I am dismayed whenever a nursery or farm disappears…even when we lose a barn!

And yet, in recent years, most of the nurseries that closed in Lake County, the former nursery capital, have transitioned to other nurseries. When the nurseries transition to green space within our growing communities, I feel that is also a victory.

The Warner Nursery site on the Chagrin River in Willoughby Hills, a historic nursery beehive run by Zopher Warner and his wife, became Pleasant Valley Park under the aegis of Lake County Metroparks.  The Wayside/Springbrook site on Heisely Road in Mentor…it’s been almost 100 years since its founding!… became a Mentor City park…which continues to be developed for the community and local ecologies.

Partial victories remain victories!

Mark Gilson

Retired nurseryman