Flowers by Shutterstock
For those who, like me, read trend reports with fascinated horror (Really? Animal prints? Still?), heres one thats a little more funTodays Garden Centers Top 10 Most Hated Garden Trends.
There are several I dislike with equal fervor, a few others are more garden industry inside baseball stuff, and a couple are just kind of strange. Some excerpts:
Many plant lovers shudder when they hear the term fairy gardening. Yes.
Breeding for color only. A lot of poorly performing plants resulted. Yes. And this is not just about the fluffy chartreuse echinaceas. The first thing that goes with obsessive breeding for one quality or other is scent, especially with roses, but also with annuals like petunias and nicotiana. I just dont see the point of a garden that doesnt smell like a garden.
The top industry complaint is that the big boxes are getting the independent brands that were once only seen at IGCs. This is not a complaint gardeners will commonly make, especially those who do not have access to a wide selection of IGCs in their community. If the big boxes get better plants, it helps gardeners. Luckily, Im able to shop at 5-10 IGCs and locally-owned nurseries that have earned my loyalty. I know thats not the case for everybody.
The most interesting most hated trend was 7. Gen Y Getting Too Much Attention. This was more along the lines of hating having to learn about a new market. I can only judge by the younger gardeners (and non-gardeners) I know in Western New Yorkand I do know plenty. Basically, the ones who are getting into gardening are doing it for the same reason I started. They finally have a space where they can garden. And its true that a lot of them are more into growing foodas are we all.
Those of you who live in the Northeast should consider getting on the mailing list for Jane Millimans Ear to the Ground newsletter. Its where I saw this trend link, as well as a lot of other interesting pieces of news and garden industry gossip. Jane also edits the Upstate Gardeners Journal. Although some of the news is local, Ear to the Ground is entertaining and smartly put-together. So much better than the marketing crap I get in my mailbox daily. My trend requestmore like this!
P.S. Happy Earth Day, everyone! It would have been trendy to post an environment-themed rant today, but I will instead have one later this week.