The Possibilities of Plants

By Danny Summers

If you were with us at TPIE 2022 last week, you will understand my thoughts in this message today. Let's begin by seeing if you agree with this statement:

"Interest in Plants and Gardening has never been higher."

This was very evident at TPIE. It seemed like around every corner I heard, "Oh wow" or "look at this" and I saw excitement in each buyer's eyes as they worked the show. Excitement is a great description of the world of Gardening today. The first photo above was from a so-called exotic tropical plant auction the New York Times reported on more than a year ago. It parallels the level of excitement I saw at TPIE on a wholesale level which can be seen in the next three photos above.

We had a record number of Retailers participating in the TPIE Cool Product Awards process this year and they nominated the largest number of products ever for consideration. I want to thank everyone who worked the show floor and shared their findings with fellow retailers. They discussed each plant or product and filtered them down to the top 15 to receive awards.

And even though these 15 are wonderful plants and products to recognize, we also know there are hundreds more available. A writer for a major news organization asked me last week if the excitement over new plants has increased. I told her I thought the industry has always been very interested in what's new but with an increased focus on gardening and plants, in general, the last two years has made that interest even greater.

I am excited to share with you the 15 Cool Product Awards Winners here today. I am only showing small images below. To see all the details be sure to download the full list that will be covered in the coming days by all three Garden Center publications. You get to see them early!

Ready to see all the details for the Cool Product Awards from TPIE 2022?

Download the PDF HERE!

UPDATE - February 14, 2022

I continue to follow coverage from our TPIE 2022 Cool Product Awards and this week we found several great videos to share with you. If you were not with us at TPIE these can add more detail to the Cool Product Award Winners as well as show how exciting the event is to attend (plug for next year... don't miss it)!

First is by Chris Beytes, Editor of Ball Publishing's GrowerTalks and GrowerTalks - Tropical Topics eNews. Join GrowerTalks editor Chris Beytes as he takes you through the colorful, plant-filled aisles of the annual Tropical Plant International Expo seeking out the "Cool Product Award" winners (plus he throws in a few hot picks of his own).

Next are videos by two of our award winners, Mossify and Aroid Greenhouses:

In the third and final episode of the Mossify Show at TPIE 2022, the Mossify guys play golf at one of the nicest golf courses in Tampa, Lucas opens up about his journey with Mossify, and Mossify wins the Cool Product Award at TPIE 2022 (Tropical Plant International Expo).

And next is a recap from Aroid Greenhouses and sisters Paula and Melody share details from their booth and the 2 Cool Product Awards they received.

And I want to say THANK YOU to all of our Retailers who participated in our Cool Product Awards search and judging! It is a fun and rewarding process. Watch for opportunities to participate at upcoming industry events!