2015 Greenhouse Grower Top 100 Growers: Reading The Rankings
Just after Greenhouse Grower’s Top 100 Growers report published last year, we found out about a few key acquisitions that we knew would really shake things up in 2015. We were right — the tradition of our annual rankings remix stands, and the changes are noteworthy.
Optimism Is Evident, With Grower Expansion Across The Board
Greenhouse Grower’s annual Top 100 List ranks the largest U.S. growers by total square feet of environmentally controlled greenhouse space, although this year, we have also listed shade and field acreage, to give perspective on how large these operations are beyond the greenhouse. In total, the 2015 list represents 228,906,001 environmentally controlled square feet of U.S. production, a 5 percent increase over 2014.
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Looking more closely, growers within the top 10 list are reporting some very significant growth:
- Color Spot Holdings says its operation has grown to 21,100,000, as a result of acquiring Color Star’s Sanger, Texas, facility, and building an additional 150,000 square feet of greenhouses.
- Costa Farms slid into the No. 2 position, reporting its square footage at more than 15 million square feet, up from 9.5 million in 2014.
- Altman Plants has grown by more than 1 million square feet in the past year.
- Bell Nursery’s acquisition of Blue Ridge Growers in Virginia and Brentwood Farms in North Carolina put the operation up to 7,400,000, trading spaces with Metrolina Greenhouses, which also grew by 100,000 square feet over the past year.
- Color Point taking over Mid-American Growers last spring brought the operation from No. 74 up to No. 8. Beyond the top 10 players, a number of growers have undergone huge growth within the past year.
- Olson’s Greenhouse Gardens (No. 15) grew by more than 500,000 square feet, during its second straight year of major expansion. The operation reported 1,515,141 in 2013.
- Tagawa Greenhouse Enterprises has gained nearly 3 million square feet of production.
- Headstart Nursery is reporting growth to 2,400,000, up from 1.5 million square feet in 2014.
- Last year’s newcomer, Bela Flor Nurseries, is expanding rapidly, as well. It’s up by more than 500,000 square feet.
- Riverview Flower Farm has grown by more than 700,000 square feet, placing at No. 33 from No. 70 in 2014.
- Garden State Growers is showing growth to 1,742,400 from 1,481,040.
- Henry Mast Greenhouses/Masterpiece Flower Co. has grown more than 300,000 square feet in the past year.
All told, 26 growers reported that their operation grew between 2014 and 2015. Several growers reduced their production over the past year, as well, and while some operations’ downsized numbers were significant, most were slight and probably typical of the give-and-take in the horticulture industry.
Change Is Constant
We have some new names among the Top 100 Growers this year. Greenhouse Grower extends a warm welcome to Botany Lane Greenhouses in Colorado, Grolink Plant Co. in California, Tidal Creek Growers in Maryland and Micandy Garden Greenhouses in Michigan.
It’s likely we’ll see more changes among the Top 100 sooner rather than later, and as Greenhouse Grower continues to refine our list, we are certainly open to suggestions. Let us know how we can make this report a better resource — for growers and allied trades.
Meanwhile, congratulations to all of Greenhouse Grower’s Top 100 Growers!
