Each year, Garden Media Group puts together a Garden Trends Report for the upcoming year, which highlights major shifts and things to look for in the gardening, horticulture, and nature-related areas of our life, especially those that work in these types of industries.
The Great Reset of 2021 had people switching up their lifestyles, making choices related to backyard gardening, moving to lower populated cities, and dimming the lights at night to help protect insect life.
As 2022 approaches, we’re coming into an era of personal freedom where many people will take some sort of leap they may not have had the courage to take in the past. According to Garden Media Group, this is where we will transition from the era of crisis into an era of innovation.
Zoning Board
People have been creating zones at home to optimize their gardening. Front yards are the first zone, as they are where you welcome friends without crossing your threshold. Curb appeal has been rising, but the front porch is the new destination for enjoyment, decoration, and planting.
Interestingly enough, social media mentions of front yard or front porch reached a 5 year high in 2021. Projects include painting shutters and doors, hanging outdoor curtains, building window boxes and planters, and planting trees. Hoping to refresh your outdoor spaces this year? Register for our upcoming Decorating Outdoor Living Spaces class in March!
When it comes to the indoor zones, like bedrooms, offices, and gathering spaces, houseplants are still a popular option. In 2022, people are grabbing plants that were popular in the 1970s – pothos, ficus, spider plants, African violets, ferns, and more.
Back to Basics
If there is any good that the pandemic has yielded, it’s that it’s given people the opportunity to pick up new hobbies. According to Garden Media Group, 18.3 million gardeners were gained. In addition to this, 75% of these new gardeners will keep growing after the pandemic and 78% of them don’t think you need a dedicated outdoor space to garden.
Two out of three attempted a new gardening-related activity with edible gardening as the most popular, but ornamental flower gardening is gaining ground.
Birding on the Rise
Whether people loved the outdoors or didn’t prior to the pandemic, birding is seeing quite the upward trend this year. As a matter of fact, sales of feeders and bird seed have been going through the roof, with 2.2 billion dollars in projected sales for 2021.
PC: C Gleason
The Cornell Lab of Ornithology has even observed the number of annual visits to their live bird cameras double, which is a gargantuan spike. Audubon’s Bird Guide App grew 81% as well, further exemplifying the discoveries and re-discoveries people have made with birding. What makes birding especially special is that it’s something that provides fun for people of all ages and levels.
Looking Out for Wildlife
Among the most promising trends, people have been made more aware regarding gardening practices that benefit the environment. In 2020, 67.2 million households purchased at least one plant because it benefited pollinators or birds. Interestingly enough, our fascination with birds increases our interest in plants.
PC: John Oates Photography
As a result, the National Wildlife Federation launched a Garden for Wildlife collection of keystone native plants. This garden attracts insects that feed a whopping 96% of backyard bird species. Caring for big, old trees is as important as planting new ones as trees provide food, shelter, and places for wildlife to raise their young.
Flowers are Soaring
Giving or receiving flowers triggers feel-good hormones. Believe it or not, our appreciation for them is growing! Catherine Ettman and her team at Boston University’s School of Public Health have studied the mental health effects of the pandemic since March of 2020. Unfortunately, depression rates had more than tripled. With such taxing times, getting in touch with nature has served as a useful outlet for many people to take their mind off of negativity.
PC: John Oates Photography
Flower sales in particular have skyrocketed. 2020 sales in the U.S reached $6.5 billion, while in 2021 sales have already gone up roughly 10%. With such as massive jump in such little time, it’s curious as to why this is. This growth can be partially attributed to TikTok design classes, The Big Flower Fight on Netflix, and Full Bloom on HBO Max.
What Flowers are Best?
Whether you’re an experienced gardener, a new gardener, or an aspiring gardener, you probably want to have an idea of what plants work best for what you’re trying to accomplish.
If you’re looking for spring cutting gardens, you might want to look into getting tulips, peonies, daffodils, bleeding hearts, etc. For summer, lilies, dahlias, phlox, coneflowers, and roses are just some of the many beautiful options. As for edible flowers, pansies, violets, herb flowers, and daylilies are among the most popular. Whatever or whenever you’re looking to grow, make it your own!
If you want to learn about more 2022 trends predicted by the Garden Media Group or dive deeper into what we’ve covered above, download the entirety of their report through their website!
