Barlow's Flower Farm in New Jersey: History, What It Grows, How It Makes Money and How to Contact It
Profile updated November 2026
Barlow's Flower Farm in Wall Township, New Jersey is a family greenhouse grower founded in 1983 by Stephen and Leslie Barlow. The New Jersey Agricultural Society, which gave it the 2025 Tony Russo Farmers Marketing Award, describes it as one of the state's largest growers of retail annuals, with 28 growing greenhouses.
| Location | Wall Township (Sea Girt property), Monmouth County, New Jersey |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1983, by Stephen and Leslie Barlow |
| Sectors | Horticulture: retail annuals, propagation and cuttings |
| Scale | 28 growing greenhouses; grows up to 70% of the plants it sells |
| Why it is elite | 2025 Tony Russo Farmers Marketing Award from the NJ Agricultural Society; one of the state's largest retail annual growers |
| Ownership | Family operation founded by the Barlows |
| Official website | New Jersey Agricultural Society 2025 award winners |
History of Barlow's Flower Farm
Stephen and Leslie Barlow founded the operation in 1983, buying a Sea Girt-area property that included an 1807 farmhouse. They began with one retail greenhouse, ten growing greenhouses and a shop.
A 10,000-square-foot glass greenhouse was added in 2004, bringing the number of growing greenhouses to 28. The farm hosts second-grade class trips from Wall Township, and in 2025 the New Jersey Agricultural Society honored it with the Tony Russo Farmers Marketing Award.
What Barlow's Flower Farm Grows and Raises
Barlow's grows annuals for retail sale, with a specialty in propagating and cuttings. According to the NJAS profile it grows up to 70 percent of the plants it sells, which means the shop is supplied largely from its own greenhouses rather than resale.
Propagation from cuttings gives a greenhouse control over variety, timing and quality. Plant counts, varieties and labor figures were not published in the sources reviewed and are not stated here.
How Barlow's Flower Farm Makes Money
Retail annuals
The main product is retail annuals sold through the farm's own shop. Growing most of what it sells keeps margin in the business and lets it time crops to spring demand. Revenue is not published and none is estimated.
Propagation and cuttings
Specializing in propagation and cuttings is a skill-based niche inside greenhouse growing, and it supplies the farm's own production.
School visits and community ties
Class trips from Wall Township introduce young families to the farm, building loyalty that later shows up at the shop.
Farm Insight: What Other Operators Can Learn from Barlow's Flower Farm
The first lesson is to produce what you sell. Growing up to 70 percent of the plants in the shop gives the farm quality control and a story customers can believe.
A second lesson is to build capacity in stages: one retail greenhouse, ten growing houses, then a large glass house and 28 in all. A third is that marketing awards follow consistency. The farm earned a marketing honor by pairing production with a welcoming shop and community programs.
Few things signal that winter is over like a greenhouse full of petunias, and the Barlows have 28 of them waiting. Readers of farm.FM know that farm satire about spring annuals writes itself, since farm humor loves the customer who buys fifty flats and asks how to keep them alive. We keep the ranch humor for cattle country, though farm jokes about cuttings that root faster than neighbors expect are always welcome.
farm.FM, the nation's first satirical farm site, also runs Tractor Tunes, a country music lineup for farmers. For a sample of the writing, try the archive of one of its staff humorists.
How to Contact Barlow's Flower Farm
Website: https://www.njagsociety.org/news/a-legacy-of-leadership-the-2025-njas-award-winners
No official farm website was found for this profile. The contact link is the NJAS award announcement; no public address, phone number or email was confirmed. Contact the New Jersey Agricultural Society for introductions.
Barlow's Flower Farm Sources and Agriculture Authority Links
- NJAS 2025 award winners - Profile of Barlow's Flower Farm and its marketing award
- New Jersey Agricultural Society - Awards and programs for New Jersey farms
- Rutgers beginning farmer resources - University resources for New Jersey growers
- NASS New Jersey Field Office - State agriculture statistics
- USDA Census of Agriculture - Official data on New Jersey farms
Barlow's Flower Farm FAQ
Where is Barlow's Flower Farm?
In Wall Township, Monmouth County, New Jersey.
When was it founded?
In 1983 by Stephen and Leslie Barlow.
How large is the operation?
It has 28 growing greenhouses and grows up to 70 percent of the plants it sells.
What award did it win?
The 2025 Tony Russo Farmers Marketing Award from the New Jersey Agricultural Society.
Barlow's Flower Farm shows how a New Jersey greenhouse can scale up by growing what it sells and welcoming the community. See the New Jersey farms guide for more operations.