2015 Greenhouse Grower Top 100 Grower List
2015 Rank | 2014 Rank | Company | State | 2015 U.S. Environmentally Controlled (Square Feet) | U.S. Acreage (Shade Houses) | U.S. Acreage (Field Production) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | Color Spot Nurseries | CA | 21,100,000 | 204 | 2,703 |
2 | 3 | Costa Farms | FL | 15,071,760 | 747 | 1,392 |
3 | 2 | Altman Plants | CA | 11,596,852 | 62 | 400 |
4 | 4 | Kurt Weiss Greenhouses | NY | 9,238,232 | 30 | 89 |
5 | 5 | Rocket Farms | CA | 8,305,120* | ||
6 | 7 | Bell Nursery USA | MD | 7,400,000 | ||
7 | 6 | Metrolina Greenhouses | NC | 7,000,000 | 184 | |
8 | 74 | Color Point | KY | 4,800,000 | ||
9 | 8 | Green Circle Growers | OH | 4,573,800 | 20 | |
10 | 10 | The Sun Valley Group | CA | 4,000,000* | ||
11 | 11 | Delray Plants Co. | FL | 3,868,116 | 119 | 20 |
12 | 12 | Speedling | FL | 3,684,000 | ||
13 | 13 | Milgro Nursery | UT | 3,500,000* | ||
14 | 15 | Ivy Acres | NY | 3,383,970* | ||
15 | 21 | Olson's Greenhouse Gardens | UT | 3,079,531 | 0 | 37 |
16 | 16 | Kerry's Nursery Inc. | FL | 3,000,000* | ||
17 | 18 | Floral Plant Growers | WI | 2,826,360 | 6 | |
18t | 19 | Matsui Nursery | CA | 2,800,000 | ||
18t | 16 | Woodburn Nursery and Azaleas | OR | 2,800,000 | 2 | |
20 | 9 | Aris Horticulture | OH | 2,631,460 | 65 | |
21 | 20 | Dallas Johnson Greenhouses | IA | 2,600,000 | ||
22t | 22 | Bay City Flowers | CA | 2,500,000* | ||
22t | 22 | Smith Gardens | WA | 2,500,000 | 60 | |
24t | 43 | Headstart Nursery | CA | 2,400,000 | 15 | |
24t | 26 | Tagawa Greenhouse Enterprises | CO | 2,400,000 | ||
26t | 28 | Bela Flor Nurseries | MO | 2,395,800 | ||
26t | 24 | Wenke Greenhouses | MI | 2,395,800 | 1 | |
28 | 25 | Northwest Horticulture | WA | 2,178,000* | ||
29 | 27 | N.G. Heimos Greenhouses Inc. | IL | 2,068,000 | 1 | 27 |
30 | 30 | Bergen's Greenhouse | MN | 1,916,640 | 0 | |
31 | 32 | Colorama Wholesale Nursery | CA | 1,890,000 | 9 | 150 |
32 | 31 | Dan Schantz Farm | PA | 1,814,381 | 15 | |
33 | 70 | Riverview Flower Farm | FL | 1,785,960 | 32 | 15 |
34 | 33 | Battlefield Farms | VA | 1,784,320 | 1 | 23 |
35 | 29 | Plant Marketing | WI | 1,770,279 | 2 | |
36 | 45 | Garden State Growers | NJ | 1,742,400 | 125 | |
37 | 34 | Valley Flowers | CA | 1,740,000 | ||
38 | 36 | Hines Growers, Inc. | CA | 1,700,000* | ||
39 | 39 | Dewar Nurseries | FL | 1,691,625 | 41 | 203 |
40 | 37 | Young's Plant Farm | AL | 1,645,000 | 34 | |
41 | 38 | Ocean Breeze International | CA | 1,614,000* | ||
42 | 40 | Westland Floral Company | CA | 1,600,000* | ||
43 | 58 | Grower Direct Farms | CT | 1,565,000 | 8 | |
44 | 41 | Post Gardens | MI | 1,527,000 | ||
45 | 35 | DeLeon's Bromeliads | FL | 1,500,939 | 1 | |
46t | 42 | Clearwater Nursery | CA | 1,500,000 | 5 | 3 |
46t | 43 | Kawahara Nurseries | CA | 1,500,000* | ||
48 | 50 | Van Wingerden International | NC | 1,450,548 | 12 | |
49 | 46 | Dan and Jerry's Greenhouse | MN | 1,445,000* | ||
