Profile: Barrows Greenhouse

Barrows Greenhouse – Part of the Green History of the Maumee Valley

April 9, the Maumee Valley …

The six members of the Barrows family who currently work at Barrows Greenhouse are the fourth and fifth generation to grow and sell flower and vegetable plants from their location, founded in 1892 and now an urban oasis just a block from the intersection of Monroe Street and Central Avenue. The greenhouses, which were rebuilt in 1914, in the 1940’s, and again in 1980, are beautiful in themselves – glass, with hand-cranked ventilation systems. Filled with blooming plants, they are spectacular!

Although it was always open to the public, for years the business was primarily a wholesale one. Today, more than sixty per cent of the business is sales to retail customers who come for the quality of the plants and the wide range of varieties available. Boston ferns and house plants are available year-round, and Barrows offers an amazing selection of four-inch pots as well as hanging baskets and geraniums.

The greenhouses are patrolled by cats including Bud, who seems to enjoy visitors. There are also “green animals” on hand, garden art constructed on a wire frame and ready to populate porches, decks, and back yards.

Barrows also sells their plants at the Toledo Farmers Market on Saturday mornings.

Barrows is located at 3130 Northwood Avenue, in the Colony neighborhood of Toledo. Hours are from 9am to 6pm seven days a week; in May Barrows will be open from 8am until 7pm.