Ravenwood Gardens, Inc.
12372 Cowpath Rd - St Paris, OH 43072 - Tel: 937 857 9565

A small wholesale nursery specializing in herbaceous perennials.

Comments by Robert Thurman:

Ravenwood Gardens, Inc., is a wholesale perennial garden that specializes in ferns, ornamental grasses, and native perennials. The company was by purchased by its current owners, Bob and Jeni Filburn in 1995 with the help of two silent partners. The company moved to St. Paris, Ohio in 1997 as a result of the silent partners selling their shares to Bob's parents. This move was close to the family farm and allowed Bob and Jeni some flexibility with their new partners.
Bob graduated The Ohio State University with a degree in Landscape Horticulture. He worked at several nurseries before acquiring Ravenwood. Jeni was involved in a special high school program that allowed her to receive on the job training at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden. This is where she discovered a fondness for the industry and also where she met Bob, who was interning at the zoo.
One thing that I liked about Ravenwood was the structure of the company that included hard work, and compromise. Jeni explained to us that because of the size and composition of the company, her and her husband has to put the company ahead of themselves. She stated that this was the only way the company would continue to be successful. Bob joked about a disagreement he had with his mother regarding bookkeeping practices, to help the group realize that having your family and your business together brings about a lot of unique situations. These situations are surely difficult, but to work with the people that you care about would have some great advantages as well.
Bob and Jeni Filburn seem to be on the right track. They are committed to their profession, hardworking, and diverse enough to change with the industry. They will no doubt be successful.

Fig 1. A cool and comfortable barn provided a perfect setting to talk about the company with owners, Bob and Jeni Filbrun.

Fig 2. Perennials are grown exclusively in containers at Ravenwood.