50 | 48 | Bailey Nurseries | MN | 1,437,490 | 2,300 | |
51t | 65 | Henry Mast Greenhouses/Masterpiece Flower Co. | MI | 1,420,000 | 9 | |
51t | 47 | Rockwell Farms | NC | 1,420,000 | 10 | |
53 | 49 | Willoway Nurseries | OH | 1,418,340 | 850 | |
54t | 50 | Kitayama Brothers | CA | 1,400,000 | 5 | |
54t | 50 | Panzer Nursery | OR | 1,400,000 | 2 | |
56 | 53 | Four Star Greenhouses | MI | 1,378,801 | ||
57 | 54 | Heartland Growers | IN | 1,350,840* | ||
58 | 56 | Aldershot of New Mexico | NM | 1,317,000* | ||
59 | 55 | Nash Greenhouses | MI | 1,300,000 | ||
60 | 65 | Lucas Greenhouses | NJ | 1,212,500 | 30 | |
61t | 63 | Armstrong Growers | CA | 1,200,000 | 15 | 103 |
61t | 59t | Richardson Brothers Greenhouses | IL | 1,200,000 | ||
61t | 59t | Young's Nursery and Greenhouse | TN | 1,200,000* | ||
64 | 79 | Bob's Market and Greenhouses | WV | 1,135,000 | 3 | |
65t | 68 | Corso's Perennials | OH | 1,100,000 | 14 | |
65t | 65 | Hillister (part of Seville Farms) | TX | 1,100,000* | ||
67 | 69 | Sawyer Nursery | MI | 1,059,076* | ||
68 | 70 | Alex R. Masson | KS | 1,045,440* | ||
69 | 72 | Johannes Flowers | CA | 1,043,360* | ||
70 | 73 | Maria Gardens Greenhouses | OH | 1,001,820* | ||
71t | 74 | Kent's Bromeliad Nursery | CA | 1,000,000* | ||
71t | 59 | Van de Wetering Greenhouses | NY | 1,000,000 | 6 | |
71t | 57 | Welby Gardens Co./Hardy Boy Plants-Hardystarts | CO | 1,000,000 | 8 | |
74 | 77 | Farmers' West Flowers and Bouquets | CA | 958,320* | ||
75 | 78 | Hart's Nursery | OR | 940,000* | 21 | |
76 | 86 | South Central Growers | TN | 921,115 | 8 | |
77 | 64 | Dramm and Echter | CA | 920,000 | 10 | |
78 | 80 | Petitti Garden Cente/Casa Verde Growers | OH | 895,000 | 5 | |
79 | 81 | White's Nursery and Greenhouses | VA | 860,000 | ||
80 | 82 | Twixwood Nursery | MI | 851,000 | 0 | |
81t | 83 | B and H Flowers | CA | 850,000* | ||
81t | 83 | Kube-Pak | NJ | 850,000 | 0 | 6 |
83 | NR | Botany Lane Greenhouses | CO | 827,640 | 1 | 4 |
84t | 87 | American Color | VA | 784,080 | 20 | |
84t | 89 | Plainview Growers | NJ | 784,080 | 10 | |
86 | 88 | Olive Hill Greenhouses | CA | 760,000 | ||
87 | 89 | California Pajarosa | CA | 750,000 | 2 | 4 |
88t | 91 | Esbenshades Greenhouse | PA | 740,000* | ||
88t | 92 | Plants Unlimited | MI | 740,000 | ||
90t | NR | Grolink Plant Company | 700,000 | 6 | 3 | |
90t | 93 | Knox Nursery | FL | 700,000 | ||
92 | 94 | Parks Brothers Farm | AR | 675,000 | <1 | |
93 | 95 | Sedan Floral | KS | 672,604 | ||
94 | 96 | Myriad Flowers International | CA | 653,400 | 5 | 12 |
95t | NR | Ever-Bloom | CA | 650,000 | ||
95t | 97 | Loop's Nursery and Greenhouses | FL | 650,000 | 3 | |
97 | 99 | Cuthbert | OH | 631,807 | 3 | |
98 | NR | Tidal Creek Growers | MD | 621,455 | 6 | 11 |
99 | 98 | Pleasant View Gardens | NH | 600,000 | 15 | |
100 | NR | Micandy Garden Greenhouses | MI | 500,940 | ||
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