Brodbeck Greenhouse

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Fred Brodbeck began farming at this location in 1910 primarily producing seasonal vegetable crops outside.  As with many vegetable growers, the need for greenhouses started with the ability to start young vegetable seedlings a few weeks ahead of the last frost in Spring to bring local produce to the market sooner.  This was initially done with hotbeds that would protect the young plants from frost.  Eventually larger walk in glass greenhouses were built and allowed for better heat management and crop diversity that included some flowers that local gardeners would plant around their houses.

Over the coming years flowers and vegetables sold in containers became more and more popular and by the mid 1960's the focus of the business was focused solely on greenhouse plant production for the Spring market.  In the years since, we have invested heavily to keep up with the advances in greenhouse structure, containers, labor saving machines, soil and fertilizers  that have allowed us to bring consistent quality plants to our customers year after year.


Fred and Howard Brodbeck 1915
Crew headed out to the fields, 1931
Howard Brodbeck loading for the Detroit Market
Transplanting Spring 1936
Howard Brodbeck 1948
Venting Hot Beds, 1938
Flats ready for transplanting, 1967
Filling flats by hand, 1967
 
Load of plants with deckboards, 1964
Wood frame houses being built, 1968
New greenhouse construction, 2001
Heat lines being installed
Unloading boiler
Dircect sowing alyssum
Filling soil hoppers
Transplanting impatiens
Lily and Ben showcase red verbena
Liv and Baron