. In December of 2002, the retail garden center business was discontinued to allow for expansion and greater focus on the design/build component of the business. The companies' corporate offices reside at 506 Academy Road, Starkville, MS where the original business began in 1971.