Working Greenhouses
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Living so close to Niagara Falls, we visited the gardens and conservatory greenhouse many times in my childhood. The Niagara Falls greenhouse structures were built in the late 1800’s, growing plants for the floral displays throughout the Falls area. The conservatory that I have known since childhood was built in the late 1940’s following the construction of the tunnel for the power generation. The conservatory is more than 11,000 square feet, with growing houses, workrooms and a wonderful carved cherub fountain in the entrance - an enduring focal point for many photographers over the decades.
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A showcase greenhouse conservatory needs a lot of working greenhouses to grow the materials that will be on display during the next season. I’m interested in these working greenhouses, always peering in the windows and checking out what’s being grown. This image is one of those moments of trying to see what’s growing in Niagara Falls and spotting a worker amongst the plants.
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©Marilyn Cornwell
But there’s much more to Niagara than this. The region is one of the prime locations of the $3.9 billion greenhouse industry in Ontario, containing floral and vegetable greenhouse growing. In my immediate area, the Westbrook Group has 30 acres of greenhouse production. They are quite a sight to visitors in the area.