Friday, January 11, 2019

If your green thumb is itching to get going, get started by checking out some of the biggest gardening trends for the year ahead, as reported by pennlive.com:

Gardeners are getting younger. According to the 2018 national survey from Garden Research, the 18-to-34 millennial age group reached an all-time gardening high, with young males showing particular interest.

Gardeners are spending more. According to the same survey, Americans of all ages are investing more in gardening, spending a record-breaking $47.8 billion on lawn and garden products and services last year, or an average of $503 per household in 2018 – up nearly $100 from 2017. Two areas that showed a significant increase in spending: container gardening and landscaping services.

Environmentally friendly gardening. Gardeners are also enlisting more earth-friendly practices, such as composting, rain gardens, pollinator gardens and sustainable, low-care yards designed with native plants.

Techno-gardening. As in all areas of our lives, technology is also making an impact in gardening. Look for smartphone apps that ID plants, automated lawn mowers and smart technology that provides soil-nutrition and watering information. Taking it a step further, your landscaper may be using a drone to capture overhead images to better design your yard.

Houseplants on the rise. Green thumbs are also migrating indoors as witnessed by the rising interest in houseplants. In 2018, 30 percent of American households bought at least one houseplant, with millennials responsible for almost a third of those purchases, according to the National Gardening Association.

Planting more edibles. Another growing gardening trend for the year ahead will be planting more edibles, specifically fruits, vegetables and herbs, all of which have been making a big comeback in the last decade. Instead of relegating edibles to specific areas, however, today’s gardeners are mixing them in among their other plantings, adding interest and variety to flowering plants and greens.

Compact plants. Answering the desire to cut back on laborious maintenance work, compact plants are trending on this year’s gardening scene. Dwarf varieties of shrubs and perennials are rising in popularity as gardeners seeks to reduce pruning responsibilities.  

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