Horticultural Industry Leadership Awards - Bobby Barnitz

All photos by Megan Bernard photography

Each year, Greenhouse Management and Nursery Management, with the support of Syngenta, honor six green-industry professionals who exemplify the leadership qualities needed to inspire and empower those around them and who work toward the betterment of the entire industry.

This year we are proud to have our own Bobby Barnitz recognized!

Head down, Mission Accomplished

In describing Bobby Barnitz’s leadership style, perhaps his own son, Alan, says it best: “He’s just one of those types of guys — you put your head down and you get the job done, every day, no matter what. And, hey, have some fun while you’re at it, too.”

Bobby heads up Bob’s Market and Greenhouses’ young plant propagation department, where he’s spent the last 26 years building it up (basically from scratch) to today’s standing as a Gold Service Supplier with Ball Seed Co. Bobby and his team propagate and ship out 4,500 to 5,000 SKUs throughout the spring and summer production season, so he also helps manage Bob’s fleet of 14 trucks.

“Being the oldest, I’ve done a little bit of everything [at Bob’s], with the exception of growing,” Bobby says. “I was not the one you could get to go out and get on the end of a water hose. I enjoyed the people side of our business more, so sales, customer service, those have kind of been my strong suit.”