I Can Only Imagine...

by Danny Summers

It is not easy to envision how a garden may develop or how a group of plants should be planted, and ultimately how they will look in a couple of years. A common example is seeing how many plants are installed too close to the house, only to be moved or even removed entirely just a few years later.

We can Imagine what many, if not most, consumers stress about when making these decisions. And if we think of our newest audiences, those younger with even less experience in plants and working in their gardens, there may even be increased stress levels. Most importantly, this stress can lead to not buying and planting at all!

We know many of our new audiences would rather "google" search for ideas and guidance than ask you even when they are in your Garden Center.

Just Imagine if we could give them more inspiration, a vision of what the plants could look like. I know some of you have the ability to illustrate what a planting could look like in a photo supplied by the customer through landscape software. But that's most likely a bigger project than most are thinking about.

A better approach might be to have smaller plant grouping ideas, either actual or through images in signage. And with the goal of turning product in mind (I hear Tim Quebedeaux talking now), the use of images makes more "cents." (pun intended)

Last summer, following Cultivate'23, I shared details of an effort by Monrovia to share ideas in some plant grouping inspiration in what they named Garden of Abundance, Romance, and Relaxation.

Last week, I asked Katie Tamony, Monrovia's Chief Marketing Officer, for more details about this effort. She said, "For each Garden Idea, we provide details from our research under a format of Why, Who, and How to Create."

Here's an example of the Why/Who/How for Garden of Abundance:

WHY: Growing interest in protecting pollinators is combining with the rise in popularity of meadow or native landscapes and edible ornamental shrubs and trees.

WHO: Younger homeowners and gardeners who want to grow their own food and embrace “whole earth” growing methods such as the use of organic products, improved soil health, and beneficial insects.

HOW TO CREATE: Combine colorful pollinator perennials with lush, ornamental edible perennials and trees in the landscape to create your own Garden of Eden.

• Unique fruit trees as statement plants
• Shrubs, such as blueberries, with beautiful foliage and fruit
• Herbs, such as rosemary, used for texture and form
• Grasses to create texture and home to birds
• A bright, diverse selection of colorful pollinator plants

Each of these Garden Ideas can help our audience to have confidence in creating a vision. For our Centers, this type of approach is not dependent on a particular plant but instead can be created with what the Center has available!

Incidentally, Katie also told me their annual research for this year was just completed in June, and she will be providing updated data and possibly even some new grouping ideas during her presentation at The Fall Event 2024!

(click on image above to open a full PDF of the ideas for 2024)

At Cultivate'24, Walters Gardens introduced a similar approach for their Proven Winners® Perennials.

It's called EZ Scape™.

I asked Christa Walters Steenwyk, Walters' VP of Sales and Marketing, about the ideas. She said,

"During the past 4 years we have had a surge in enthusiastic new gardeners eager to try their hand at gardening but unsure where to start. Our EZ Scape program is designed to simplify the progress, helping gardeners to create beautiful gardens with season long interest. When I share this concept with friends outside the industry who have recently taken up gardening, they rave about how it’s exactly what they needed to succeed. 

EZ Scapes are made up of 3-4 Proven Winners Perennials that have multi-seasons of interest, continuous blooms, complementary foliage and have similar growing conditions. Our EZ Scapes address various needs, including recipes that are deer-resistant, attract pollinators, thrive in clay soil, and more. Many Garden Centers that have showcased EZ Scapes displays report impressive results, with some experiencing up to a 50% increase in sales. We will keep promoting this concept through social media and other campaigns to reach more gardeners and support their success!"

When you visit the EZ Scapes web pages, you will see over 40 EZ Scapes combinations! For instance, you will find 3 Deer-Resistant Sun-Loving combinations shown below. And following the More button you will see details on each featured variety plant as well as a suggested planting, also shown below.

These types of ideas can help provide an easy way for your audience to visualize what these wonderful plants can look like in their garden. And of course, what a wonderful feeling it will be when you hear them say... I can really imagine!

Let's help them imagine!
As I typed these last few lines and the ideas above about creating images through signage to support the ideas, the breakout session Tom Kegley will present at The Fall Event 2024 during our Thinking Big Breakout Sessions came to mind...

Sign Up! Make the Most of Your In-Store Signage!

Watch for a blog article covering new projects Tom has created for Group Centers.